Bottleneck Resources, Market Relatedness, and the Dynamics of Organizational Growth

2022 | Organization Science | Citations: 0

Authors: Chang, Sungyong; Eggers, J. P.; Keum, D. Daniel

Abstract: Entering a new product market requires assembling a bundle of resources. Because ... Expand

Abstract: Entering a new product market requires assembling a bundle of resources. Because missing a single resource can foil the entire entry effort, we argue that bottleneck resources—those most difficult to obtain or sell externally—anchor the direction of firm growth. We characterize market resources as bottlenecks to product market entry, because they are (on average) more challenging to obtain and sell than technological resources, and we articulate why the importance of market resources varies with the strength of external markets for technology. Using cross-industry data linking firms’ product portfolios with patents, we find resource dynamics whereby market resources drive the strategic decision to enter, and firms fill technological gaps using both internal research and development and external acquisitions (joint ventures and alliances). Our study underscores the importance of resources for firm growth dynamics and specifically highlights market resources as the bottleneck that constrains and directs the direction of product market entry. Collapse

Topics: research and development database system logistics management competitive advantage innovation management

Methods: descriptive statistic theory development robustness check statistical hypothesis test regression analysis method

The Differential Impact of Intrafirm Collaboration and Technological Network Centrality on Employees’ Likelihood of Leaving the Firm

2022 | Organization Science | Citations: 0

Authors: Tzabbar, Daniel; Cirillo, Bruno; Breschi, Stefano

Abstract: How does an employee’s centrality in intrafirm research and development activiti ... Expand

Abstract: How does an employee’s centrality in intrafirm research and development activities affect the employee’s propensity for outward mobility? Does this proclivity vary by the type of employment the employee seeks: moving to other firms versus founding a new venture? We maintain that, to answer these questions, we must distinguish between an employee’s centrality in the intrafirm collaboration network and the employee’s centrality in the intrafirm technological recombination network. We utilize the curricula vitae and patent data of corporate inventors at a leading semiconductor company between 1993 and 2012 to test our hypotheses. Contrary to prevailing views, our competing risk model indicates that corporate inventors who are central in the intrafirm collaboration and technological network and, thus, have the most opportunities are less likely to leave the current employer. However, when considering external employment opportunities, their preferences vary. Collaboration-central individuals are more likely to start a new venture than to move to another employer. Their skill in developing interpersonal relationships enables them to attract the tangible and intangible resources needed in a new firm. In contrast, inventors whose technological expertise is central to the firm’s technology recombination network are more likely to move to another employer than to start a new venture. In an established firm, they can leverage their technological know-how using the resources that a new venture would lack. Our theory highlights the trade-offs in employees’ attempts to take advantage of their internal and external value based on their position within the firm’s collaboration and technological networks. Funding: The authors thank LeBow College of Business, SKEMA Business School, and Bocconi University for their financial support. Supplemental Material: The online appendix is available at https://doi.org/10.1287/orsc.2021.1535. Collapse

Topics: LinkedIn entrepreneurship IT career human resource management knowledge spillover

Methods: Wald test hazard function robustness check qualitative interview statistical hypothesis test

Theories: resource based view of the firm social network theory

Big Fish, Big Pond? The Joint Effect of Formal and Informal Core/Periphery Positions on the Generation of Incremental Innovations

2020 | Organization Science | Citations: 0

Authors: Maoret, Massimo; Tortoriello, Marco; Iubatti, Daniela

Abstract: In this paper, we apply a core/periphery framework to an intraorganizational con ... Expand

Abstract: In this paper, we apply a core/periphery framework to an intraorganizational context to study the interplay between formal and informal core/periphery structures. Specifically, we consider how core positions occupied by inventors in the corporate research and development division of a large multinational high-tech company affect their ability to generate incremental innovations. We theorize and empirically observe that formal and informal core positions have positive and independent effects on the generation of incremental innovations. These effects have a multiplicative impact on innovative productivity when inventors who are core in the informal knowledge-sharing network are also affiliated with a core organizational unit. We also observe, however, that the positive effect of being located at the core of both the informal and formal structures is negatively moderated by individuals’ distribution of knowledge ties when these reach outside the core of their informal knowledge-sharing network. Collapse

Topics: innovation management productivity knowledge sharing research and development organization structure

Methods: theory development survey qualitative interview robustness check regression analysis method

Designing Smart Services:

2019 | HICSS | Citations: 0

Authors: Akkermans, Henk; Zhu, Quan; Fang, Feng; Bv, Dynamics

Abstract: This paper reports on a design science research project aiming to develop a meth ... Expand

