Abstract
This paper seeks to connect related strands of thought in evolutionary economics and the resource-based view of the firm. Although conceived primarily as an approach to the descriptive analysis of the firm and industry, evolutionary economics offers a distinctive view of the firm that is adaptable for the purposes of normative analysis (Winter 1987). The resource-based view, as it has been developed in the strategy literature, seeks to derive normative guidance for business decision making from a deeper understanding of the sources of interfirm profitability differences (Wernerfelt 1984; Rumelt 1984). It interprets these as reflections of differences in streams of rents and quasi-rents accruing to firms, which in turn are attributed to differences in the control and management of strategic resources.
With the customary caveats, I would like to express my appreciation for the helpful comments on an earlier draft that I received from Connie Helfat, Dan Levinthal and—especially—Cynthia Montgomery.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Amit, R., and Schoemaker, P. 1993. “Strategic assets and organizational rent.” Strategic Management Journal 14 (January): 33–36.
Arrow, K. 1962. “Economic welfare and the allocation of resources for invention.” In R. Nelson, ed., The rate and direction of inventive activity. 609–625. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Barney, J. 1986. “Strategic factor markets: expectations, luck and business strategy.” Management Science 32 (October): 1231–1241.
Barney, J. 1989. “Asset stocks and sustained competitive advantage: a comment.” Management Science 35 (December): 1511–1513.
Barney, J. 1991. “Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage.” Journal of Management 17 (October): 99–120.
Beaver, W., and Demski, J. 1979. “The nature of income measurement.” The Accounting Review 54: 38–46.
Castanias, R., and Helfat, C. 1991. “Managerial resources and rents.” Journal of Management 17 (October): 155–171.
Chandler, A. 1990. Scale and scope: the dynamics of industrial competition. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Demsetz, H. 1973. “Industry structure, market rivalry, and public policy.” Journal of Law and Economics 16 (April): 1–10.
Dierickx, I., and Cool, K. 1989. “Asset stock accumulation and sustainability of competitive advantage.” Management Science 35 (December): 1504–1511.
Foss, N., Knudsen, C., and Montgomery, C. 1995. “An exploration of common ground: integrating evolutionary and strategic theories of the firm.” In C.A. Montgomery (ed.), Resources from an evolutionary perspective: towards a synthesis of evolutionary and resource-based approaches to strategy: 1–17. Norwell, MA: Kluwer Academic Publishers.
Ghemawat, P. 1986. “Sustainable advantage.” Harvard Business Review (September-October): 53–56.
Gould, J. 1968. “Adjustment costs in the theory of investment of the firm.” Review of Economic Studies 35: 47–55.
Gould, S. 1980. The panda’s thumb: more reflections in natural history. New York: Norton.
Hirshleifer, J. 1971. “The private and social value of information and the reward to inventive activity.” American Economic Review 61: 561–574.
Kogut, C., and Zander, U. 1992. “Knowledge of the firm, combinative capabilities, and the replication of technology.” Organization Science 3: 383–397.
Koopmans, T.C. 1957. Three essays on the state of economic science. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Levinthal, D. 1994. “Adaptation on rugged landscapes.” Unpublished manuscript. Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.
Lippman, S, and Rumelt, R. 1982. “Uncertain instability: an analysis of interfirm differences in efficiency under competition.” Bell Journal of Economics 13: 418–438.
Lucas, R. 1967. “Adjustment costs and the theory of supply.” Journal of Political Economy 75 (August, Part I): 321–334.
Montgomery, C. 1992. “Resources: the essence of corporate advantage.” Teaching note. Boston: Harvard Business School.
Nelson, R. 1991. “Why do firms differ, and how does it matter?” Strategic Management Journal 12: 61–74.
Nelson, R., and Winter, S. 1982b. An evolutionary theory of economic change. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Penrose, E. 1959. The theory of the growth of the firm. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
Peteraf, M. 1993. “The cornerstones of competitive advantage: a resource-based view.” Strategic Management Journal 14: 179–91.
Porter, M. 1980. Competitive strategy. New York: The Free Press.
Reed, R., and DeFillippi, R. 1990. Causal ambiguity, barriers to imitation, and sustainable competitive advantage. Academy of Management Review 15: 88–102.
Rubin, P. 1973. “The expansion of firms.” Journal of Political Economy 81: 936–949.
Rumelt, R. 1984. “Towards a strategic theory of the firm.” In R. Lamb, ed., Competitive strategic management. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Rumelt, R. 1987. “Theory, strategy and entrepreneurship.” In D. Teece, ed., The competitive challenge: strategies for industrial innovation and renewal: 137–158. Cambridge: Ballinger.
Rumelt, R., Schendel, D., and Teece, D. 1991. “Strategic Management and Economics.” Strategic Management Journal 12: 5–29.
Schumpeter, J. 1934 (Orig. in German, 1911). The theory of economic development. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Schumpeter, J. 1950. Capitalism, socialism and democracy, 3rd ed. New York: Harper and Row.
Szulanski, G. 1994. “Intra-firm transfer of best practices project: executive summary.” INSEAD and International Benchmarking Clearinghouse.
Teece, D., Pisano, G., and Shuen, A. Forthcoming. “Dynamic capabilities and strategic management.” Strategic Management Journal.
Treadway, A. “Adjustment costs and variable inputs in the theory of the competitive firm.” Journal of Economic Theory 2: 329–347.
Wernerfelt, B. 1984. “A resource-based view of the firm.” Strategic Management Journal 5: 171–180.
Wernerfelt, B. 1989. “From critical resources to corporate strategy.” Journal of General Management 14 (Spring): 4–12.
Winter, S. 1982. “An essay on the theory of production.” In S. Hymans, ed, Economics and the world around it: 55–91. Ann Arbor. Michigan: University of Michigan Press.
Winter, S. 1987. “Knowledge and competence as strategic assets.” In D. Teece, ed., The competitive challenge: strategies for industrial innovation and renewal: 159–184. Cambridge: Ballinger.
Zander, U. and Kogut, B. Forthcoming. “Knowledge and the speed of transfer and imitation of organizational capabilities: an empirical test.” Organization Science.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1995 Springer Science+Business Media New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Winter, S.G. (1995). Four Rs of Profitability: Rents, Resources, Routines, and Replication. In: Montgomery, C.A. (eds) Resource-Based and Evolutionary Theories of the Firm: Towards a Synthesis. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-2201-0_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-2201-0_7
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-1-4613-5923-4
Online ISBN: 978-1-4615-2201-0
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive