Shifting grounds: how industry emergence changes the effectiveness of knowledge creation strategies - the case of the US automotive airbag industry

This paper investigates the effect industry life cycle phase shifts have on the effectiveness of firms' knowledge creation strategies. Building on literature streams on strategic knowledge management and industry life cycles, we develop theoretical arguments for why the best knowledge search st...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Technology analysis & strategic management 2012-01, Vol.24 (1), p.1-19
Main Authors: Fixson, Sebastian K., Hee Lee, Won
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Air bags
Automobile industry
Effectiveness studies
Industrial management
Industrial organization
industry life cycle
Innovation
Knowledge management
Life cycles
Management theory
R&D
Research & development
Research and development
search processes
Strategic planning
U.S.A
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Summary:This paper investigates the effect industry life cycle phase shifts have on the effectiveness of firms' knowledge creation strategies. Building on literature streams on strategic knowledge management and industry life cycles, we develop theoretical arguments for why the best knowledge search strategy should be different before the emergence of an industry compared to afterwards. Testing our hypotheses empirically in the emerging US automotive airbag industry confirms the powerful forces of industry emergence: the best knowledge search strategy is initially one that looks inward into the organisation but outside of the technology area, and later shifts to one that is looking outward from the organisation and the technology. As practical implication we derive that R&D managers should (i) adjust their teams' knowledge search strategies depending on the industry life cycle phase in which they find themselves, and (ii) especially look for new applications of their firm's existing knowledge in related fields.
ISSN:0953-7325
1465-3990
DOI:10.1080/09537325.2012.643557