Showing papers in "Technology Analysis & Strategic Management in 1999"
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors trace the interactions between knowledge management practices and the organizational context and conclude that management and leadership play a critical role in establishing the multi-level context for the effective assimilation of knowledge management practice.
Abstract: Knowledge has been identified as one of the most important resources that contributes to the competitive advantage of an organization. The organizational and social issues associated with the development, implementation and use of information technology have increasingly attracted the attention of knowledge management researchers. The paper is based on an empirical investigation of knowledge sharing processes from an international organization, Buckman Laboratories. Through the socio-technical perspective, the paper traces the interactions between knowledge management practices and the organizational context. On the basis of the research, we propose a perspective of socio-technical theory relevant to knowledge management within organizations. We conclude that management and leadership play a critical role in establishing the multi-level context for the effective assimilation of knowledge management practice.
384 citations
TL;DR: The reasons for the growth in non-internal activities, and why these are not as prevalent for R&D as other value-adding activities, are recounted, and it is highlighted that outsourcing is most often undertaken where multiple, substitutable sources are available.
Abstract: This paper evaluates some of the technological and economic factors that underlie the choice between in-house R&D, R&D alliances and outsourcing. We recount the reasons for the growth in non-internal activities, and explain why these are not as prevalent for R&D as other value-adding activities, and highlight that outsourcing is most often undertaken where multiple, substitutable sources are available. We then develop two frameworks. First, a static framework is developed, which evaluates the choice of mode based on a firm's distribution of competencies, and their strategic importance. Second, a dynamic framework is developed that demonstrates how the static framework differs depending on whether the firm is engaged in pre-paradigmatic, paradigmatic or post-paradigmatic sectors. We also consider the effect of new technologies being introduced to a firm's portfolio of competencies
216 citations
TL;DR: With the growth in IT capability, a clear operational distinction can be drawn between information and knowledge, and a model of the interaction between knowledge and information, and of the appropriate balance between the two in different situations is developed.
Abstract: Knowledge management is emerging as a significant organizational and management challenge. The pressures of the emergence of the global knowledge economy, and recognition of knowledge as a key and intangible asset are making the effective management of knowledge a priority. This surge of interest has paid relatively little attention to the object of management-knowledge. Epistemologists and sociologists have produced a variety of definitions and classifications, but there is no consensus. However, with the growth in IT capability, a clear operational distinction can be drawn between information and knowledge. The former can be captured, stored and transmitted in digital form. The latter can only exist in an intelligent system. This distinction is used to develop models of the interaction between knowledge and information, and of the appropriate balance between the two in different situations. On the basis of this model, the challenges of 'knowledge management' are: Establishing and optimizing the informat...
208 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyze the emergence and management of knowledge worker groups and suggest that knowledge work is a useful way of characterizing some important changes in the nature of work across a range of different occupational and professional groups.
Abstract: Against the backdrop of increasing interest in knowledge management and intellectual capital, this paper analyzes the emergence and management of knowledge worker groups. It suggests that knowledge work is a useful way of characterizing some important changes in the nature of work across a range of different occupational and professional groups. These changes have important implications for management and organizational performance. The paper discusses these implications through a conflictbased analysis which highlights the inherent conflict between 'knowing' as part of the work experience and 'knowledge' as an economic commodity. This conflict is expressed at both institutional and organizational levels. The management of knowledge workers therefore centres on the quasi-resolution of such conflict. As the illustrative example of the Microsoft Corporation indicates, competitive success depends very largely on the precarious ability to reconcile this conflict between the social production of knowledge and ...
206 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that the management of strategic innovation is the purposeful orchestration of organizational knowledge development and application and highlight a variety of managerial dilemmas associated with this view.
Abstract: The resource-based strategy paradigm emphasizes the importance of firm-specific assets and knowledge, variously referred to as core competencies and distinctive capabilities. This perspective on sources of competitive advantage is complemented by knowledge and learning perspectives on strategic innovation. We explore conceptual links between knowledge development and the management of strategic innovation. We argue that the management of strategic innovation is the purposeful orchestration of organizational knowledge development and application and we highlight a variety of managerial dilemmas associated with this view.
