Unbundling dynamic capabilities for inter-organizational collaboration

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore two distinct subsets of dynamic capabilities that need to be deployed when pursuing innovation through inter-organizational activities, respectively, in the contexts of broad networks and specific alliances. The authors draw distinctions and explore potential interdependencies between these two dynamic capability reservoirs, by integrating concepts from the theoretical perspectives they are derived from, but which have until now largely ignored each other – the social network perspective and the dynamic capabilities view. Design/methodology/approach The authors investigate nanotechnology-driven R&D activities in the 1995–2005 period for 76 publicly traded firms in the electronics and electrical equipment industry and in the chemicals and pharmaceuticals industry, that applied for 580 nanotechnology-related patents and engaged in 2,459 alliances during the observation period. The authors used zero-truncated Poisson regression as the estimation method. Findings The findings support conceptualizing dynamic capabilities as four distinct subsets, deployed for sensing or seizing purposes, and across the two different inter-organizational contexts. The findings also suggest potential synergies between these subsets of dynamic capabilities, with two subsets being more macro-oriented (i.e. sensing and seizing opportunities within networks) and the two other ones more micro-oriented (i.e. sensing and seizing opportunities within specific alliances). Practical implications The authors show that firms differ in their subsets of dynamic capabilities for pursuing different types of inter-organizational, boundary-spanning relationships (such as alliances vs broader network relationships), which ultimately affects their innovation performance. Originality/value The authors contribute to the growing body of work on dynamic capabilities and firm-specific advantages by unbundling the dynamic capability subsets, and investigating their complex interdependencies for managing different types of inter-organizational linkages. The main new insight is that the “linear model” of generating more innovations through higher inter-firm collaboration in an emerging field paints an erroneous picture of how high innovation performance is actually achieved

Coping with Problems of Understanding in Interorganizational Relationships: Using Formalization as a Means to make Sense

Research into the management of interorganizational relationships has hitherto primarily focused on problems of coordination, control and to a lesser extent, legitimacy. In this article, we assert that partners cooperating in such relationships are also confronted with ‘problems of understanding’. Such problems arise from differences between partners in terms of culture, experience, structure and industry, and from the uncertainty and ambiguity that participants in interorganizational relationships experience in early stages of collaboration. Building on Karl Weick’s theory of sensemaking, we advance that participants in interorganizational relationships use formalization as a means to make sense of their partners, the interorganizational relationships in which they are engaged and the contexts in which these are embedded so as to diminish problems of understanding. We offer a systematic overview of the mechanisms through which formalization facilitates sensemaking, including: (1) focusing participants’ attention; (2) provoking articulation, deliberation and reflection; (3) instigating and maintaining interaction; and (4) reducing judgment errors and individual biases, and diminishing incompleteness and inconsistency of cognitive representations. In this way, the article contributes to a better understanding of the relationships between formalization and sensemaking in collaborative relationships, and it carries Karl Weick’s thinking on the relationship between sensemaking and organizing forward in the context of interorganizational management.Formalization;Sensemaking;Interorganizational Cooperation;Understanding

Investors\u27 Reactions to Alliance-Engendered Acquisition Ambiguity: Evidence from US Technology Deals

We study how, when target firms are engaged in strategic alliances, the ambiguity surrounding an acquisition\u27s anticipated synergies influences investors\u27 reactions to announcements of acquisitions. Drawing on behavioural finance research and the resource redeployment literature, we predict that investors\u27 limited access to the information encoded in the target firms\u27 alliances and the uncertainty around the re-deployability of their embedded resources generate a negative relationship between the number of target alliances and investors\u27 reactions. We also hypothesize that this negative effect is exacerbated when the alliances involve foreign alliance partners but is attenuated when acquirers are experienced in acquiring targets with alliances. Analysis of a large sample of US technology acquisitions supports all our hypotheses. We contribute to management research by offering a viable explanation of investors\u27 reactions to the announcement of major corporate events, such as acquisitions, whose structural characteristics deny investors material information about these events\u27 potential to create value

Governance Structure, Perception, and Innovation in Credence Food Transactions: The Role of Food Community Networks

 Promoting transactions of more sustainable-oriented foods can be (socially and privately) complex and costly. New institutional economics (NIE) explains these dynamics by analyzing the choice of the "most cost-economizing" governance structure to carry out a transaction where credence attributes are involved. The way different governance structures can influence the change of consumers and producers perceptions and preferences for credence foods is completely neglected. On the other hand behavioral economics underlines the role of status quo bias and framing in this type of decision making process. We use new institutional and behavioural economics arguments to conceptualize the emerging of a new governance structure in the domain of credence food transactions which we defined as food community network (FCN)

