FIRM-SPECIFIC KNOWLEDGE RESOURCES AND COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE: THE ROLES OF ECONOMIC- AND RELATIONSHIP-BASED EMPLOYEE GOVERNANCE MECHANISMS

• 成果类型: Review
• 署名作者: Wang, Heli C.; He, Jinyu; Mahoney, Joseph T.
• 署名单位: Hong Kong University of Science & Technology; University of Illinois System; University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
• 刊物名称: STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT JOURNAL
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0143-2095
• DOI: 10.1002/smj.787
• 发表日期: 2009
• 页码: 1265-1285
• 关键词: Firm-specific knowledge resources; employee human capital; employee governance mechanisms; resource-based view of the firm

摘要

The resource-based view of the firm emphasizes the role of firm-specific resources, especially firm-specific knowledge resources, in helping a firm to achieve sustainable competitive advantage. However, the deployment of firm-specific knowledge often requires key employees to make specialized human capital in vestments that are not easily redeployable to other settings. Thus, ill the absence of effective safeguards and trust building devices, employees with foresight may be reluctant to make such specialized investments. This study explores both economic- and relationship-based governance mechanisms that might mitigate this underinvestment problem. Effective use of these governance mechanisms enables a firm to obtain greater performance from its efforts to deploy firm-specific knowledge resources. Empirical results further support these key arguments. Copyright (C) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.