Much of the prior research on interorganizational learning has focused on the role of absorptive capacity, a firm's ability to value, assimilate, and utilize new external knowledge. However, this definition of the construct suggests that a firm has an equal capacity to learn from all other organizations. We reconceptualize the firm-level construct absorptive capacity as a learning dyad-level construct, relative absorptive capacity. One firm's ability to learn from another firm is argued to depend on the similarity of both firms' (1) knowledge bases, (2) organizational structures and compensation policies, and (3) dominant logics. We then test the model using a sample of pharmaceutical–biotechnology R&D alliances. As predicted, the similarity of the partners' basic knowledge, lower management formalization, research centralization, compensation practices, and research communities were positively related to interorganizational learning. The relative absorptive capacity measures are also shown to have greater explanatory power than the established measure of absorptive capacity, R&D spending. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Relative absorptive capacity and interorganizational learning

El artículo tiene como objetivo evaluar el nivel de desarrollo de la capacidad de absorción realizada (RACAP) en las Pyme colombianas. Se parte de una muestra de 363 Pyme colombianas (Dane,2012), se usa una revisión de literatura con apoyo del análisis de contenido y un modelo de regresión lineal, que permiten mostrar la existencia de una correlación lineal positiva entre la adquisición y asimilación del conocimiento externo en las organizaciones objeto de estudio,. Palabras clave: Capacidades de absorción, capacidades de absorción potencial, medición de las capacidades de absorción ABSTRACT:

Measurement of potential absorption capacity in Colombia's innovative companies [Medición de la capacidad de absorción potencial en las empresas innovadoras de Colombia]

Afin de faire face a la concurrence accrue dans leurs marches, de plus en plus PMEs innovent dans des reseaux d'innovation collaboratifs (RICs). En effet, ces derniers leur permettent d'acceder a des connaissances complementaires necessaires pour mener a bien leurs projets innovants. La contribution d'une PME a un tel reseau necessite une absorption des connaissances externes, apportees par les autres participants et eventuellement de connaissances externes au reseau constitue.L'objet de cette these est de construire un outil de maturite pour evaluer la capacite d'absorption des PMEs integrees dans de tels contextes. Cette evaluation les aidera a contribuer efficacement au projet et favorisera ainsi le succes de l'innovation. Elle les guidera egalement vers les bonnes pratiques pour capitaliser sur leurs experiences dans des RICs et ameliorer la performance de leurs propres organisations a la lumiere des apprentissages issus de ce dernier.Une approche methodologique mixte a ete adoptee pour le developpement de cet outil. Une premiere phase qualitative a permis d'identifier les pratiques d'absorption d'une PME dans un projet de co-innovation. Cette phase est principalement composee d'une revue de litterature approfondie, de 20 entretiens semi-directifs aupres de 13 PMEs dans les regions Rhone-Alpes en France et Yorkshire au Royaume-Uni et de deux demi-journees de travail avec des experts chercheurs et praticiens. Une seconde phase quantitative avait pour objectif d'evaluer la pertinence de ces pratiques pour chaque situation possible de participation d'une PME a un reseau d'innovation collaboratif. Dans ce sens, un questionnaire d'enquete a ete d'abord teste aupres de 2 praticiens et 2 chercheurs, puis administre aupres de PMEs ayant opere dans des contextes de reseaux similaires. Les donnees collectees ont ete analysees suivant une approche PLS-SEM et ont permis de formuler, pour chaque pratique d'absorption, une equation de prediction de sa pertinence en fonction du contexte de participation d'une PME a un reseau d'innovation collaboratif. Les pratiques issues de la phase qualitative et les equations determinees suite a l'approche quantitative ont ensuite ete operationnalisees sous la forme d'un outil de grille de maturite. Ce dernier sera affine iterativement au fur et a mesure de sa mise en œuvre avec des PMEs integrees dans des RICs.Cette recherche comporte des contributions a plusieurs niveaux. D'un point de vue theorique, elle confirme la proeminence pour l'innovation du concept de capacite d'absorption, en le caracterisant pour le contexte d'une PME integree dans un RIC. D'un point de vue pratique, la mise en œuvre de cette caracterisation via un outil a l'usage de PMEs permet de favoriser le succes de leurs experiences dans ces reseaux, en les guidant vers les pratiques appropriees aux contextes de leurs participations a ces derniers. Enfin d'un point de vue methodologique, l'adoption d'une demarche quantitative pour contextualiser une grille de maturite constitue une approche novatrice dans le champ de developpement de tels outils d'amelioration de la performance.

La capacité d'absorption des PMEs intégrées dans des réseaux d'innovation collaboratifs : évaluation à travers une grille de maturité

This study investigates the impact of digital financial capabilities on household business ownership and business innovation. Utilising the 2015 China Household Finance Survey (CHFS) data, this pap...

