Innovative Security Business: Innovation, Standardization, and Industry Dynamics in the Swedish Security Sector, 1992-2012

Trough the study of the Swedish security guard industry and security sector, 1992-2012, this doctoral dissertation addresses innovation output and standardization in industries where innovation output normally is considered sparse. In contrast to much previous research, and in line with recent calls for multiple innovation measurements, innovation is considered through the lens of multiple, longitudinal innovation indicators.

The importance of multiple indicators is particularly apparent when dealing with temporal patterns of innovation output in the present study. Different approaches for measuring innovation show distinctly different temporal patterns of innovation, bearing different implications on the relationship between innovation output and industry development and dynamics.

The dissertation contributes to and challenges conventional knowledge on industry patterns of innovation and the role of innovation in service, mature, and low-tech industries. It furthermore adds to the literature on the relationship between innovation and standardization, and to the methodological discussion on innovation indicators.

David Birksjö is a researcher in Business studies, innovation and entrepreneurship at Södertörn University.