Does crowdsourcing as part of user-driven innovation activity affect its results? : an empirical analysis of R&D departments in Poland

Entrepreneurs have long been convinced about the power and possibilities of the Internet. Nowadays, the Internet is an integral tool for the functioning of a company, not only as an alternative distribution channel, but also as a channel of information and communication flow, a means of interaction with the environment. The increasing use of the Internet, and especially of social media, made it possible to escalate the activity of various social groups in various areas of the company’s activity, including innovation, leading to the development of crowdsourcing. Crowdsourcing has redefined the existing production rules and ways of using labor resources. Its potential lies in openness, partnership, resource sharing and global action. There are already many studies on crowdsourcing and innovation, but little attention is paid to the relationship between crowdsourcing and the determinants of innovation activity. Thus, the aim of this research is examining whether the use of crowdsourcing while cooperating with product users in accordance with the concept of user-driven innovation (UDI) has an impact on selected aspects of innovative activity. An original questionnaire was used for the study. Fifty-seven R&D departments in Poland participated in the research. For the purpose of the analysis, the Kendall and V-Cramer tau correlation coefficient was used. These methods are complemented by the Ward agglomeration method. The research results show a cooperation with consumer results in the development of innovative activities in the studied R&D departments of enterprises in Poland. Using crowdsourcing results in the introduction of more product innovations, the introduction of new or significantly improved technological processes, as well as the implementation of a greater number of research and development projects.