Bottom-up solutions in a time of crisis: the case of Covid-19 in South Korea

Abstract

Innovation systems have seen diverse actors attempting to tame the Covid-19 crisis, under varying degrees of government direction. Largely neglected in scholarly and public attention, however, are 'bottom-up' solutions arising from the periphery of innovation systems. Drawing on inductive case research on a fringe doctor who invented the idea of the drive-through testing system, and two university student teams that developed coronavirus applications, this study examines how peripheral actors generate innovative, bottom-up solutions at speed in a time of crisis. Our findings reveal that, in a crisis situation, bottom-up solutions transpire on the basis of three innovation drivers: (a) peripheral status, expediting the commence of innovation activities; (b) interdisciplinary collaboration, enabling access to a greater spectrum of knowledge and perspectives; and (c) prior knowledge, prescribing the direction of solution generation. We also identify that system intermediaries support the innovation activities of peripheral actors, thereby helping bottom-up solutions to become more customer facing. Such functions of intermediaries include demand articulation, technical assistance, and promulgation of generated solutions. Our findings offer theoretical implications for the literature on innovation in a time of crisis and practical implications for governments and organizations preparing themselves for the potential second wave of coronavirus emergencies, or even a completely new form of future crisis.