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Project Gutenberg (PG) is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, as well as to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks." It was founded in 1971 by American writer Michael S. Hart and is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of books or individual stories in the public domain. All files can be accessed for free under an open format layout, available on almost any computer. , Project Gutenberg had reached 50,000 items in its collection of free eBooks. The releases are available in as well as other formats, such as HTML, PDF, EPUB, MOBI, and Plucker wherever possible. Most releases are in the English language, but many non-English works are also available. There are multiple affiliated projects that provide additional content, including region- and language-specific works. Project Gutenberg is closely affiliated with Distributed Proofreaders, an Internet-based community for proofreading scanned texts. Project Gutenberg is named after the inventor Johannes Gutenberg, whose works in developing printing technology led to an increase in the mass availability of books and other text. Michael S. Hart began Project Gutenberg in 1971 with the digitization of the United States Declaration of Independence. Hart, a student at the University of Illinois, obtained access to a Xerox Sigma V mainframe computer in the university's Materials Research Lab. Through friendly operators, he received an account with a virtually unlimited amount of computer time; its value at that time has since been variously estimated at

100,000 or

100,000,000. Hart explained he wanted to "give back" this gift by doing something one could consider to be of great value. His initial goal was to make the 10,000 most consulted books available to the public at little or no charge by the end of the 20th century. On July 4, 1971, after being inspired by a free printed copy of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, he decided to type the text into a computer, and to transmit it to other users on the computer network.

A Digital Platform connecting Academia and Small Businesses: An opportunity for Knowledge Management Experiments

Quentin Adrien Cavillier

Digital transformation is one of the biggest phenomena of this decade. One enabler of this revolution was cloud computing. Today, software engineers can deliver software as a service (SaaS), which is accessible to users through the Internet. Slack, Shopify, and Dropbox are examples of successful SaaS. We are experiencing an emergence of numerous small web applications with easy-to-use features for specific domains such as project management, accounting, resources management, customer relationships, and so forth. Thus, SaaS has been recognised as particularly well suited for the digital journey of small enterprises. However, surveys conducted by governmental agencies reveal a low adoption rate of SaaS by small enterprises in traditional sectors such as construction, services, and dealership. Previous studies have highlighted a lack of top management support, a weak relative advantage perceived, and a lack of knowledge as the key reasons for this low level of adoption. Whilst academic research defines these critical factors, it has not found potential solutions to mitigate them. Thus, this thesis presents two exploratory studies to enhance the adoption of digital practices by small traditional enterprises (STEs). A first study explored the value of leading collaborative projects between students and STEs about the assessment of SaaS solutions. A secondary objective of this initiative was the design of a platform acting as an open innovation platform. A three-year study allowed the completion of thirty-nine projects and the testing of two different platform designs. The feedback from students demonstrated the value of a well-structured platform composed of different management models for each project phase. Furthermore, 67 per cent of the STEs involved on the platform acknowledged the value of such collaborative projects. However, the collaborations did not improve top management support, and projects tended to stagnate because of various organisational factors. A second study, using a mixed-methods research design, was performed to explore the relations amongst the organisational factors acting as enablers and barriers to the digitalisation of STEs. The objective was to improve understanding of TSEs' situation and devise a proposition to enhance top management support. An academic contribution of this study was the design and application of a conceptual framework combining organisational factors from the literature on dynamic capabilities, organisational inertia, and intellectual capital. The combination of the qualitative observations and quantitative results highlighted the importance of the sensing and leadership capabilities for STE directors. They also revealed the mediator effect of the relational capability on the development of these latter. Therefore, this thesis makes important contributions to the literature on open innovation by defining a new field for leading knowledge management experiments. It also contributes to develop a comprehensive overview of the organisational factors affecting STEs' adoption. A further major contribution is the potential value of the digital platform to innovate the services of practitioners, such as governmental agencies and consultants, that support STEs on their digital transformation journey. In conclusion, this research is valuable in opening the discussion about potential innovations that might reshape the relationship academia-business.

EPFL2019

Innovation capacity of the agricultural sector: network of productive interactions, knowledge transfer and differentiation mechanisms

Camille Marguerite Aouinait

Economic growth is increasingly explained and driven by knowledge acquisition and firmsâ capabilities to adapt to new evolving situations to fit economic, societal and environmental frames. Strategic behavior of private companies in differentiating and promoting their products and services is crucial for their competitiveness. In parallel, public research performed at different territorial levels and by a high diversity of actors is a strategic source of key assets adding value to the firms. External actors operate in a non-linear structure allowing frequent feedback and interactive loops in order to optimise the replies to substantial problems and constantly valorise their resources. These features are explored in the thesis through different projects. This dissertation is motivated by international negotiations in the frame of the GATT agreements and bilaterally between the European Union and Switzerland that are going towards the breakdown of borders, threatening the competitiveness of the Swiss agriculture. Negative externalities will affect small firms composing this agricultural network. Thus, the dissertation is focusing on innovation as a strategic asset to maintain the competitiveness and differentiate the domestic agricultural products. The first research project concentrates on interactions occurring in the Swiss apricot network. We investigate the types of interactions producing innovations that come from different sources that are internal or external to the agricultural production supply chain. We use network theory to model the structure of the domain and understand what is inherent to innovation production thanks to collaborations through an empirical work. In the second research project, we examine whether there is a connection between the issues faced by small companies producing food and the innovative solutions and knowledge generated by research institutions. The importance of solutions to daily activities conducted by companies depends on the nature of the sector. Thus, research projects providing outputs like publications might not specifically target these issues. Moreover, access, awareness and affordability of innovations can be hindering factors for small firms composing a low-technology intensive sector. Gaps of knowledge transfer, innovation and implementation are identified in this setting. In the last research project, we address market failures hampering economic and strategic management decisions encountered in the agricultural sector. We empirically construct two case studies highlighting the necessity of intellectual appropriation mechanisms. We explore the use of patents and regional trademark to add value to the emblematic product of a small region. Organisational and marketing innovations have to be supported and diffused by key stakeholders, aiming a good communication based on criteria that take into account diverse interests of those stakeholders; consumers have to be involved in the innovation process. Furthermore, knowledge transfer, innovation generation, diffusion and implementation rely upon the will of stakeholders to take part in an efficient process of interactions and communication in order to produce and perform useful products and services. Practical implications are levered in the projects presented. Finally, digital technologies are efficient for information exchange and can decrease time and transaction costs. These technologies are explored as part of the solution to small firmsâ

EPFL2019

A Digital Platform connecting Academia and Small Businesses: An opportunity for Knowledge Management Experiments

Quentin Adrien Cavillier

EPFL2019

Innovation capacity of the agricultural sector: network of productive interactions, knowledge transfer and differentiation mechanisms

Camille Marguerite Aouinait

EPFL2019