179 citations
TL;DR: The role and consequences of services innovation remains a woefully under-researched topic as discussed by the authors, and the role and impact of knowledge-intensive service sectors in this regard is discussed.
Abstract: The nature and consequences of services innovation remains a woefully under-researched topic. The paper calls into question two statements that are frequently repeated in the political-economic discourse on services. The first concerns the suggestion that Germany is a 'services laggard' that needs to restructure its domestic economy if it is to remain internationally competitive. By contrast, the UK is frequently held up as an example of a successfully restructured 'services economy'. The paper draws an important distinction between the quantity of services in a domestic economy and the degree of connectivity between services and other economic activities. The latter, it is argued, is far more important in determining the size of spill-overs from services innovation enjoyed within a domestic economy and, hence, to international competitiveness. Particular attention is paid to the role and impact of knowledge-intensive service sectors in this regard. In addition to the UK and Germany, data is drawn from th...
175 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss the process of externalization and the contracting out of R&D and technical activity and investigate the implications of these dynamic trends for the conduct of the research function, particularly towards research externalization, via the use of firms and organizations involved in contract research and technology.
Abstract: The paper discusses the process of externalization and the contracting out of R&D and technical activity. The focus of the analysis is on the outsourcing of R&D and technical activity undertaken by firms and now outsourced to companies and organizations which supply the Contract Research and Technology (CRT) market. The analysis highlights that not only is it important to understand the factors in the demand for such services but also in changing dynamics of the nature of the research and technical services supplied and the way they are supplied. The paper then investigates the implications of these dynamic trends for the conduct of the R&D function, particularly towards research externalization and outsourcing, via the use of firms and organizations involved in contract research and technology.
160 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors discuss the implications of the two literatures on systems of innovation and globalization for each other, and show that current globalization processes have a symbiotic relation to such systems.
Abstract: There is increasing emphasis being put on the need to be 'internationally competitive'. This imperative is being driven, it is argued, by the globalization of economic and corporate life. This 'globalization' is the subject of a burgeoning academic literature. To achieve and maintain the necessary competitive edge requires companies to be innovative, technologically dynamic, and organizationally efficient - in a dynamic, not just static sense. There is a literature on systems of innovation analyzing such requirements, how they have been met in practice in different contexts up until now, and what the implications are for policy. However, these two literatures - on systems of innovation and globalization - have developed quite independently. The purpose of the current paper is to discuss the implications of each for the other. Far from transcending national systems of innovation, current globalization processes are shown to have a symbiotic relation to such systems.
107 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, an analysis of the character, strengths and limitations of organizational learning as stimulated by four key drivers: regulation, green market pressures, quality and technical efficiency considerations, and the culture and values of those within organizations.
Abstract: The paper is concerned with organizational learning around cleaner production as a response to environmental pressures, and presents an analysis of the character, strengths and limitations of organizational learning as stimulated by four key drivers: regulation, green market pressures, quality and technical efficiency considerations, and the culture and values of those within organizations. The analysis is supported by a number of case study examples in manufacturing industry based on field work conducted between 1993-1996. The theoretical approach draws particularly on the innovation and inward technology transfer literature, which uses the concepts of 'receptivity' and 'absorptive capacity' to explain the ability of organizations to assimilate new knowledge, but is also sensitized to the contested and sometimes conflictual nature of change processes. Particular emphasis is given to (a) the importance of good linkages with external sources of knowledge, including regulators, and (b) the extent to which t...
88 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors extend the discussion of the impacts of globalization and localization to encompass other nations and their "national innovation systems". Policy underpinning national systems to encourage innovation is increasingly being called into question by the general move towards globalization and localisation.
