Hi Thomas, thank you very much for your insightful comment.

Absolutely, ecosystems need a clear value proposition removing an existing friction or addressing an unmet or new customer need. They also need a trustworthy orchestrator as well as capable complementors – both are essential. And, quite fundamentally, a long-term strategic outlook combined with a competitive mindset – something that should be incorporated by managers on all sides.

You might also want to have a look at our publication on how to design a business ecosystem (https://www.bcg.com/publications/2020/how-do-you-design-a-business-ecosystem) – where we elaborate more on what you should keep in mind when designing an ecosystem.

Two other important questions are how to manage a business ecosystem and how to measure its success over time. Something we are working on right now – stay tuned!