Dynamic capabilities: A morphological analysis framework and agenda for future research
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors synthesize the diverse scholarly literature about dynamic capabilities (DCs) and develop a more integrated understanding to minimize the reported apparent vagueness, and apply morphological analysis (MA) to develop a multi-dimensional conceptual framework comprising five dimensions and 26 variants that enable a structured representation of the conceptual foundations of DCs.
Abstract: The growth, diversity and applications of research into dynamic capabilities (DCs) have resulted in the whole literature on DCs becoming a complex and disconnected body of knowledge. This has led to criticisms of the subject of DCs as being vague, tautological and without practical value. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to synthesize the diverse scholarly literature about DCs and develop a more integrated understanding to minimize the reported apparent vagueness.,In this paper, the authors review various relevant themes on DCs using a selection of 133 articles published in 22 recognized, top-tier management journals during the period between 1990 and 2016, with an aim to build a structured and integrated theory. For this, morphological analysis (MA), a systems-thinking technique, is applied.,MA is applied to develop a multi-dimensional conceptual framework comprising five dimensions and 26 variants that enable a structured representation of the conceptual foundations of DCs. Further, the authors identify 81 individual DCs noted by various scholars; elucidate assumptions and antecedents relevant to the DCs approach; structure the key characteristics; and expound the input factors, impacting factors, desired outcomes and assessment yardsticks.,This would be a useful resource for researchers working in the area of DCs to explore opportunities for future research.,The MA framework helps managers to look at DCs more holistically, and hence would help them in developing, managing and retaining DCs in organizations.,This study is the original work contributed by the authors and has no specific organizational reference. This research implies new directions to look beyond individual DCs in firms toward a more integrated theory building.
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01 Jan 2009
TL;DR: In this article, the authors empirically measure four dynamic capabilities and find that the nature and effect of resources employed in the development of these capabilities vary greatly, with positive effects stemming from access to particular resources and unexpected negative effects also appearing.
Abstract: Despite the numerous observations that dynamic capabilities lie at the source of competitive advantage, we still have limited knowledge as to how access to firm-based resources and changes to these affect the development of dynamic capabilities. In this paper, we examine founder human capital, access to employee human capital, access to technological expertise, access to other specific expertise, and access to two types of tangible resources in a sample of new firms in Sweden. We empirically measure four dynamic capabilities and find that the nature and effect of resources employed in the development of these capabilities vary greatly. For the most part, there are positive effects stemming from access to particular resources. However, for some resources, such as access to employee human capital and access to financial capital, unexpected negative effects also appear. This study therefore provides statistical evidence as to the varying role of resources in capability development. Importantly, we also find that changes in resource bases have more influential roles in the development of dynamic capabilities than the resource stock variables that were measured at an earlier stage of firm development. This provides empirical support for the notion of treating the firm as a dynamic flow of resources as opposed to a static stock. This finding also highlights the importance of longitudinal designs in studies of dynamic capability development. Further recommendations for future empirical studies of dynamic capabilities are presented.
303 citations
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TL;DR: It is argued that experience codification gives rise to inertial forces that hamper the customization of routines to any given acquisition, and that successful acquirers develop higher-order routines that prevent the generalization of inapplicable ('zero-order') codified routines.
Abstract: Building on the codification and dynamic capabilities literatures, we pursue deeper insight into the underlying mechanisms of deliberate learning in the context of postacquisition integration. We argue that experience codification gives rise to inertial forces that hamper the customization of routines to any given acquisition. We theorize, therefore, that successful acquirers develop higher-order routines-as manifested in two complementary sets of concrete organizational practices-that prevent the generalization of inapplicable ('zero-order') codified routines. After drawing on in-depth qualitative data to help build our theoretical argument, we test it formally with unique survey data on 85 active acquirers.
160 citations
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TL;DR: In this article, the authors extend the dynamic capability view and research on organizational path dependence by arguing that path dependence can be a property of capabilities when a contingently-triggered capability path is subject to self-reinforcement (i.e., a set of positive and negative mechanisms that increases the attractiveness of a path relative to others).
Abstract: This paper extends the dynamic capability view and research on organizational path dependence by arguing that path dependence can be a property of capabilities when a contingently-triggered capability path is subject to self-reinforcement (i.e. a set of positive and negative mechanisms that increases the attractiveness of a path relative to others). The paper introduces an evolutionary perspective, which specifies the underlying selection mechanisms of the property of path dependence in internal and external firm environments. This theorization sheds new light on three paradoxes that currently blur the theoretical contribution of path dependence to research at the managerial, organizational, and industry levels: (1) the problematic coexistence of path irreversibility and managerial intentionality; (2) the ambivalent strategic value of lock-in with regard to competitive advantage; and (3) the relative homogeneity in observed dynamic capabilities, despite their (possible) path dependence that should lead to a wider variety of outcomes owing to the presence of contingency. We highlight the contributions of this perspective to strategic management research and evolutionary theories.
138 citations
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TL;DR: In this article, the authors of the two seminal papers represent not only different but contradictory understandings of the construct's core elements, and they explore the reasons for this, using author cocitation analysis to inform their analysis.
