Conclusions
Our research reflects on a significant problem of contemporary management, the valuation of innovation projects with high uncertainty. Valuation itself has many theoretical, methodological and practical issues. We have highlighted that, in many cases, the valuation issue hides broader organizational and managerial aspects related to RI management and legitimacy. By in-depth case studies analysis, we argue that managers search for RO as a form to deal with the “paradox of organizational fit”. When implementing RO, however, they may face the “newness prison”. RO Structuring and RO Integration are alternatives to mitigate such problems. Our research has some limitations, which can be seen as opportunities for further research. First, the limited number of cases. Second, caution is required in not confusing RO as a valuation tool and RO as an aid to structure projects. We highlight the problem of legitimacy in RI management, and we explore the possibilities set by RO Reasoning to counter the problem. However, RO Reasoning is not an exclusive method to contour the legitimation problem, and probably not the best. Legitimation is a complex issue, involving many aspects of the organization and its culture. Anyway, we have laid one stone to aid the building of the cathedral of RI management systems.