The dynamics of coordination in innovation networks

International audienceDespite abundant literature dedicated to networks and coordination, few empirical studies address the internal operations of inter-organizational networks. This research therefore aims to characterize coordination mechanisms of various forms and analyse their evolution through an empirical analysis of six innovation networks. A comparative case study approach examines how three main dimensions (dependency, prior business relations, and type of conflict) influence the type of coordination adopted by a hub firm, as well as its evolution. Each case serves as a distinct experiment that stands on its own as an analytic unit. The six cases thus are discrete experiments that serve as replications and contrasts. The study reveals a negative effect of a singular reliance on trust. Indirect guarantees need to combine with direct guarantees to facilitate hub firm dependence. Moreover, the coordination modes and the use of hard conflict resolution mechanisms vary with the type of conflict (i.e., project or behavioural). These findings have key implications for research and practice

Networks and Innovation : A Survey of Empirical Literature.

Networks are now understood to be an important mechanism to change economic and social outcomes through non-market means, and one of these outcomes is the contribution of networks to innovation and technological change in general. This survey covers the recent literature on networks as far as they have implications for knowledge transfer among actors, innovation and technological change. We present a recent survey of empirical research, covering inter-firm and intra-firm networks, since these are accepted to have the most important impact on knowledge dissemination and innovation. One important conclusion that can be derived from the survey is that, although there exists a tremendous increase in network research, it is still difficult in most cases to draw robust conclusions and generalizable results. Therefore, one of the aims of this survey is to highlight those areas in which some consensus has been achieved in the literature, and others which need more attention and research in the future.

Network pathways of peripheral firm entry: empirical evidence from the global airline industry

Previous research on interfirm collaboration indicates that networks tend to be structurally stable due to path dependence and embedded firms' incentives to preserve their positional advantages. As a result, industry networks often resemble a core-periphery structure where peripheral firms seem to have little or no opportunity to access the core. Yet, under certain conditions, peripheral firms do manage to cross over to the industry center. In this paper, we examine one such condition: a sudden and unexpected change in the external environment. More specifically, we examine the relationship between the occurrence of an industry-level disruptive event and the dynamics of tie formation/dissolution facilitating or inhibiting peripheral firms' progress toward the center of the industry network. We substantiate our investigation by using longitudinal data on the alliance activities of 258 airlines and applying Stochastic Actor-Oriented Models (SAOM). We integrate our statistical analysis with interview material and descriptive network analysis. The findings reveal a variety of patterns of network entry, contributing novel insights to theories on network dynamics, innovation, as well as policy and practice.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Organisational culture, national culture and performance in international joint ventures based in Israel.

International Joint Ventures (IJV) capitalise on localised skills, knowledge and capabilities. Moreover, the internationalisation of markets offers scope to innovate, develop and market new products benefiting from international collaborations. Nonetheless, some IJV fail and many do not achieve satisfactory performance. One reason proposed is cultural differences, most often the differences in partners' national cultures or differences between corporate. We examine 66 Israeli IJV to establish the impact of national and organisational cultures. We found that neither organisational nor national culture had much impact on performance or the perception of performance. However, trust seems to play an important mediating role

Interplay between network configurations and network governance mechanisms in supply networks a systematic literature review

Purpose: This work systematically reviews the extant academic management literature on supply networks. It specifically examines how network configurations and network governance mechanisms influence each other in supply networks. Design: 125 analytical and empirical studies were identified using an evidence-based approach to review the literature mainly published between 1985 and 2012. Synthesis: Drawing on a multi-disciplinary theoretical foundation, this work develops an integrative framework to identify three distinct yet interdependent themes that characterize the study of supply networks: a) Network Configurations (structures and relationships); b) Network Governance Mechanisms (formal and informal); and c) The Interplay between Network Configurations and Network Governance Mechanisms. Findings: Network configurations and network governance mechanisms mutually influence each other and cannot be considered in isolation. Formal and informal governance mechanisms provide better control when used as complements rather than as substitutes. The choice of governance mechanism depends on the nature of exchange; role of management; desired level of control; level of flexibility in formal contracts; and complementary role of formal and informal governance mechanism. Research implications: This nascent field has thematic and methodological research opportunities for academics. Comparative network analysis using longitudinal case studies offers a rich area for further study. Practical Implications: The complexity surrounding the conflicting roles of managers at the organisation and network levels poses a significant challenge during the development and implementation stage of strategic network policies. Originality/value: This review reveals that formal and informal governance mechanisms provide better control when used as complements rather than as substitutes