Abstract: A critical issue has been absent from the conversation on dynamic capabilities: the two seminal papers represent not only different but contradictory understandings of the construct's core elements Here, we explore the reasons for this, using author cocitation analysis to inform our analysis Our findings suggest that the field is being socially constructed on the basis of two separate domains of knowledge and that underlying structural impediments have impeded dialog across the domains In light of this evidence, then, we take up the challenge to find a solution to this dilemma By employing a contingency-based approach, we show that there are ways to unify the field that rely, paradoxically, on integrating the two contradictory views, while still preserving the assumptions that led to their differences
94 citations
TL;DR: Wang et al. as mentioned in this paper examined the effects of green human resource practices and green innovation culture on firm green performance and found that green innovation which includes green product innovation culture and green process innovation culture enhances the firm's green performance.
67 citations
References
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TL;DR: The results show that strategic orientation moderates the relationship between different elements of the strategy formation capability and performance.
Abstract: An effective strategy formation capability is a complex organizational resource—a dynamic capability that should lead to superior performance. Strategy scholars have examined the strategy formation capability from many perspectives. However, no study has examined a comprehensive model of strategy formation in the context of the firm's strategic orientation. We develop and examine such a model. The results show that strategic orientation moderates the relationship between different elements of the strategy formation capability and performance. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
380 citations
TL;DR: The model demonstrates that variation and selective retention of patterns of action are necessary and sufficient to explain the features of organizational routines that are most relevant in relation to dynamic capabilities, such as formation, inertia, endogenous change, and learning.
Abstract: This paper introduces a generative model of organizational routines and their change over time. The model demonstrates that variation and selective retention of patterns of action are necessary and sufficient to explain the features of organizational routines that are most relevant in relation to dynamic capabilities, such as formation, inertia, endogenous change, and learning. The model directly links micro-level actions to the macro-level dynamics of routines. The results suggest that focusing on action provides a useful and parsimonious foundation for a theory of organizational routines and capabilities.
371 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a theoretical model that explains how dynamic capability mediates the impact of intellectual capital on performance was developed and tested for analyzing the relationship between intellectual capital and dynamic capability in high-technology firms.
Abstract: Recent studies suggest a potential relationship between intellectual capital and dynamic capability in achieving performance. This is unsettling for managers because these studies contain little effort to develop a framework for understanding the relationship. To examine this unnerving potential, we develop and test a theoretical model that explains how dynamic capability mediates the impact of intellectual capital on performance. In this study, the scope of intellectual capital includes human capital, relational capital and structural capital. This study examines the pooled data of 242 high-technology firms from 2001 to 2008. Results from Bayesian regression analysis suggest that the effect of structural capital on performance is completely mediated by dynamic capability. Furthermore, the findings show that dynamic capability does not completely mediate the respective effects of human capital and relational capital on performance, but does so only partially. These results provide convincing support for the importance of dynamic capability through accumulating R&D and marketing capability over time, thereby enhancing firm performance. The empirical findings and the ensuing discussion will be of interest to managers and practitioners.
363 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the fundamental building blocks of supply chain agility are conceptualized as supply- and demand-side competence, which are viewed as enabler (moderator) on the relationship between supply chain competencies and supply-chain agility.
Abstract: This paper investigates the fundamental building blocks of supply chain agility, which are conceptualised as supply- and demand-side competence. While the former refers to production and supply management related activities, the latter refers to distribution and demand management related activities. The model further assesses the influence of supply chain agility on operational performance, as well as its mediating role in the relationship between supply- and demand-side competence and performance. Within this framework, process compliance, i.e. how well supply chain management processes are internally executed by the firm's employees, is viewed as an enabler (moderator) on the relationship between supply chain competencies and supply chain agility. Theoretical substantiation is provided by the resource-based view of the firm augmented with the dynamic capabilities perspective. The model is tested with data from 121 supply chain management professionals. Implications for both academic theory development and supply chain and production management practice are provided.
356 citations
TL;DR: An assessment of the ability of the dynamic capabilities view to explain successful change with logical consistency, conceptual clarity and empirical rigor is taken and four major problems are identified that limit the potential contribution of the DCV.
Abstract: Why do some firms succeed in a dynamic competitive environment when others fail? Recently, concepts and models addressing this question have increasingly clustered around the dynamic capabilities view (DCV). Citation counts suggest that the DCV is the new touchstone firm-based performance-focused theory (Teece et al. [1997], for example, had received 1180 citations in the ISI Web of Knowledge as of June 2008), and case studies of innovative firms such as IDEO (Hargadon and Sutton, 1997) have fueled interest. We take a step back to assess the ability of the DCV to explain successful change with logical consistency, conceptual clarity and empirical rigor, criteria suggested by Laudan (1977). Such an assessment is important not only because of the DCV’s popularity, but also because of the theoretical and practical significance of the issues it addresses. While the arguably static resource-based view (RBV) emphasizes the value of resources, the DCV addresses the need to explain changes in valuable resources, e.g. the erosion of asset stocks (Dierickx and Cool, 1989) and the changes in asset values (Miller and Shamsie, 1996). The DCV also addresses a practical need to understand how firms can change effectively, given perceptions that many competitive environments now change at increasing rates, and that firms have difficulty changing successfully (Beer and Nohria, 2000; Strebel, 1996). Our assessment identifies four major problems that limit the potential contribution of the DCV: (1) unclear value-added relative to existing concepts; (2) lack of a coherent theoretical foundation; (3) weak empirical support; and (4) unclear practical implications. Although potentially interrelated, each problem presents different difficulties and raises different questions.
342 citations