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Annual Meeting of the European Academy of Management and Business Economics

AEDEM 2017: Economy, Business and Uncertainty: New Ideas for a Euro-Mediterranean Industrial Policy pp 43–57Cite as

Cooperation for External Knowledge Acquisition from Inter-organizational Relationships as Antecedent of Product Innovation: The Mediating Role of Absorptive Capacity

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Part of the book series: Studies in Systems, Decision and Control ((SSDC,volume 180))

Abstract

This paper analyses the antecedents of company’s product innovation based on knowledge acquisition from inter-organizational relationships and absorptive capacity. Focusing on Spanish biotechnology and pharmaceutics industries, it examines the mediating effects of the explorative and exploitative absorptive capacity sides on the relationships between social capital, knowledge acquisition made through strategic alliances, and product innovation. The study results partially support these mediating effects, and allow to conclude that an appropriate management of firm’s inter-organizational networks to identify and acquire knowledge-based resources from cooperation partners, besides encouraging the development of internal absorptive capabilities, could be used for developing new products, and generating/maintaining competitive advantages related with these processes.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Castilla-La Mancha University, Toledo, Spain

    Beatriz Ortiz García Navas & Fátima Guadamillas Gómez

  2. Schmalkalden University, Schmalkalden, Germany

    Joachim Bach

  3. Castilla-La Mancha University, Ciudad Real, Spain

    Mario Javier Donate Manzanares

Authors
  1. Beatriz Ortiz García Navas
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  2. Joachim Bach
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  3. Mario Javier Donate Manzanares
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  4. Fátima Guadamillas Gómez
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Beatriz Ortiz García Navas .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Departament d’Empresa, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

    Jaime Gil-Lafuente

  2. Mediterranea University of Reggio Calabria, Reggio Calabria, Italy

    Domenico Marino

  3. Department of Civil, Energy, Environment and Materials Engineering, Mediterranea University of Reggio Calabria, Reggio Calabria, Italy

    Francesco Carlo Morabito

Appendix. Research Items

Appendix. Research Items

Constr.

Dimensions

My firm usually… (From 1 – strongly disagree to 7-strongly agree)

Source

COOPERATION (COOP)

 

Develops alliances and/or cooperation agreements with universities

Fey and Birkinshaw [10];

Díaz et al. [8]; Valmaseda and Hernández [44]

Develops alliances and/or cooperation agreements with customers and suppliers

Develops alliances and/or cooperation agreements with participants in the development of joint research projects promoted by government institutions

SOCIAL CAPITAL (SC)

STRUCTURAL SOCIAL CAPITAL (ST_SC)

Acquires knowledge from our inter-organizational contacts’ network

Yli-Renko et al. [45];

Maula, Autio and Murray [28];

Inkpen and Tsang [21];

Ambos and Ambos [2];

Pérez-Luño, Cabello and Carmona [34]

Personally meets contacts who acquire external knowledge

Maintains narrow inter-relationships with contacts who acquire external knowledge

Maintains frequent inter-relationships with contacts who acquire external knowledge

(In general) Has contacts who acquire knowledge from among themselves

RELATIONAL SOCIAL CAPITAL (REL_SC)

Has external relationships based on cooperation and mutual trust

Has external relationships with a high grade of commitment

COGNITIVE SOCIAL CAPITAL (COG_SC)

Shares goals and joint-project interests with its external relationships

Shares a common vision regarding environment and successful key factors whit its external relationships

Uses similar working techniques that external agents whom it is related

Has a similar business culture and management style that external agents whom it is related

EXPLORATIVE ABSORPTIVE CAPACITY (EXPLR AC)

IDENTIFICATION

Has the ability to seek information within its environment

Segarra et al. [39];

Jansen, Van Den Bosch and Volberda [22]

Has the ability to anticipate competitors movements

Has the ability to anticipate customers necessities

Has the ability to keep in touch with external institutions and specialised sources

Has personal, equipment and specialised services for environment monitoring

Has problems to recognise changes in our market/products*

Understands new opportunities to satisfy our customers quickly

Interprets changes in market pull quickly

Knows intuitively which areas can use acquired technology or external knowledge

EXPLOITATIVE ABSORPTIVE CAPACITY (EXPLT AC)

ASIMILATION/

TRANSFORMATION

Considers the consequences of changes in the market in order to create new products and services

Jansen et al. [22]

Uses TIC for registration and storage newly acquired external knowledge for future reference

Recognises the usefulness of newly acquired external knowledge to incorporate it with existing knowledge quickly

Has employees who hardly share practical experiences*

Hardly takes advantage of newly acquired knowledge*

Establishes regular meetings to discuss the consequences of market trends and the development of new services

Has tools/techniques for distributing and sharing acquired knowledge

Spreads acquired knowledge to those areas in which it can be more effective quickly

 

EXPLOTATION

Considers which is the best way to exploit knowledge

Knows which area (department, employees) can best exploit new knowledge

Hardly uses new knowledge in new products*

PRODUCT INNOVATION

 

Has introduced more innovative products/services as compared to its competitors

Škerlavaj Hoon and Lee [40]

Has frequently emphasised the development of new patented products

Has satisfied the market through the quick development of its products

Has continuously changed the product design to quickly enter in new emerging markets

Has continuously improved the components and quality of its products

  1. *Item with inverse coding

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Ortiz García Navas, B., Bach, J., Donate Manzanares, M.J., Guadamillas Gómez, F. (2019). Cooperation for External Knowledge Acquisition from Inter-organizational Relationships as Antecedent of Product Innovation: The Mediating Role of Absorptive Capacity. In: Gil-Lafuente, J., Marino, D., Morabito, F. (eds) Economy, Business and Uncertainty: New Ideas for a Euro-Mediterranean Industrial Policy. AEDEM 2017. Studies in Systems, Decision and Control, vol 180. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00677-8_5

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