**2.1 Concept and evolution of innovation**

Innovation, a complex and multifaceted concept, has been extensively scrutinized across a myriad of academic disciplines [14]. Fundamentally, it involves the origination and implementation of novel ideas, practices, or products, thereby creating value [2]. This divergence from established norms can result in impactful outcomes. The varying types of innovation, each with their degrees of impact on existing products, processes, or markets, are crucial to understanding, establishing an innovation strategy, and managing an innovation ecosystem [15]. In the following, we describe three known types of innovation. Various authors have differentiated between radical and disruptive innovations, while others equate them. In our approach, we treat them distinctly.


Several theories delineate the dynamics of innovation. For instance, Schumpeter's theory of innovation emphasizes the role of entrepreneurs in driving innovation and subsequent economic and institutional growth [20], whereas Roger's diffusion of innovations theory explains how innovations proliferate through social networks over time [21]. However, others, like the absorptive capacity theory of Cohen and Levinthal [22], highlight the organization's ability to recognize, assimilate, and apply new knowledge. EDI also addresses this by involving all employees in this absorption process to improve innovation capability [6, 23].

The advent of digital technologies has fundamentally transformed the concept of innovation. Digital innovation refers to the creation of new products, services, processes, or business models that are based on digital technologies or created by the use of them [24, 25]. Digital innovations, unlike traditional innovations, are characterized by a higher degree of interconnectedness, speed, and scale [26]. This technological emergence has not only accelerated the pace of innovation cycles but also blurred the boundaries between these aforementioned kinds of innovation and introduced digital innovation management [24, 27]. For example, incremental innovation in a digital context can quickly scale and become disruptive due to the high connectivity and speed of the digital landscape [28].

As we examine EDI, the implications of digitalization should be considered due to its inherent progression and influence on potential and impact within organizations. For example, digital innovations have democratized the innovation process [29]. Firstly, digital technologies have enabled a wider range of individuals to participate in the innovation process [30]. Secondly, digital innovations are self-referential, serving

as both outcomes and enablers of further innovation [31]. Digital innovations are not only becoming increasingly accessible, but they are also fostering a culture of (open) innovation [32] that encourages transcending the boundaries of innovation ecosystems and cooperating and collaborating with actors outside the internal innovation process by sharing knowledge and integrating external expertise and creativity through this widespread participation [33].