Abstract: Most debates and discussions regarding trends towards globalization and localization, occur in the over-arching context of the knowledge economy, and focus on the impact of these trends on innovation and competitiveness in the 'Triad' of Europe, Japan and the USA. However, in the knowledge economy, competitiveness is increasingly based upon access to knowledge, in the form of skills and capabilities, wherever it is located in the world including the smaller industrialized countries. This paper extends the discussion of the impacts of globalization and localization to encompass other nations and their 'national innovation systems'. Policy underpinning national systems to encourage innovation is increasingly being called into question by the general move towards globalization and localization. Multi-national enterprises (MNEs) and localized clusters in the emerging technologies determine and control technological paths beyond and through national borders. Small industrialized nations which have neither a br...
84 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors used data on patent-to-patent citations and patentto-scienceliterature citations to study the spillover network of companies and research institutes around Philips Electronics.
Abstract: This paper uses data on patent-to-patent citations and patent-to-science-literature citations to study the spillover network of companies and research institutes around Philips Electronics. The theoretical section of the paper surveys the literature on innovation regimes and regional systems of innovation, and uses this to derive a number of testable hypotheses on the Philips network. The main findings of the paper are that the importance of local firms in the technology network around Philips is small, but the impact of local (semi-)public institutes is larger. Also, it is found that large firms generate a large part of the scientific literature that is referred to in Philips patents.
TL;DR: In this article, the successful exchange of resources and competencies between Fujitsu and ICL, and how it helped to extend the technological capabilities of both firms, was examined, and the evolution of the relationship from that of a loose technology-sharing agreement to that of sustained project collaboration and partnership.
Abstract: In the management literature and the literature on technology transfer, it is widely acknowledged that learning in general, and the leveraging of knowledge throughout firms in particular, is important. However, there appears little systematic evidence of what technology and knowledge is transferred between organizations and how this occurs. The literature also tends to neglect how firms use such technology/knowledge transfer to cultivate appropriate technological capabilities. This paper addresses this gap in the literature by examining the successful exchange of resources and competencies between Fujitsu and ICL, and how it helped to extend the technological capabilities of both firms. It traces the evolution of the relationship from that of a loose technology-sharing agreement to that of sustained project collaboration and partnership. This relationship proved to be enduring, and provides a road map for firms engaged in technology/knowledge transfer to develop their indigenous technological capabilities.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors take as their point of departure the view that technological change is a social process involving negotiations between networks of players, and they aim to inform the debate on technology management by identifying the dynamics of spaces and occasions where technological change are addressed and politicized.
Abstract: This article takes as its point of departure the view that technological change is a social process involving negotiations between networks of players. The paper aims to inform the debate on technology management by identifying the dynamics of spaces and occasions where technological change is addressed and politicized. It takes as its focus the development of the information technology (IT) systems for manufacturing, known as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems in Denmark. These systems, which started out 30 years ago as a visionary concept in the US, are now in daily use in Danish firms. This technology has been moulded by the twin forces of stability and negotiability, with the interplay of supplier and user constellations set out in the context of the relative stability of company social systems. The article discusses three spaces within which the social shaping of IT takes place: the user producer segments, the company internal scene and technological context with the competing pull of mass pr...
TL;DR: In this paper, the development arena is suggested to function as a cognitive space for research, and the elements and transformations involved in shaping and restructuring activities in a development arena are described and discussed.
Abstract: In this paper the notion 'development arena' is presented and discussed. The notion is suggested to function as a cognitive space for research. It seeks to catch and describe the relational, unstable and heterogeneous character of the development process. It should sensitize both researchers and managers towards processes of technology development that are poorly accounted for in economic and management theory. Thereby, we wish to contribute to critical discussions about the role of management and the directions it chooses for development of technologies and products. The elements and transformations involved in shaping and restructuring activities in a development arena are described and discussed based on a case study of the development of HDTV as the next generation television. It exemplifies different moments and aspects of technology development. A number of configurations of specific processes in a development arena are used to exemplify the strengths of this notion. The notion is compared with othe...
TL;DR: In this article, the relationship between the technological impact of US patents, as measured using patent citation analysis, and the renewal decisions made by their owners was analyzed, and a significant positive relationship was discovered between these variables across a number of time periods.
