The Library
Making a marriage of materials : the role of gatekeepers and shepherds in the absorption of external knowledge and innovation performance
Tools
Ter Wal, Anne L. J., Criscuolo, Paola and Salter, Ammon (2017) Making a marriage of materials : the role of gatekeepers and shepherds in the absorption of external knowledge and innovation performance. Research Policy, 46 (5). pp. 1039-1054. doi:10.1016/j.respol.2017.03.003 ISSN 0048-7333.
Research output not available from this repository.
Request-a-Copy directly from author or use local Library Get it For Me service.
Official URL: http://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2017.03.003
Abstract
Through interviews and a large-scale survey of R&D scientists and engineers, this paper explores individuals’ attempts to absorb external knowledge, focusing on their efforts to identify and assimilate external knowledge and promote its utilization. Extant research does not explicitly address whether individuals should better specialize in certain absorption efforts or rather work as generalists dedicated to a range of efforts. We suggest that assimilation efforts increase the value of individuals’ efforts at external search and at promoting the utilization of external knowledge, which culminates in two main absorption roles that can help individuals achieve greater innovation performance. We argue that gatekeepers who combine external search with assimilation effort help to achieve innovation by contributing to building potential absorptive capacity, while shepherds who combine assimilation with utilization effort aid innovation by building realized absorptive capacity. We find support for these predictions and discuss the implications for research and managerial practice in open innovation.
Item Type: | Journal Article | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Divisions: | Faculty of Social Sciences > Warwick Business School | ||||
Journal or Publication Title: | Research Policy | ||||
Publisher: | Elsevier BV | ||||
ISSN: | 0048-7333 | ||||
Official Date: | June 2017 | ||||
Dates: |
|
||||
Volume: | 46 | ||||
Number: | 5 | ||||
Page Range: | pp. 1039-1054 | ||||
DOI: | 10.1016/j.respol.2017.03.003 | ||||
Status: | Peer Reviewed | ||||
Publication Status: | Published | ||||
Access rights to Published version: | Open Access (Creative Commons) |
Request changes or add full text files to a record
Repository staff actions (login required)
View Item |