Shu-Ling Lu & Martin Sexton 
Innovation in Small Professional Practices in the Built Environment 

From the book’s Foreword by Trevor Mole, Managing Director,
Property Tectonics; President of the European Association of
Building Surveyors and Construction Experts:

‘Shu-Ling and Martin have built on their research work
and that of others to produce an understandable and readable
insight into innovation in small professional service firms. They
have successfully unravelled the complex behavioural and
organisational forces taking place and created a framework to help
practitioners understand the issues and to fashion the right
environment in which to foster innovation and deliver economic
value.’

Small professional practices in the built environment are
crucial to the success and long-term viability of the design,
construction and property industries. This research-based book
addresses the urgent need to better understand the nature and
process of innovation in these important firms.

The authors offer an analysis of both why and how
innovation is a key competitive factor for small professional
practices in the built environment. As these practices are located
in different business environments and behave in different ways to
other types of industry firms, the context-specific methodology to
design, implement and assess innovation in small professional
practices presented in this book will appeal to researchers and
practitioners in surveying and design.

Innovation in Small Professional Practices in the Built
Environment makes a significant contribution to an
underdeveloped area of innovation by offering new theoretical and
practical insights and models grounded in results from a 22-month
case study of a small professional practice.

Зміст

About the Authors.

Foreword by Trevor Mole.

Chapter 1 Introduction.

1.1 Background.

1.2 Research Problem.

1.3 Summary and Link.

Chapter 2 Key Issues from the Literature.

2.1 Introduction.

2.2 Conceptualisation of Small Professional Practices.

2.3 Definitional Debate on Innovation.

2.4 Market- and Resource-Based View of Innovation.

2.5 Knowledge-Based View of Innovation.

2.6 Key Managerial Challenges for Innovation.

2.7 Key Research Questions.

2.8 Summary and Link.

Chapter 3 Knowledge-Based Innovation Model.

3.1 Introduction.

3.2 Description of Knowledge-Based Innovation Model.

3.3 Continuous Improvement Gap Analysis Framework.

3.4 Research Hypotheses.

3.5 Summary and Link.

Chapter 4 Case Study Methodology.

4.1 Introduction.

4.2 Overall Research Process.

4.3 Case Study Design.

4.4 Research Techniques: Qualitative Data Collection
Techniques.

4.5 Research Techniques: Qualitative Data Analysis
Techniques.

4.6 Validation – Triangulation Strategy.

4.7 Summary and Link.

Chapter 5 Case Study – Exploratory Phase.

5.1 Introduction.

5.2 Background of the Case Study Company.

5.3 Case Study Firm Perception of Knowledge, Innovation, HC, SC
and RC.

5.4 Description of Identified Company Innovations.

5.5 Mode 1: Explorative Innovation Analysis.

5.6 Mode 2: Exploitative Innovation Analysis.

5.7 Summary and Link.

Chapter 6 Case Study – Action Research Phase.

6.1 Introduction.

6.2 Diagnosis.

6.3 Action Planning.

6.4 Action Taking.

6.5 Action Evaluation.

6.6 Specifying Learning.

6.7 Summary and Link.

Chapter 7 Discussion.

7.1 Introduction.

7.2 Types of Knowledge-Based Innovation.

7.3 Hypothesis 1: Knowledge-Based Resources.

7.4 Hypothesis 2: Capabilities.

7.5 Meta-Hypothesis: Knowledge Capital.

7.6 Summary and Link.

Chapter 8 Conclusions.

8.1 Introduction.

8.2 Contribution to Innovation Theory.

8.3 Comment on Research Problem.

8.4 Comment on Research Questions.

8.5 Key Limitations and Future Research.

8.6 Theoretical and Practical Implications.

8.7 Policy Implications.

References.

Appendices.

Appendix A: List of Company Documentation.

Appendix B: Cooperation Proposal.

Appendix C: Interview Cooperation Proposal.

Appendix D: Interview Protocol.

Appendix E: Company General Finding Report.

Index.

Про автора

Dr Shu-Ling Lu, Lecturer, School of the Built
Environment, University of Salford, United Kingdom.

Professor Martin Sexton, Professor of Construction
Management and Innovation, School of Construction Management and
Engineering, University of Reading, United Kingdom.