Abstract: This paper reports on a design science research project aiming to develop a method to support business decision-making regarding IoT-enabled maintenance services for Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs). Often, these OEMs remain reluctant to make full use of recent advances in the Internet of Things (IoT), sensor technologies and data analytics for providing services on installed equipment with Asset Owners (AOs). These new developments allow them to advance on their servitization journeys from selling products to selling product-centered services. Collapse

Topics: productivity customer service business model mobile system internet of things

Methods: design science case study qualitative interview system dynamics simulation

Design for customer responsiveness: Decision support system for push–pull supply chains with multiple demand fulfillment points

2019 | Decision Support Systems | Citations: 0

Authors: Fowler, John W.; Kim, Seung-Hwan; Shunk, Dan L.

Abstract: A push–pull supply chain is a hybrid of “push” and “pull” supply chains where se ... Expand

Abstract: A push–pull supply chain is a hybrid of “push” and “pull” supply chains where semi-finished products are produced by forecasts and “pushed” to a stock point, then are “pulled” by actual customer orders and go through remaining processes to be delivered. In order to design an effective push–pull supply chain, there are two critical issues in the decision making process: how to support decision makers to identify feasible locations for demand fulfillment points based on the product, process, and organizational form of a given enterprise, and how to support decision makers to improve the customer lead time management capability of a push–pull supply chain. In this study, we present a decision support system for designing a push–pull supply chain that 1) incorporates the product, process, and organizational form of a given enterprise; 2) leverages a new hybrid push–pull control model, which enhances the customer lead time management capability; and 3) provides a decision support model that supports decision makers for performing scenario-based analysis in designing a push–pull supply chain. The numerical analysis exhibits how the proposed system can be implemented in the context of a semiconductor supply chain, and subsequently shows that our control model results in substantial improvement of customer lead time management capability over conventional push–pull supply chain designs without a significant inventory cost increase. Also, some experimental results are provided to support decision makers on how to make the transition from the conventional design to the proposed one. Collapse

Topics: supply chain management decision support system decision support business model

Methods: experiment factorial experiment descriptive statistic computational algorithm sensitivity analysis

Supply Chain Collaboration, Agility and Performance: The Moderating Effect of Environmental Uncertainty

2018 | International Conference on Information Systems | Citations: 1

Authors: Chiao, Yuchi; Xu, Ting; Zhou, Jingmei; Fang, Yulin

Abstract: Optoelectronic electronics industry is facing increasing challenges caused by en ... Expand

Abstract: Optoelectronic electronics industry is facing increasing challenges caused by environmental uncertainty. The firms’ need to cooperate with partners to improve competitive advantages is more urgent. Existing research have verified supply chain collaboration facilitates performance, but whether this effect still works under high environmental uncertainty is not clear. Moreover, the influencing mechanism between supply chain collaboration and performance has not been clarified. Based on resourcebased theory and dynamic capability theory, this study tends to clarify how supply chain collaboration affects performance through the mediation effect of supply chain agility, and further examines the moderation effect of environmental uncertainty on mediation. Results show that (1) supply chain agility mediates the supply chain collaboration-supply chain performance relationship, (2) supply/demand uncertainty positively moderate the mediating effect. These findings provide an in-depth understanding of the underlying mechanism between supply chain collaboration and supply chain performance, and demonstrate the contingency effects of environmental uncertainty. Collapse

Topics: supply chain management environmental uncertainty missing data electronic mail

Methods: survey partial least squares regression qualitative interview cross sectional research statistical hypothesis test

Theories: dynamic capabilities theory

User-Industry Spinouts: Downstream Industry Knowledge as a Source of New Firm Entry and Survival

2016 | Organization Science | Citations: 0

Authors: Adams, Pamela; Fontana, Roberto; Malerba, Franco

Abstract: Recent scholarship on entrepreneurship suggests that the pre-entry know-how of s ... Expand

Abstract: Recent scholarship on entrepreneurship suggests that the pre-entry know-how of start-ups, embodied in their founders, affects not only entry, but also performance. Although prior work focuses on new entrants from the focal industry (i.e., employee spinouts) and academic organizations (i.e., university spinoffs), this study identifies and examines a hybrid category of start-ups from downstream user-industries, which we call “user-industry spinouts.” We draw from the literature on evolutionary theory, user innovation, and industrial dynamics to propose that, given the unique combination of knowledge inherited by these entrants, their choices at entry and their ability to survive in the focal industry will differ with respect to other start-ups. We do this by extending existing work on new firm creation to investigate entry and performance in different product markets. Our findings, based on a dataset of start-ups in the semiconductor industry over a 10-year period (1997–2007), show that user-industry spinouts are more likely both to enter and to survive in market-specific product categories. We suggest that the pre-entry knowledge resources of spinouts may support entry and survival across industry boundaries. However, the specific nature of these resources will influence which product markets they choose to enter. Our results have theoretical implications for the literatures on entrepreneurship, industrial dynamics, and strategy. Collapse

