“In-Between Spaces” for Collaborative Innovation: Elucidating Interrelated Relational Spaces

Abstract – When organizations join forces to collaborate for creativity and innovation, they embark on a journey in a “space in-between, ” created through their interaction with other collaborating organizational actors. This organizational space is not a pre-existing physical container, rather it should be understood as a moving and evolving process. In-between spaces are relational spaces of becoming, embracing disorder and ambiguity, created through social relationships. As such, in-between spaces also imply a state of “liminality” where boundaries, actor motives and mandates are often unclear and fluid, which can make it difficult for practitioners to navigate the continuously negotiated collaborative relationships. This paper explores the multitude of relationships in spaces in-between, drawing on studies of triple-helix collaborations in Northern Europe. Grounded in research on organizational spaces and collaborative relationships, the paper outlines three distinct spaces nuancing our understanding of interactions in in-between spaces: the member space, the learning space, and the delivery space. This paper articulates what separates these spaces, discusses the interrelation of the spaces, and problematizes the sustaining of spaces over time. The implications of the variety of collaborative relationships in spaces in-between are outlined, contributing to further theorizing of collaborative innovation.