A framework of theoretical propositions is presented as a heuristic to describe the potential linkage between institutional absorptive capacity and organizational inertia. Means through which insight inertia and action inertia might be addressed are presented. A series of propositions and associated literature are presented for illustration. The concept of a zone of inertia is incorporated to facilitate understanding of the variables involved.
Amitay, M., Popper, M., & Lipshitz, R. (2005). Leadership styles and organizational learning in community clinics. The Learning Organization, 12(1), 57-70.
2.
Argyris, C., & Schön, D.A. (1978). Organizational learning: A theory of action perspective . Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley.
3.
Berthoin Antal, A., Dierkes, M., Child, J., & Nonaka, I. (2003). Organizational learning and knowledge: Reflections on the dynamics of the field and challenges for the future. In M. Dierkes, A. Berthoin Antal, J. Child, & I. Nonaka (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning & knowledge (pp. 921-939).Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
4.
Boisot, M.H. (2002). The creation and sharing of knowledge. In C. W. Choo & N. Bontis (Eds.), The strategic management of intellectual capital and organizational knowledge (pp. 65-77). New York: Oxford University Press.
5.
Brown, J.S., & Duguid, P. (1998). Organizing knowledge. California Management Review, 40(3), 90-111.
6.
Büchel, B., & Raub, S. (2003). Media choice and organizational learning. In M. Dierkes, A. Berthoin Antal, J. Child, & I. Nonaka (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning & knowledge (pp. 518-534 ).Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
7.
Cohen, W.M., & Levinthal, D. (1990). Absorptive capacity: A new perspective on learning and innovation. Administrative Science Quarterly, 35(1), 128-152.
8.
Cross, R., & Prusak, L. (2003). The political economy of knowledge markets in organizations. In M. Easterby-Smith & M. A. Lyles (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning and knowledge management (pp. 454-472). Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.
9.
Daghfous, A. (2004). Absorptive capacity and the implementation of knowledge-intensive best practices. SAM Advanced Management Journal, 69(2), 21-27.
10.
Dodgson, M. (1993). Organizational learning: A review of some literatures . Organization Studies, 14(3), 375-394.
11.
Friedman, V.J. (2003). The individual as agent of organizational learning . In M. Dierkes, A. Berthoin Antal, J. Child, & I. Nonaka (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning & knowledge (pp. 398-414).Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
12.
Frohman, A.L. (1997). Igniting organizational change from below: The power of personal initiative. Organizational Dynamics, 25(3), 39-53.
13.
Hayes, N., & Walsham, G. (2003). Knowledge sharing and ICTs: A relational perspective . In M. Easterby-Smith & M. A. Lyles (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning and knowledge management (pp. 54-77). Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.
14.
Hedberg, B., & Wolff, R. (2003). Organizing, learning, and strategizing: From construction to discovery. In M. Dierkes, A. Berthoin Antal, J. Child, & I. Nonaka (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning & knowledge (pp. 535-556). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
15.
Hedberg, B.L.T. (1981). How organizations learn and unlearn. In P. C. Nystrom & W. H. Starbuck (Eds.), Handbook of organizational design: Vol. 1. Adapting organizations to their environments (pp. 3-27). New York: Oxford University Press.
16.
Kahn, R., Wolfe, D., Quinn, R., Snoek, J., & Rosenthal, R. (1964). Organizational stress: Studies in role conflict and ambiguity. New York: John Wiley .
17.
Kay, J. (1993). The foundations of corporate success: How business strategies add value. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
18.
Kieser, A. (1997). Myth and rhetoric in management fashion. Organization, 4, 49-74.
19.
Kieser, A., Beck, N., & Tainio, R. (2003). Rules and organizational learning: The behavioral theory approach. In M. Dierkes, A. Berthoin Antal, J. Child, & I. Nonaka (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning & knowledge (pp. 598-623).Oxford , UK: Oxford University Press.
20.
Kim, D. (1993). The link between individual and organizational learning. Sloan Management Review, 35(1), 37-50.
21.
Kim, L. (1997) Crisis construction and organizational learning: Capability building in catching-up at Hyundai Motor. Organization Science, 25(4), 506-519.
22.
Lakomski, G. (2005). Managing without leadership: Towards a theory of organizational functioning. New York: Elsevier.
23.
