Abstract
The concept of organizational imprinting (Stinchcombe, 1965) refers to the long-term effects of founding conditions on an organization’s structure, strategy, and other features. While Stinchcombe’s original work mainly referred to overall social structures in the new firm’s environment, more recent research has highlighted the agency-driven nature of imprinting processes (Johnson, 2007) and particularly emphasized the role of firm founders on such processes (Boeker, 1989). Recent research on imprinting has also emphasized that the birth of a firm is not the only point in time when imprinting may occur (Van Driel and Dolfsma, 2010). From the very beginning, imprinting research has distinguished between the imprinting process as such and the retention of imprints through traditionalizing forces during later phases of the firm’s life cycle (Stinchcombe, 1965). In this chapter we focus on the retention and the possible reinforcement of imprints.
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
Albert, S. and Whetten, D., 1985. Organizational identity. Research in Organizational Behavior, 7, pp. 263–95.
Andrews, K., 1971. The Concept of Corporate Strategy. Homewood: Irwin.
Arthur, W. B., 1989. Competing technologies, increasing returns and lock-in by historical events. Economic Journal, 99, pp. 116–31.
Arthur, W. B., 1994. Increasing Returns and Path-dependency in the Economy. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
Baron, J. N., Hannan, M. T. and Burton, M. D., 1999. Building the iron cage: Determinants of managerial intensity in the early years of organizations. American Sociological Review, 64 (4), pp. 527–47.
Boeker, W., 1989. Strategic change: The effects of founding and history. Academy of Management Journal, 32 (3), pp. 489–515.
Boers, B. and Brunninge, O., 2011. Towards an inclusion of founders and founding processes in organizational identity research: The case of Rheinische Post. JIBS Working Papers No. 2011–11. Jönköping: Jönköping International Business School.
Brunninge, O., 2009. Using history in organizations: How managers make purposeful reference to history in strategy processes. Journal of Organizational Change Management, 22 (1), pp. 8–26.
David, P. A., 1985. Clio and the economics of QWERTY. American Economic Review, 75 (2), pp. 332–37.
Eisenhardt, K. M., 1989. Building theories from case study research. Academy of Management Review, 14 (4), pp. 532–50.
Eisenhardt, K. M. and Schoonhoven, C. B., 1990. Linking founding team, strategy, environment and growth among US semiconductor ventures 1978–1988. Administrative Science Quarterly, 35 (3), pp. 504–29.
Gagliardi, P., 1986. The creation and change of organizational cultures: A conceptual framework. Organization Studies, 7 (2), pp. 117–34.
Habbershon, T. G. and Pistrui, J., 2002. Enterprising families domain: Family-influenced ownership groups in pursuit of transgenerational wealth. Family Business Review, 15 (3), pp. 223–37.
Harris, L. and Ogbonna, E., 1999. The strategic legacy of company founders. Long Range Planning, 32 (3), pp. 333–43.
Humble, J., Jackson, D. and Thomson, A., 1994. The strategic power of corporate values. Long Range Planning, 27 (6), pp. 28–42.
James, R., Detert, G., Schroeder, R. and Mauriel, J., 2000. A framework for linking culture and improvement initiatives in organizations. Academy of Management Review, 25 (4), pp. 850–63.
Johnson, G., 1987. Strategic Change and the Management Process. Oxford: Basil Blackwell.
Johnson, G., Scholes, K. and Whittington, R., 2008. Exploring Corporate Strategy. 8th edn Harlow: Pearson.
Johnson, V., 2007. What is organizational imprinting? Cultural entrepreneurship in the founding of the Paris Opera. American Journal of Sociology, 113 (1), pp. 97–127.
Kimberly, J. R., 1979. Issues in the creation of organizations: Initiation, innovation and institutionalization. Academy of Management Review, 22 (3), pp. 437–57.
Kimberly, J. R. and Bouchikhi, H., 1995. The dynamics of organizational development and change: How the past shapes the present and constrains the future. Organization Science, 6 (1), pp. 9–18.
Lachman, R., Nedd, A. and Hinings, B., 1994. Analyzing cross-national management and organizations: A theoretical framework. Management Science, 40 (1), pp. 40–55.
Lounsbury, M. and Ventresca, M., 2002. Social structure and organizations revisited. Research in the Sociology of Organizations, 19, pp. 3–36.
Marquis, C. and Huang, Z., 2010. Acquisitions as exaptation: The legacy of founding institutions in the US commercial banking industry. Academy ofManagement Journal, 53 (6), pp. 1441–73.
Neubauer, F., and Lank, A., 1998. The Family Business: Its Governance for Sustainability. Houndmills: Macmillan.
Osborne, R. L., 1991. Core value statements: The corporate compass. Business Horizons, 34 (5), pp. 28–34.
Peters, T. J. and Waterman, R. H., 1982. In Search of Excellence–Lessons from America’s Best Run Companies. New York: Harper and Row.
Pettigrew, A. M., 1985. “Examining change in the long-term context of culture and politics”, in J. M. Pennings and associates (eds) Organizational Strategy and Change. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, pp. 269–318.
Schein, E. H., 1983. The role of the founder in creating organizational culture. Organizational Dynamics, 12 (Summer), pp. 13–28.
Schein, E. H., 1985. Organizational Culture and Leadership. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Selznick, P., 1957. Leadership in Administration: A Sociological Interpretation. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Sharma, P., 2004. An overview of the field of family business studies: Current status and directions for the future. Family Business Review, 17 (1), pp. 293–311.
Smircich, L., 1983. Concepts of culture and organizational analysis. Administrative Science Quarterly, 28 (3), pp. 339–58.
Stake, R. E., 1995. The Art of Case Study Research. Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Staw, B. M., 1981. The escalation of commitment to a course of action. Academy of Management Review, 6 (4), pp. 577–87.
Stinchcombe, A. L., 1965. “Social structure and organizations”, in J. March (ed.) Handbook of Organizations. Chicago: Rand McNally, pp. 142–93.
Sydow, J., Schreyögg, G. and Koch, J., 2009. Organizational path dependence: Opening the black box. Academy of Management Review, 34 (4), pp. 689–709.
Van Driel, H. and Dolfsma, W. 2010. “Imprinting, path dependence and meta-routines: The genesis and development of the Toyota production system”, in G. Schreyögg and J. Sydow (eds) The Hidden Dynamics of Path Dependence: Institutions and Organizations. Houndmills: Palgrave, pp. 35–49.
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Copyright information
© 2013 Anna Blombäck, Olof Brunninge, and Anders Melander
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Blombäck, A., Brunninge, O., Melander, A. (2013). Imprints, Self-Reinforcement and Active Reinforcement: The Case of Corporate Value Statements. In: Sydow, J., Schreyögg, G. (eds) Self-Reinforcing Processes in and among Organizations. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230392830_9
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1057/9780230392830_9
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, London
Print ISBN: 978-1-349-35207-4
Online ISBN: 978-0-230-39283-0
eBook Packages: Palgrave Business & Management CollectionBusiness and Management (R0)