Purpose: This article proposes a Multilayer Network (MLN) model for studying business ecosystems. The model focuses on the flows of products, services and money between buyers and sellers, emphasizing that these flows form both actor-level and emergent system-level ecosystem structures. Design/methodology/approach: The article examines two case studies of real estate owners and their suppliers, using financial transaction data to provide a detailed, data-driven view of business ecosystems. Findings: The study advances real estate theory by deepening research on the digitalization of real estate owners, especially on their enterprise architectures and supplier networks. Despite size differences, both case firms have similar, complex supplier-network structures. The findings may inform enterprise architecture management and procurement practices in the real estate sector. Originality/value: The MLN model defines terminology for ecosystem layers and provides methods for establishing ecosystem boundaries. This aligns with the micro-level critique in management and ecosystems research. We conclude by highlighting that event data, when available, can enhance future business ecosystem analysis by enabling the study of broader ecosystem structures with the MLN model.

The architecture, engineering and construction sector has long been known for its traditional methods and slow adoption of innovations. However, technologies such as Internet of Things, Big Data, Artificial Intelligence and robotics have led to significantly increased development and use of innovative tools and processes in the architecture, engineering and construction sector. This article presents the results of an explorative online survey of the sector's entrepreneurial ecosystem carried out in spring 2023. It aims to identify the most promising technologies, quantify their potential, and investigate the dynamics of startups' collaboration with academia. The results show that most startups focus on addressing the construction phase (76.1%) of the building life cycle, while only 15.9% deal with the end-of-life phase. Developed technologies most commonly include Data analytics and Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning. While 64% of startups consider collaboration with academia important, respondents identified several barriers and challenges of collaborating, such as bureaucracy and time-consuming processes. We conclude with a discussion on entrepreneurial ecosystems and academia-startup collaboration.

Digitalization in the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) sector is slow due to significant challenges in technology adoption. The study aims to promote technology adoption by advancing the understanding of digital technologies in the AEC sector. This article presents the findings from a quantitative scoping review, encompassing 3950 technology-related abstracts retrieved from the Scopus database, providing a preliminary assessment of literature size, geographic innovation hotspots, research gaps, and key concepts in the AEC field. The results show that Building Information Modelling (1852 studies) dominates the literature, while topics like 3D Printing (311) and Internet of Things (227) are gaining traction. China (687 publications) and the United States (566) produce most research articles. Despite the increasing interest in emerging technologies, their implementation often necessitates acquiring specific skill sets. Academia needs to put a stronger focus on these technologies in education and tighter collaboration with the industry is needed.

To solve grand challenges, the collaboration between construction management and urban development professionals is essential. This article proposes that ecosystem conceptualizations can enhance our understanding of collaboration, but how these concepts contribute to this field is unclear. Therefore, a literature review is presented on how ecosystem concepts are operationalized in construction management and urban development research. The article classifies conceptualizations into seven categories and analyzes their potential for contributions to ecosystem theorizing. An ecosystem research agenda is developed, arguing that it can serve as a theoretical bridge between these disciplines. The article also highlights how research on ecosystems in the built environment sector can contribute to management and organization research fields more broadly. Notably, conceptualizations of ecosystems as project-based or location-based are valuable contributions to ecosystem research.

Robo-advisors, also known as robo-advisory services, significantly reshape customer service in financial advisory industries, transforming retail investor markets by substituting human financial advisory experts with artificial intelligence empowered services. However, existing literature remains scattered across disciplines, with theories on financial customer service predominantly focused on Internet banking, neglecting artificial intelligence empowered interactions. Thus, service providers need a framework for implementing robo-advisors in frontline service and researchers require an advanced agenda to stimulate future research. Through a systematic, interdisciplinary literature review based on Belanche et al.’s service robot framework, this article contextualizes service robot theories into financial advisory services, synthesizing knowledge on artificial intelligence empowered customer service. We contribute to literature on service robots by contextualizing, refining, and extending the original framework by Belanche et al. and by developing a research agenda with critical perspectives. Moreover, the study yields practical and theoretical insights into artificial intelligence empowered financial advisory services.

While real estate owners play a significant role in advancing digitalization and sustainability within the sector, there's limited understanding of their innovation processes. This article aims to increase understanding on the innovation processes and dynamic capabilities in real estate owner organizations. The article examines a longitudinal case study within a prominent Swedish real estate owner known for significant investments in smart building technologies. Despite these investments, practical benefits face hurdles, reflecting broader challenges in real estate sector digitalization projects. These obstacles include top-down innovation focus, limited cross-functional and user-centric innovation, innovation process discontinuities, ambiguous innovator roles, hierarchical communication, resource constraints, and uncertainties in technology implementation. The study emphasizes the inclusion of diverse perspectives in innovation processes and suggests further research on organizational and user-centric aspects. It contributes to real estate and facility management literature by proposing potential solutions to innovation processes, offering valuable insights for industry practitioners and researchers alike.