Digital financial capabilities and household entrepreneurship

We assess the current state of empirical research in operations and supply chain management (OSM), using Dickens’ contrast between the best of times and the worst of times as a frame. The best of times refers to the future that empirical OSM research is now entering, with exciting opportunities available using big data and other new data sources, new empirical approaches and analytical techniques and innovative tools for developing theory. These are well aligned with new research questions related to the digital economy, Industry 4.0, the impact of the millennial generation as consumers, social media, 3D printing, etc. However, we also explore how it is the worst of times, focusing on the challenges and problems that plague empirical OSM research. Our goal is to show how OSM researchers can learn from the worst of times, in order to be poised to take advantage of the best of times. We introduce the research diamond as a vehicle for emphasising the importance of a balanced research perspective that treats ...

The best of times and the worst of times: empirical operations and supply chain management research

Through collaborative innovation networks (CINs), SMEs access valuable knowledge which requires the deployment of their absorptive capacity (ACAP) to be efficiently used. A small and medium enterprise (SME) absorbs this knowledge to fulfil reciprocal learning for achieving the network innovation goal, but also one-way learning to individually improve its performance. Nevertheless, no study explains how these opposing learnings unfold for SMEs in CINs to guide their ACAP deployment. Based on three cases of CINs including SMEs and two focus groups, we propose a characterisation of ACAP supporting SMEs' learnings within CINs. As a result, an SME deploys acquisition, assimilation and application actions and attitudes to contribute to the CIN's setting-up and operational stages, while fulfilling one-way learning. These practices have different focuses and intensity according to the network stage and the SME's contextual setting. Hence, this study highlights the peculiarities of ACAP that enable SMEs in CINs manage the interplay between reciprocal and one-way learnings.

Characterising absorptive capacity supporting SMEs’ learnings within collaborative innovation networks: insights from multi-level case studies

L'usage des technologies digitales en support a la transformation digitale permet aux organisations d'ameliorer leurs performances strategique et operationnelle, mais recele egalement des risques de securite, de surdimensionnement ou de perte de controle entre autres. Si le management de ces risques est essentiel pour favoriser le succes de la transformation digitale d'une entreprise, aucune recherche ne propose un cadre integrateur permettant de les gerer. Cette etude apporte une reponse preliminaire a ce gap en proposant une caracterisation des risques d'usage des technologies digitales, qui constitue une etape fondamentale pour concevoir un modele de management de ces risques. Dans ce sens, nous nous sommes appuyes sur une revue de litterature approfondie et une etude empirique menee suivant une approche Delphi aupres de cinq experts en transformation digitale. Nos resultats permettent de caracteriser les risques selon leurs natures en trois classes globales, mais aussi d'identifier les risques particuliers lies a l'usage de chaque technologie digitale dans le spectre des technologies SMAC et DARQ. Les implications theoriques et pratiques ainsi qu'un agenda de recherche sont discutes en conclusion de ce papier.

https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02830501/document

Caractérisation des risques d'usage des technologies digitales en vue d'une transformation digitale réussie : prémisses d'une étude exploratoire

Designing a maturity grid to measure the knowledge absorptive capacity of a SME integrated in an innovation collaborative network

Nowadays, SMEs (Small and Medium Enterprises) rely on innovation within collaborative networks (CNs) to counter the issue of increased global competition. Literature on the management field suggests that a firm’s ability to identify, assimilate, transform and apply knowledge, i.e. absorptive capacity (ACAP), is a synergetic approach enabling the SME to manage its external resources within these CNs. Also, consistent studies agree that the digital antecedent of ACAP is a catalyst to reach higher innovation performance. Nevertheless, this concept remains global and not yet stabilized in literature. Thus, the aim of this paper is to explore the concept of digital capabilities (DC) as performance differentiator for SMEs in CNs and provide a typology according to their intensity of utilization to generate innovation. Future perspectives of this work are then discussed.

Digital capabilities for SMEs’ innovation in collaborative networks: A literature review

More organizations are conducting their innovation projects in collaborative innovation networks (CINs), enabling them to access to critical knowledge and jointly achieve their innovative targets. In this respect, they need to commonly deploy their absorptive capacity, that is to say acquire valuable knowledge from each other or from outside the network, assimilate it and apply it so as to reach their common innovation objective. While collaborative networks are becoming critical for innovation, no prior research has identified the absorption practices in this specific context. This paper aims to uncover this gap by proposing an operationalization of the absorptive capacity for a collaborative innovation network. For this purpose, we first conducted 3 case studies of CINs in mechanical, software and medical sectors that we qualitatively analyzed using N'Vivo, generating an initial framework of practices. Then, we organized two focus groups with researchers and practitioners to discuss and enrich our proposed operationalization. Based on a qualitative methodology, our results highlight the practices, that is to say actions and attitudes that enable knowledge absorption within CINs. Theoretically, it completes the understanding of the absorptive capacity concept by enlarging its scope to the context of a CIN

Lamiae Benhayoun-Sadafiyine

Papers

Characterising absorptive capacity supporting SMEs’ learnings within collaborative innovation networks: insights from multi-level case studies

Caractérisation des risques d'usage des technologies digitales en vue d'une transformation digitale réussie : prémisses d'une étude exploratoire

Designing a maturity grid to measure the knowledge absorptive capacity of a SME integrated in an innovation collaborative network

Digital capabilities for SMEs’ innovation in collaborative networks: A literature review

Towards an operationalization of knowledge absorptive capacity for a collaborative innovation network