Role and Challenges of Intermediaries in Industrial Symbiosis NetworksJulia Kroschewski

15. Februar 2017

Purpose

Industrial Symbiosis is regarded as a key tool for advancing the transition to a circular economy. Yet, despite economic and environmental potential, its realization has fallen short of expectations and many attempts to realize industrial ecosystems have failed. Meanwhile, both academics and practitioners have begun to acknowledge the importance of intermediaries, labelling them as ‘lubricants’. However, little is known regarding intermediation in industrial symbiosis. Hence, the purpose of this study is to examine the intermediation process and to answer the question of how intermediaries foster industrial symbiosis.

Methodology

Following the approach of analytic induction, this study draws on qualitative data, gathered from 12 in-depth interviews with knowledgeable agents, as well as from complementary secondary resources. The combination of inductive and deductive elements allowed to develop an empirically grounded theoretical framework, which has been validated by two additional discussions, covering both theoretical and practical perspectives.

Major findings

The findings allowed to identify a stable set of 15 roles that are embedded in a dynamic process of intermediation in industrial symbiosis. Each role is either taken by intermediaries or industry actors, depending on capabilities and resources. Additionally, the roles can be divided by the level of intermediation and the concentration of interest. Of particular novelty was the identification of the Translator. This complementary role describes a facet of three distinctive roles and turned out to be required for linking the network level and the meta level of intermediation.

Originality

The model of intermediation in industrial symbiosis could be used as a conceptual resource. Scholars could use it for a more systematic and differentiated exploration of intermediation in industrial symbiosis and to further examine the interrelations, especially with regards to industry actors. Practitioners could use it to evaluate the ‘big picture’: it supports governmental initiatives to plan, manage and fund intermediation, or intermediaries to position themselves purposefully and to detect changes that may affect them. Thus, the model aims to increase the effectiveness of intermediation efforts.