Abstract: This paper analyzes the relationship between the technological impact of US patents, as measured using patent citation analysis, and the renewal decisions made by their owners. A significant positive relationship was discovered between these variables across a number of time periods. For example, 60% of patents uncited in the first eight years after publication were renewed at that point, compared with over 90% of patents cited more than 50 times in the first eight years. The relationship between citations and renewals remained highly significant even after controlling for differences between internal and external citations, and differences in technologies and patent ownership. Further analysis was undertaken into the relative influence of technological impact and maintenance costs upon renewal decisions. This analysis revealed that after patent maintenance fees were doubled for patents applied for after August 1982, a larger proportion of patents was maintained at each renewal point despite the increase....
TL;DR: In this article, an empirical study into innovation supporting and blocking factors has been conducted of the strategic perceptions of stakeholders within the supply chain of a mature industry sector, based on interview analysis, revealing strategic intentions and assumptions that support the emergence of two distinct trajectories of change in the industry based on co-partnership and ad-hoc relationships respectively.
Abstract: An empirical study into innovation supporting and blocking factors has been conducted of the strategic perceptions of stakeholders within the supply chain of a mature industry sector, based on interview analysis. The data revealed strategic intentions and assumptions that support the emergence of two distinct trajectories of change in the industry based on co-partnership and ad-hoc relationships respectively. A model of the trajectories using current partnership theories of lean supply indicated that the co-partnership trend offers some scope for incremental innovation; the ad-hoc relationship trend offered rather less scope for incremental innovation. Both trends seem to be reducing the scope for development of entrepreneurial networks within which independent design innovators can flourish. The strategic assumptions identified point to an environment that is not supportive of radical innovation. The absence of in-house R&D capabilities may be an important factor in the industry's difficulties in innovating.
TL;DR: A detailed case-study of a technical alliance between British Steel Strip Products (BSSP) and a leading Japanese steel company was established to help the UK producer improve its product quality, its production control management and its customer links with Japanese car company transplants in the UK.
Abstract: This paper draws on a detailed case-study of a technical alliance between British Steel Strip Products (BSSP) and a leading Japanese steel company which was established to help the UK producer improve its product quality, its production control management and its customer links with Japanese car company transplants in the UK. The study is one of a series of comparisons of leading UK and Japanese manufacturing companies, from the steel, aerospace, telecoms and chemical industries. The overall project has been funded under the ESRC Innovation Programme. Evidence of the success of the alliance is illustrated in a series of graphs depicting the reduction in scrap and steel losses from particular BSSP mill sites and clear improvements in quality and productivity levels at these sites. The case-study traces these improvements back to specific management practices transferred from the Japanese producer as part of the alliance. Detailed evidence comes from the activities of 'Task Teams' which were assembled, with...
TL;DR: In this paper, an inductive taxonomy of industries based on the knowledge flow structure and identifying the user-supplier relationship among industries in terms of knowledge diffusion is presented. But, the taxonomic approach highlights the importance of inter-industrial knowledge management system that facilitates knowledge flows across industries.
Abstract: With the advent of the knowledge-based economy, the inter-industrial flow of technological knowledge is reckoned as the principal determinant of national competitiveness. The mode of knowledge flows, however, is intractably complex. Taking it as a network, this paper aims at providing an inductive taxonomy of industries based on the knowledge flow structure and thus identifying the user-supplier relationship among industries in terms of knowledge diffusion. Some proxy indexes are developed first to measure the knowledge flows, then the interactive mechanism among industries is investigated by the network analysis and eventually a taxonomy of industries is presented according to the characteristics of respective industries. The taxonomic approach highlights the importance of inter-industrial knowledge management system that facilitates knowledge flows across industries based on the idiosyncratic features of respective industries.
TL;DR: This paper focuses on the strategic role and the implementation of textual data mining in government organizations, with special emphasis on TDM to support the management of science and technology (ST).
Abstract: This paper focuses on the strategic role and the implementation of textual data mining (TDM) in government organizations, with special emphasis on TDM to support the management of science and technology (ST (2) supporting strategic decisions on the direction and funding of government ST and (3) creation of usable S&T databases to support strategic decisions in other areas of government. Implications of the demonstration program relative to larger scale implementation of TDM are discussed. The paper ends with a description of the principles and requirements of higher quality TDM studies.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the role of IT in changing modes of internationalization in the sector, focussing in particular on the potential for IT-enabled delivery that would provide an increased tradability of services.
