Organisational learning, strategic rigidity and technology adoption: Implications for electric utilities and renewable energy firms

This paper examines the implications of strategic rigidness for technology adoption behaviours among electric utilities. Such behaviours lead to heterogeneity in firm performance and consequently affect the electric utility industry. The paper's central aim is to identify and describe the implications of strategic rigidness for a utility firm's decision making in adopting newer renewable energy technologies. The findings indicate that not all utility firms are keen to adopt these new technologies, as these firms have traditionally been operating efficiently with a more conventional and mature technological arrangement that has become embedded in the organisational routine. Case studies of Iberdrola S.A. and Enel S.p.A. as major electric utilities are detailed to document mergers and acquisitions and technology adoption decisions. The results indicate that technology adoption behaviours vary widely across utility firms with different organisational learning processes and core capabilities

Competitive Drivers in Marsala's Wineries

The objective of this article is to identify and evaluate the competitive strategies of niche enterprises selling traditional protected designation of origin (PDO) wine in domestic and international markets. This study employs themultidimensional scaling unfolding technique to analyze the perceptions of 24 representatives of wine-making firms located in theMarsala area (Sicily, Italy). The cognitivemaps highlight management choices regarding the competitive driving forces between 2007 and 2011. The results of this study reveal firms\u2019 two main competitive strategies. The first strategy focuses on managing the functional assets; depending on the competitive environment in which the enterprises operate, the outcome seems to comply with Hotelling\u2019s model. The second strategy seeks to successfully exploit positional assets\u2014such as the ability to manage intangible resources that have a strong emotional component\u2014that are perceived to strengthen a firm\u2019s competitiveness by differentiating it from similar enterprise