Open innovation, a concept rooted in the idea of strategic collaboration between large companies and startups, has taken a major place in the technological landscape in France. However, despite its increasing adoption, this model still encounters pitfalls that hinder its full progress. During a round table organized by Maddyness October 11, 2024 and hosted by Maxence Fabrion, Paul Jeannest, co-founder and CEO of RaiseLab, Alix Boulnois, Group Chief Business, Digital & Tech Officer Accor And Jean-Christophe Pitié, Chief Marketing & Partnerships Officer of ContentSquare, shared their analysis on the challenges and opportunities of open innovation in France.
The multiple paths of Open Innovation: different approaches and strategies
For Accor, the world's leading hospitality group, innovation is at the heart of its growth model. Alix Boulnois highlights that the company has adopted a diversified approach, integrating both strategic partnerships with startups, such as Next40, and capital investments in emerging technologies. The flexibility of this approach allows Accor to remain competitive by optimizing its internal processes while integrating external solutions.
Paul Jeannest explains that companies can navigate between internal (R&D, engineering and tech teams) and external options (partnerships or startup acquisitions) in a coherent manner and implement a more structured open innovation strategy. RaiseLab supports large organizations (large groups, ETI, public actors, etc.) in defining their innovation needs, by identifying the right alliances, then by supporting the operational implementation of these collaborations.
Jean-Christophe Pitié of ContentSquare, a French unicorn that allows brands to create better digital experiences on their websites, mobile phones and Apps for their users, explains that the challenge of open innovation often lies in aligning goals between startups and large groups. Slower decision-making cycles and regulatory requirements sometimes complicate the rapid adoption of new technologies, even when they are disruptive.
The challenge of corporate culture: aligning startups and large companies
One of the major obstacles to open innovation lies in the cultural differences between startups and large companies. As Alix Boulnois pointed out, it's not enough to find the right product; you also need to ensure that teams can work together with a shared vision.
” It is crucial to reconcile the agility of startups with the more rigid structure of large companies. Collaborations often fail when they fail to adapt their respective corporate cultures, even if the technological solutions themselves are perfectly adapted to the needs. ”, she explains.
Paul Jeannest supports these words by insisting on the need to include all stakeholders in the organization - the M&A, CVC, Innovation, Research & Development and Business Unit departments - from the beginning of the decision-making process. This makes it possible to avoid internal conflicts and to optimize the resources allocated to innovation projects.
Regulation: opportunity or barrier?
Jean-Christophe Pitié spoke about the complexity that regulatory compliance represents for startups in France, a recurring subject in the tech field. While regulations on data protection, security, and sustainability can pose considerable challenges, they are also opportunities for startups that can quickly comply with them. For Contentsquare, compliance with European standards has been a competitive advantage that has allowed them to differentiate themselves in the global market.
” Since the American market is much larger than the French market, France is our third market, while the United States already represents 50% of our turnover. ContentSquare is certainly a French unicorn, but to succeed, it is essential to remain pragmatic, to think globally from the start and to go international. ” explains Jean-Christophe Pitié.
Paul Jeannest expanded this discussion by talking about the link between the sustainability goals of large companies and open innovation. For him, the need to meet environmental goals by 2030 makes collaboration with startups, which have innovative solutions in the field of sustainable development, essential. RaiseLab has specialized in supporting its clients on these issues, by helping to identify partners capable of meeting strategic sustainability and ESG objectives.
” RaiseLab, as a company with a mission, now devotes two thirds of its customer projects to sustainability issues: traceability of resources, biomaterials, circularity, bio-based ingredients, etc. There is clearly a before and after in open innovation: these sustainability issues have made collaboration between major groups and startups essential. ”, he explains.
Moving from Proof of Concept (PoC) to large-scale deployment
Alix Boulnois explained that, in order to succeed in open innovation, it is necessary to go beyond the PoC (Proof of Concept) phase to achieve the industrialization of solutions, which is not always easy for startups that do not have the experience or the resources necessary to adapt to the multiple markets of a large international group. At Accor, the Covid-19 crisis has made it possible to develop internal initiatives and projects offering new technological solutions, such as the case of Fullsoon, a startup that emerged from an intrapreneurial project to manage food stocks using AI and which is now very successful with other major players in the restaurant industry.
For his part, Jean-Christophe Pitié insisted on the importance of Product-Market Fit and the acceptance of long decision-making cycles within large companies. Contentsquare's experience shows that it is essential to fully understand decision-making structures in order to address the right people and move forward in business discussions.
Unmissable opportunities for collaboration on sustainability and AI issues
The three speakers underlined the importance of artificial intelligence (AI) in open innovation strategies. For Accor, generative AI plays a key role in personalizing services for customers, in particular through the use of chatbots and automated marketing tools. In partnership with specialized startups, the group also uses AI solutions to, for example, optimize the energy management of its establishments, or design meals and menus that promote sustainable restaurant choices, as is the case with the startup. Klimato. Initiatives that are in line with its goals of sustainability and the reduction of its carbon footprint.
” We can indeed see that the demand for AI solutions is strong among our customers, in particular on the subjects of improving operational efficiency”, underlines Paul Jeannest.
The advice of the experts: invest more and more strategically
To conclude this round table, the speakers proposed some recommendations to maximize the effectiveness of open innovation in France:
- Alix Boulnois : “Don't overlook the cultural aspect. Create an environment where risk-taking is valued and where customer obsession guides strategic choices.”
- Jean-Christophe Pitié : “Keep a very open mind internally. Think of innovation beyond product and feature development. It may directly concern the business model, or other topics such as adapting to standards.”
- Paul Jeannest : “It is better to reduce the number of projects and allocate more resources to those that have a high potential to show tangible results. Do not work in silos, discuss these topics with all the departments concerned.”
Open innovation in France, a potential to be exploited
With initiatives such as “Je Choisis La French Tech”, which aims to double the use of startup solutions by public and private buyers by 2027, open innovation in France is on the right track, but there are still challenges to overcome in order to optimize this model of collaboration between startups and large companies. Regulations, cultural differences, and the transition from PoC to industrialization are known obstacles that can be turned into opportunities if businesses approach these challenges with a structured strategy and a culture that is open to collaboration. Concrete examples from Accor, ContentSquare and RaiseLab show that the key lies in the ability to balance the agility of startups with the robustness of large companies, while relying on strong partnerships, a shared vision and a good allocation of resources.
It is essential that businesses in France continue to invest in strategic collaborations, to experiment with new approaches and to maintain an open mind in the face of market developments and social, environmental and governance issues.