Abstract: The delivery of engineering consultancy services in global markets has been dominated by a small group of firms located in Europe and the US. Like many other service industries, engineering consultants have depended on the movement of highly qualified people and establishment of local affiliates for rendering their services in overseas markets. However, the diffusion of new information technology (IT) and the use of advanced telecommunications have changed the patterns of production and delivery of engineering design services. This paper examines the role of IT in changing modes of internationalization in the sector, focussing in particular on the potential for IT-enabled delivery that would provide an increased tradability of services. It is argued that new technologies have led to integration of project work and new sources of competitiveness in major firms, but that the emerging capacity to deliver services in arms-length transactions across national borders does not appear to have been significantly e...
TL;DR: In this paper, it is argued that in view of the fact that industrial structure is changing from vertical to horizontal, and digital convergence is taking place, systemic innovation today can only be undertaken by alliance networks.
Abstract: According to David Teece, only strong and integrated firms can successfully innovate in a systemic fashion. Looser coalitions consisting of joint ventures, alliances, or virtual partners will not be able to create a systemic innovation, let alone to set standards for it, or to control its further evolution. In this article this position is challenged, in particular, regarding the information industry. It will be argued that in view of the fact that industrial structure is changing from vertical to horizontal, and digital convergence is taking place, systemic innovation today can only be undertaken by alliance networks. Although such networks are vulnerable to opportunism, these are capable of producing systemic innovations, because mutual relations can be stabilized by forms of both substantive and procedural commitment. If standards also have to be pioneered, alliance networks will have to expand. As there are few ways in which these new allies may commit themselves, the network is weakened. It is argued...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the factors governing the decision to locate new research and development facilities at locations distant from company headquarters and found that the decisive factor in all cases is a desire to tap into the expertise developing in 'centres of competence' such as the American Northeast in biotechnology.
Abstract: This study examines the factors governing the decision to locate new research and development facilities at locations distant from company headquarters. The 20 firms surveyed are German, Swiss, Dutch, Japanese and Finnish multinationals. Development laboratories, it was found, followed the established pattern of being located away from headquarters only when distant markets attain a critical size. For research laboratories, however, the decisive factor in all cases is a desire to tap into the expertise developing in 'centres of competence' such as the American Northeast in biotechnology. This factor only operates when the new technology is otherwise unfamiliar to the investing company. This factor overrides the conventional wish to minimize the costs of internal and external communications.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyze patent dynamics, sectoral specialization and the institutional basis of patenting activity in the US from 1969 to 1996, concluding that income levels and growth rates are more important in determining foreign patenting than past institutional arrangements.
Abstract: This paper explores the potential for central and eastern Europe to catch up based on patent data. We analyze patent dynamics, sectoral specialization and the institutional basis of patenting activity in the US from 1969 to 1996. Our main conclusions are that, (1) income levels and growth rates are more important in determining foreign patenting activity than past institutional arrangements, (2) the technology competence of central and eastern Europe is path dependent; and (3) there are significant inherited inter-country differences that influence current patterns of adjustment. Analysis shows that knowledge spillovers will most likely occur in those areas that still have patentable inventions such as the engineering industries and pharmaceuticals.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors propose a comprehensive methodology to support the process of selection of core technological competencies in a firm's R&D process, based on which to concentrate development efforts in a long-term view.
Abstract: This paper deals with the selection of a firm's technological competencies on which to concentrate development efforts in a long term view. The perspective is that of corporate R&D which has to identify the technological competencies relevant to future competition and select those core for the firm. This process faces a major challenge, especially to put together different issues relevant to the problem: identify future scenarios and predict how new industries will be shaped, evaluate the potential of future markets, estimate the role and relevance of the technologies involved, identify a balanced set of technologies. This paper proposes a comprehensive methodology to support the process of selection of core technological competencies.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors argue that despite the attractiveness of Dosi's concept, there are clear problems in applying it to technologies with a strong socio-political character, such as biotechnology.
