The role of linked data and semantic-technologies for sustainability idea management

Abstract

Idea Management Systems (IMS) manage the innovation life-cycle from the moment of invention until ideas are implemented in the market. During the life-cycle the IMS supports collaboration, allows idea enrichment with comments, contextual data, or connected to other relevant ideas. Semantic technologies can improve the knowledge management capabilities of IMSs allowing relevant information to be easily linked to ideas. Many Enterprises concerned with sustainability encourage employee's participation as a means to boost creative innovation within their Sustainability Initiatives. However little work has examined the role of an IMS within Sustainability. In this paper we analyse the impact of a semantic-enabled IMS within a sustainability innovation process. In particular, how ideas can be enriched with contextual Linked Open Data (LOD), especially Life-Cycle Assessment (LCA) data, to improve the understanding, implication and value of the idea from the sustainability perspective. © 2014 Springer International Publishing.