Topics: entrepreneurship innovation management database system social identity IT career

Methods: cluster analysis chi squared test LexisNexis hazard function descriptive statistic

Theories: evolutionary theory

Integrative Capabilities, Vertical Integration, and Innovation Over Successive Technology Lifecycles

2016 | Organization Science | Citations: 15

Authors: Helfat, Constance E.; Campo-Rembado, Miguel A.

Abstract: The analysis presented here provides a new explanation for why vertically integr ... Expand

Abstract: The analysis presented here provides a new explanation for why vertically integrated and specialized firms may continue to coexist as industries evolve, especially during time periods when conditions unequivocally favor lower cost specialized firms. In contrast to the common view that firms should match their organizational form to the prevailing nature of technology, vertically integrated firms may rationally choose to stay integrated and bear the sunk costs of developing integrative capabilities as well as the ongoing costs of maintaining them, even when they lose money during some time periods due to competition from lower cost specialized firms. In particular, in industries characterized by successive systemic innovations, which entail interdependence across stages of production, some firms may remain vertically integrated to maintain their capability to innovate over multiple cycles of technological innovation. The results hinge on the sunk costs of long-lived investments in integrative capabilities. An extension to the analysis suggests that vertically integrated firms may retain their organizational form to pioneer systemic innovations in other industries, including industries not subject to frequent technology lifecycles—providing another explanation of product-market diversification and market entry over time. Collapse

Topics: innovation management technological change product differentiation system integration digital innovation

Methods: design theory

Theories: transaction cost economics theory of dominant design

The Impact of Patent Wars on Firm Strategy: Evidence from the Global Smartphone Industry

2016 | Organization Science | Citations: 0

Authors: Paik, Yongwook; Zhu, Feng

Abstract: Strategy scholars have documented in various empirical settings that firms seek ... Expand

Abstract: Strategy scholars have documented in various empirical settings that firms seek and leverage stronger institutions to mitigate hazards and gain competitive advantage. In this paper, we argue that such “institution-seeking” behavior may not be confined to the pursuit of strong institutions: firms may also seek weak institutions to mitigate hazards. Using panel data from the global smartphone industry and recent patent wars among key industry rivals, we examine how smartphone vendors that are not directly involved in patent litigation strategically respond to increased litigation risks in this industry. We find that as patent wars intensify, smartphone vendors not involved in any litigation focus more of their business in markets with weaker intellectual property (IP) protection because of institutional arbitrage opportunities. This strategic response is more pronounced for vendors whose stocks of patents are small and whose home markets have weak-IP systems. Our study is the first to examine the relationship between heterogeneity in national patent systems and firms’ global strategies. It provides a more balanced view of firms’ institution-seeking behavior by documenting how they make strategic use of weaker institutions. Collapse

Topics: smartphone armed conflict Android intellectual property price management

Methods: longitudinal research robustness check regression analysis method descriptive statistic qualitative interview

Theories: theory of economic growth

The Influence of Ethnic Community Knowledge on Indian Inventor Innovativeness

2015 | Organization Science | Citations: 0

Authors: Almeida, Paul; Phene, Anupama; Li, Sali

Abstract: This paper investigates the knowledge influences of the ethnic community on the ... Expand

Abstract: This paper investigates the knowledge influences of the ethnic community on the quality of innovations of Indian immigrant inventors in the U.S. semiconductor industry. Membership in the Indian ethnic community enables inventors to source knowledge from, and to collaborate with, others in the community. By analyzing patent data, we find that the utility of ethnic knowledge and collaborators depends on the level of inventor embeddedness in the community. Most inventors benefit by sourcing knowledge from, or collaborating with, other Indians and hence enhance innovation quality, but at a diminishing rate. For those who are very heavily embedded in the community, ethnic community knowledge decreases the quality of innovation. Our results provide some support for the idea that simultaneously sourcing ethnic knowledge and using ethnic collaborators also decreases innovativeness. Thus, for Indian inventors, the level of embeddedness in the community is a key factor in influencing the quality of innovation. Collapse

Topics: innovation management knowledge base database system anonymity hard disk drive

Methods: descriptive statistic longitudinal research robustness check SDC Platinum hierarchical linear modeling