Abstract: This article offers a critique of the application of the concept 'technological paradigm', and associated concepts, to biotechnology. It argues that despite the attractiveness of Dosi's concept there are clear problems in applying it to technologies with a strong socio-political character. One set of problems lie with the limitations of the concept itself. A more profound problem is the complexity of biotechnology, extending to the controversies surrounding it, and its place in the global political economy. It is argued that there is a need to go beyond what is essentially an innovation economist's conceptualisation to engage a more socio-political context. The concerns of the field of international political economy are brought to bear on these issues to support an extension of the definition of technological paradigm as well as to re-assert a more widespread importance of the concept.
TL;DR: A major investigation into strategic capacity management in the Australian wine industry is presented in this article, where it is found that advanced processing technology is being used as part of a strategy for increasing capacity in this industry.
Abstract: There has been little research focused on identifying the position and role of capacity management in strategic manufacturing decision making. This research presents the findings of a major investigation into strategic capacity management in the Australian wine industry. The research found that advanced processing technology is being used as part of a strategy for increasing capacity in this industry. It was also found that supply dependability and product cost/price were the most important competitive priorities for wine production, after product quality. All three of these were found to be directly influenced by the level of capacity management. The importance of capacity management varied, depending on the category of wine producer (32 different categories were identified). It was also determined that the strategic position of capacity management in the manufacturing decision making process is linked to production planning and control, quality control and assurance and plant and equipment.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors describe the way firms participating in R&D consortia can benefit from the outcome of common research and propose an organizational structure for the creation of new knowledge and competencies.
Abstract: This paper describes the way firms participating in R&D consortia can benefit from the outcome of common R&D More specifically, it is suggested that R&D consortia, which are part of the European EUREKA initiative, provide appropriate organizational structures for the creation of new knowledge and competencies This qualitative research shows that both the function provided to the consortium and in-house capabilities help partners to create resources thanks to co-operative R&D The links between R&D co-operative outcomes and both the organizational design of the consortium and the internal capabilities of member firms are of general interest for all companies involved in comparable types of consortia and, more generally, in technological partnerships
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that our understanding of the different forms of teamworking in manufacturing is aided by placing teamworking within an organizational and a strategic context, and they present a case study of a car assembly plant, which used teamworking as a vehicle for major organizational change.
Abstract: This paper argues that our understanding of the different forms of teamworking in manufacturing is aided by placing teamworking within an organizational and a strategic context. The argument is developed firstly by considering changes in the manufacturing environment which have resulted in the need to overcome the legacy of traditional organization and move to contemporary forms emphasizing quality and flexibility. Secondly, there follows a discussion of the role of teamworking in the current literature, particularly that focussing on 'new wave' manufacturing. Thirdly, extracts from one of our fourteen in-depth case studies from field work are presented as examples. This is of a car assembly plant, which used teamworking as a vehicle for major organizational change. Data analysis used Hinings and Greenwood's (H.R. Hinings & R. Greenwood, Understanding Organisational Design (Oxford, Blackwell, 1989)) theoretical framework, arguing the relevance of that model to aid our understanding of teamworking, both in...
TL;DR: Rhythm is presented here as a new way of recognising or framing resemblances (a family or pattern which contains both similarities and differences) among the ways a number of different people have analysed the development of technology.
Abstract: Rhythm is presented here as a new way of recognising or framing resemblances (a family or pattern which contains both similarities and differences) among the ways a number of different people have analysed the development of technology. Taking examples primarily from analyses of the development of information technology, rhythm is presented as a way of encouraging both a wider and a deeper redescription of theories of technological development. Wider in the sense that the concept of rhythm can embrace the way we think about technological development at different levels as well as for different technologies. Deeper in the sense that the concept of rhythm has guided the theoretical investigation of these analyses beyond a comparison of their descriptions of the time pattern of technological development, to comparing the underlying theoretical device or devices which 'drive' the time pattern in each of the analyses.