Download Organization Science Winter Conference, Feb 3-8 2009

Organization Science Winter Conference, Feb 3-8 2009
Steamboat, CO United States
Panel on:
Micro-level Origins of Organizational Capabilities
Organized by: Koen Heimeriks, Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University
Participants:
 Markus Becker, University of Southern Denmark
 Maurizio Zollo, Bocconi University
 Koen Heimeriks, Rotterdam School of Management
In spite of the centrality of resource- and capability-based approaches in the organization literature, our
understanding of the role of micro-level origins in organizational capabilities is still under-developed. The
objective of this panel is to further the debate on micro phenomena and their impact on firm-level
heterogeneity emerges and persists. The three panelists will present some of the current thinking and
empirical work currently being carried out in this area to initiate discussion of important research
questions and directions for future research. Typical questions are: how do insights on individual traits and
group processes enrich our understanding of origins of organizational capabilities? What are the cognitive,
behavioral and motivational facets shaping learning and capability development in organizations? These
questions will form the basis for a collective and multi-disciplinary discussion on how various concepts
(including some from sociology, psychology, economics and neuroscience) can be leveraged to study the
role of the micro-level phenomena in shaping organizational capabilities.
Presentations:
I.
Markus Becker, University of Southern Denmark:
II.
Maurizio Zollo, Bocconi University:
The problem of understanding how organizational capabilities evolve and devolve has been debated among
different groups of scholars for almost two decades, now. Still, there is a growing consensus that we are
missing a large part of the action, due to our poor understanding of the role of the individual in these
processes. My aim is to offer one framework of analysis of the antecedents to routinized behavior (which in
turn is requirement for capacity building). In particular, I will share some current work on the role of
motivation, of cognition and of personal values in shaping the direction, the adaptation and the quality of
collective competence building processes.
III.
Koen Heimeriks, Rotterdam School of Management: “The Emergence of Alliance and Acquisition
Capabilities”
Early research in the field of alliances and acquisitions paid attention to the role of experience-related
advantages in creating superior alliance or acquisition performance. While potentially insightful, such
studies were less precise on the internal mechanisms firms deploy to advance their alliance- and acquisition
capabilities. This presentation discusses the role multiple internal mechanisms play in advancing or
limiting alliance- and acquisition-related advantages. In particular, it aims to discuss in detail some of the
processes which lie at the heart of these specific organization-level capabilities. Last, a number of paths for
advancing this sub-field are shared and discussed.