MORSe (Management and Organization Research Seminars): "Inbound mobility, inertia, and obsolescence"
Istituto di management e organizzazione
Data d'inizio: 03.11.2011
Data di fine: 04.11.2011
Thursday, 3rd of November, 12:30
Room A34, red building, Lugano campus
MORSE seminar given by Amit Jain (National University of Singapore)
Abstract
In this paper, I develop the argument that organizations avert technological obsolescence through the accumulation of incremental change. Incremental change is not associated with radical change as resistance to change within organizations makes it conform to existing practices. Inbound mobility, the recruitment of scientists, is one form of incremental change that occurs continually in biotechnology firms. I propose and show, using data on mobility events occurring over 38 years in the U.S. and Canadian Biotechnology industry, that mobility lowers resistance to change rather than result in conformity, and that it leads to the creation of innovations that makes greater impact on an organization’s technological community. Further, older organizations that are more resistant to technological change benefit more from inbound mobility, supporting the thesis that it helps to avert obsolescence. Analysis reveals that organizations may effectuate major changes to their core technological capabilities through the accumulation of incremental recruiting events.
