Digital innovations in the Czech Republic: developing the inner circle of the Triggering Change Model

Abstract

Purpose: To assess how the primary actors within farmers’ microAKIS (self-assembled knowledge networks) changed as a technology evolved, utilising a case study of precision farming. Methodology: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 35 farmers in two Czech Regions. Findings: The evolution of digital technologies led to an ongoing, incremental pattern of innovation, where innovating (pioneering) and early-adopting farmers experimented and developed new uses for the technologies. Technology suppliers were identified as the most important information sources, but pioneering farmers often exceeded advisors’ knowledge through farmers’ own experimentation, reflecting highly educated farm staff and the Czech history of on-farm experimentation. Pioneering farmers engaged in reciprocal advisory relationships. Practical Implications: There may be limited demand for ‘independent’ advice on digital technological issues from large-scale farms. Smaller farms struggled to access both the technology and the advice because technical advice was dependent on prospective equipment purchase. Theoretical Implications: Integration of the microAKIS concept and Triggering Change Model demonstrated how the characteristics of the innovation–particularly mutability–influence the role of advisors. Originality: Findings advanced the Triggering Change Model by applying it to digital technological innovations and developing the inner circle of ‘co-innovation’, whereby advances to technologies are evaluated and integrated on an ongoing basis.