CUI BONO? THE SELECTIVE REVEALING OF KNOWLEDGE AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR INNOVATIVE ACTIVITY

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Alexy, Oliver; George, Gerard; Salter, Ammon J.
• 署名单位: Technical University of Munich; Imperial College London; Imperial College London
• 刊物名称: ACADEMY OF MANAGEMENT REVIEW
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0363-7425
• DOI: 10.5465/amr.2011.0193
• 发表日期: 2013
• 页码: 270-291
• 关键词: OPEN SOURCE SOFTWARE; absorptive-capacity; interorganizational collaboration; COLLECTIVE STRATEGY; empirical-evidence; spillovers; firm; networks; performance; TECHNOLOGY

摘要

Current theories of how organizations harness knowledge for innovative activity cannot convincingly explain emergent practices whereby firms selectively reveal knowledge to their advantage. We conceive of selective revealing as a strategic mechanism to reshape the collaborative behavior of other actors in a firm's innovation ecosystem. We propose that selective revealing may provide an effective alternative to known collaboration mechanisms, particularly under conditions of high partner uncertainty, high coordination costs, and unwilling potential collaborators. We specify conditions when firms are more likely to reveal knowledge and highlight some boundary conditions for competitor reciprocity. We elaborate on strategies that allow firms to exhibit managerial agency in selective revealing and discuss selective revealing's implications for theories of organization and open innovation and for management practice.