Lane, C. (2003). Organizational learning in supplier networks. In M. Dierkes, A. Berthoin Antal, J. Child, & I. Nonaka (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning & knowledge (pp. 699-715). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
24.
Lyles, M.A., & Baird, I.S. (1994). Performance of international joint ventures in two Eastern European countries: The case of Hungry and Poland. Management International Review, 34(4), 313-30.
25.
Maier, G.W., Prange, C., & von Rosenstiel, L. (2003). Psychological perspectives of organizational learning. Introduction. In M. Dierkes, A. Berthoin Antal, J. Child, & I. Nonaka (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning & knowledge (pp. 14-34). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
26.
March, J.G., & Olsen, J.P. (1975). The uncertainty of the past: Organizational learning under ambiguity. European Journal of Political Research, 3, 147-158.
27.
March, J.G., & Simon, H.A. (1958). Organizations. New York: Wiley.
28.
Newell, S., Scarbrough, H., Swan, J., & Hislop, D. (2000). Intranets and knowledge management: De-centred technologies and the limits of technological discourse. In C. Prichard, R. Hull.,M. Chumer, & H. Willmott (Eds.). Managing knowledge: Critical investigations of work and learning. London: Macmillan.
29.
Nonaka, I., & Takeuchi, H. (1995). The knowledge-creating company: How Japanese companies create the dynamics of innovation. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
30.
Nonaka, I., Toyama, R., & Byoière, P. (2003). A Theory of organizational knowledge creation: Understanding the dynamic process of creating knowledge. In M. Dierkes, A. Berthoin Antal , J. Child, & I. Nonaka (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning & knowledge (pp. 491-517). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
Pinchott, G. (1985). Intrapreneuring: Why you don't have to leave the corporation to become an entrepreneur. New York: Harper & Row.
33.
Ruhleder, K. (1995). Computerisation and changes to infrastructures for knowledge work. The Information Society, 11(2), 131-144.
34.
Sadler, P. (2003). Leadership and organizational learning. In Meinolf Dierkes, Ariane Berthoin Antal, John Child, & Ikujiro Nonaka. Handbook of Organizational Learning & Knowledge. (pp. 415-427). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
35.
Salk, J.E., & Simonin, B. (2003). Beyond alliances: Towards a meta-theory of collaborative learning. In M. Easterby-Smith & M. A. Lyles (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning and knowledge management (pp. 253-277). Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.
36.
Scarbrough, H., & Swan, J. (2003). Discourses of knowledge management and the learning organization: Their production and consumption. In M. Easterby-Smith & M. A. Lyles (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning and knowledge management (pp. 495-512). Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.
37.
Schön, D.A. (1971). Beyond the stable state. London : W. W. Norton.
38.
Spreitzer, G.M., & Quinn, R.E. (1996). Empowering middle managers to be transformational leaders. Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 32, 237-261.
39.
Sternberg, R.J. (1999). What do we know about tacit knowledge? Making the tacit become explicit. In R. J. Sternberg & J. A. Horvath (Eds.), Tacit knowledge in professional practice: Researcher and practitioner perspective (pp. 231-236). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
40.
Stopford, J.M. (2003). Organizational learning as guided responses to market signals. In M. Dierkes, A. Berthoin Antal, J. Child, & I. Nonaka (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning & knowledge (pp. 264-281). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
41.
Szulanski, G. (2003). Sticky knowledge: Barriers to knowing in the firm . Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications .
42.
Uzzi, B. (1996). The sources and consequences of embeddedness for the economic performance of organizations: Network effect. American Sociological Review, 61(4), 674-698.
43.
von Hippel, E. (1994). Sticky information and the locus of problem solving: Implications for innovation. Management Science, 40(4), 429-439.
44.
von Rosenstiel, L. & Koch, S. (2003). Change in socioeconomic values as a trigger of organizational learning. In M. Dierkes, A. Berthoin Antal, J. Child, & I. Nonaka (Eds.), Handbook of organizational learning & knowledge (pp. 198-220). Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
45.
Weick, K.E. (1976). Educational organizations as loosely coupled systems . Administrative Science Quarterly, 21, 1-19.
46.
Weick, K.E. (2001). Making sense of the organization. Oxford, UK: Blackwell.
47.
Wenger, E., McDermott, R., & