6533b83afe1ef96bd12a7bcd

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Shaping the firm's external search strategy

Ana García-graneroJoaquín AlegreJaider Vega-jurado

subject

Structure (mathematical logic)EngineeringFormalizationKnowledge SearchManagement sciencebusiness.industryDecentralizationExploratory searchContext (language use)ExploitationDecentralizationCompetition (economics)Formal structureManagement of Technology and InnovationSurvey data collectionOrganizational structureExplorationbusinessExternal knowledge search strategyIndustrial organization

description

This paper explores the determinants of external knowledge search strategies, specifically, exploitative and exploratory search. The literature emphasizes environmental context and technological resources, especially R&D, as important determinants of the search strategy. In this paper we focus on two types of the firm's formal structure: formalized and decentralized structures. The study uses survey data from the ceramic tile industry in Spain. The results show that a competitive environment and a decentralized organizational structure play a role in shaping the firm's external search strategy, but that R&D has no effect. We find that competition inhibits exploratory search, while a decentralized firm structure encourages the use of this type of search strategy to the detriment of exploitative search. Our results emphasize that the mechanisms driving exploratory and exploitative searches are intrinsically different.

yearjournalcountryeditionlanguage
2014-01-01
http://hdl.handle.net/10261/132065