This paper presents a research agenda for Social Network Analysis (SNA) in Digitalization in Sustainable Built Environment research (DSBE). The paper contains a description of SNA, and reviews the use of SNA in DSBE research. Also, the paper identifies future research challenges that SNA can help resolve. A literature review of DSBE finds that of 506 articles in 36 journals, only 1 article includes SNA. This is surprising, given the growing interest in SNA in digitally related fields. We review the 506 DSBE articles and analyze how SNA can contribute to the field. To understand how SNA can be used in DSBE research, we also analyze how SNA has been applied in Digitalization in Built Environment research that is not focused on sustainability. Findings are that SNA can be a useful and powerful tool, because it can help in analysis of how multiple actors interact, which is a common theme in built environment research. An example is that architects, contractors, and developers are separate actor groups that can improve sustainable solutions through networked cooperation. Another area in which SNA can advance research is in the study of how actor networks of companies or people relate to networks of data or physical buildings or sensors. An example is that actors may change their behavior based on sensor data, and SNA can study sensor data networks and actor behavior networks as interconnected layers. Methodological advances are key to advancing research to meet sustainability challenges. Specifically, SNA can make it possible for the built environment area to advance sustainability and digitalization research, because SNA has a rich array of empirical and conceptual tools for the study of networks.

Introduction: Decision-makers' perceptions, influenced by institutional and organizational pressures, shape sustainability action. However, the current body of research on the impact of these pressures within the real estate sector, particularly among real estate owner organizations, remains limited.Research argument:This explorative study fills the research gap by providing empirical findings and theoretical interpretation that explains the influence and outcomes of institutional pressures on decision-making processes.Methodological approach:Explorative surveys and interviews were conducted with asset managers in Sweden to understand their sustainability perceptions and actions within the real estate sector.Main findings:The study found a notable shift in sustainability perceptions among asset managers in Sweden, with most recognizing sustainability as critical for commercial real estate, challenging the notion of their passivity and highlighting their proactive engagement. Economic incentives significantly influence sustainability actions, with top priorities being energy efficiency and renewable energy due to their positive business impact. Other sustainability actions are also important but not prioritized to the same extent, revealing specific priorities within real estate owner organizations, an area less explored in prior research.Conclusion:The article proposes a theoretical framework to guide future research on how institutional and organizational mechanisms shape decision-makers' sustainability perceptions, guiding sustainability action. Understanding these mechanisms is essential for implementing Sustainable Development Goals in practice across industries.

Innovation in the built environment has taken giant leaps in the past decade. To manage digital transformation, new innovation leaders have risen to the forefront of industry development. Based on a global survey of 176 innovation leaders, and seven interviews with the survey respondents, this report is a comprehensive study of the roles of innovation leaders in the industry.

The report is structured around five themes and recommendation for organizing digital transformation in the built environment: 1: The survey results show that cultural barriers prevent a broader acceptance of innovations in the industry. Therefore, we see that cultural change should be identified as a key objective in strategy. Our first recommendation is to make cultural change a priority in transformation work. This has major implications for how the roles of innovators should be seen in the industry.

2: The survey results show that innovation is a part-time role in the sector, and that innovation work suffers from resource scarcity. As innovation is a challenging task that requires expertise, time and other resources, our second recommendation to innovation leaders is that you should demand that your role has a full-time focus on innovation. Effective digital transformation and cultural change are only possible with sufficient resources and commitment.

3: The survey results show that innovation work is gaining maturity and recognition, which could be further improved by harmonizing the innovator role titles and descriptions. Our third recommendation to innovation leaders is that the nature of your team and your job title should sit within the “change” or “transformation” mandate. These descriptors would establish that the aim of digital transformation is about the wider mentality change and acceptance of innovations within the industry.

4: The survey results show that the role of innovation leaders should be about change and digital transformation, rather than technologies as such. Furthermore, role differentiation may prevent commoditization of the knowledge related to the role of innovators, which may lead to higher salaries. Our fourth recommendation is that innovation leaders should take the role of strategists and orchestrators of digital transformation, or be sidelined.

5: The survey results show that innovation leaders are key personnel for their firms today and that they are on a track to advance to top management positions in the future. Also, experience in digital transformation will increasingly be needed in the senior leadership in the future. Therefore, our fifth recommendation for innovation leaders is to be prepared to become leaders in the built environment sector more broadly, beyond digital transformation. 

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to increase the knowledge of real estate firms’ capabilities to innovate and, consequently, their capacity to absorb new innovations and benefit from digital technologies in an ecosystem context. Design/methodology/approach: The results are based on 32 interviews with representatives of Swedish real estate owners, real estate owner industry associations and suppliers of digital technology to real estate owners. The data are interpreted using theories on absorptive capacity (i.e. the capacity to absorb new innovations), innovation capabilities and innovation ecosystems. Findings: The real estate owners, technology suppliers and real estate owner industry associations have expanded their innovation capabilities and reshaped their innovation ecosystem by initiating a number of different digitalization activities; for example, the development of new IT systems, digital platforms, services and business models. The absorptive capacity has been improved as the organizations have changed routines and structures related to innovation, and they have taken on new roles related to digitalization and innovation, making them better able to absorb new innovations. Also, this paper identifies several drivers and obstacles to digitalization in the real estate sector. Research limitations/implications: The increased capabilities related to digitalization can lead to better absorptive capacity on an individual firm level, which can contribute to the overall development of these firms in a longer-term. Also, new capabilities may lead to better absorptive capacity in the real estate sector at large, as firms may benefit from each other’s capabilities through collaboration. The limitations are that this study does not interview tenants or facility management firms and that the findings represent the context of the Swedish real estate market. Originality/value: This paper investigates innovation capabilities, absorptive capacity and innovation ecosystems of real estate owners, their technology suppliers and real estate owner industry associations on the organizational level and on the sector level, into which there is little previous research. Also, this paper highlights the novelty of digitalization as a phenomenon in the sector.