PATHS TO PROMOTING FIRM CAPABILITIES: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY BASED ON ORGANIZATIONAL LEARNING PATTERNS
When a firm cooperates with others, there are two kinds of paths by which firms enhance their capabilities. One is the inside access of enhancing capability and the other is the outside access of transferring capability. Firstly, within the firm, the distribution of capability includes three levels, namely individual, team and organizational. The capability is attached the three levels in the form of individual knowledge, team routine and organizational capability. The capability transforms and upgrades from individual level to team level and further to organizational level continuously. Secondly, when more than two firms cooperate by formal cooperation contracts, they transfer their capabilities through three levels respectively and horizontally. Organizational learning pattern is an important factor keeping the two kinds of paths smoothly. The choice of organizational learning patterns directly determines the efficiency of the capability enhancing activities. Organizational learning patterns can be divided into two kinds: exploration learning and exploitation learning. Regression equations are used to test the relations between the two patterns and firm capabilities of different levels. Empirical results show that exploration learning is more useful than exploitation learning in promoting the formation of team routine inside the firm. While exploitation learning is more useful than exploration learning in promoting the formation of organizational capability. Outside the firm, exploration learning is more useful than exploitation learning in transferring the capability at individual level and team level. While exploitation learning is more effective than exploration learning in capability transferring activities at organizational level among different firms.
Capability enhancing Organizational learning patterns Exploration learning Exploitation learning
Ren Rong Wang Tao
School of Management, Shandong University, Ji’nan, 250100, China School of Business, Renmin University of China Beijing, 100872, China
国际会议
Academy of Innovation and Entrepreneurship 2010(2010创新与创业国际学术会议)
北京
英文
420-429
2010-07-09（万方平台首次上网日期，不代表论文的发表时间）