New Productive Technological and Relational Models. a Survey on ICT Entrepreneurs.

The intertwining of social and telematics networks gives rise to a socio-technical system, which makes it easier to boost forms of activation of individuals and groups and to build networks for producing and exchanging knowledge. This provide new and different organizational and relational approaches useful for the growth of technological, human and social capital. In particular it is growing a new mode of innovating, based on less competitive logic that traditional industrial one which is especially useful for the growth of the digital economy. The importance of new organizational and relational models as leverage to promote economic and social innovation will be discussed on the basis of the results of a qualitative research conducted in Piedmont on a sample of 64 ICT entrepreneurs. Among the surveyed entrepreneurs, those from the ICT sector who develop open source software and Web 2.0 services, products and applications tend in particular to embrace a collective, cooperative and open innovation strategy. For these entrepreneurs, more than for others, innovation has been an opportunity to respond to the economic crisis, overcoming difficulties, obstacles and uncertainties through co-working and co-innovation practices. It would highlight that the ability to combine technological innovation with social innovation by instituting a communication process that is open to dialog and sharing with other actors and users could create a virtuous circle that can benefit an area’s growth. In fact, the combination of technological and social density could give a competitive edge to innovative businesses, which could thus set up networks with customers, other firms, and research centers, nurturing an atmosphere that is favorable to innovation. This could be beneficial for not only innovative entrepreneurs, the communities around them and the settings in which they operate, but also for the broader group of subjects who work in a given area.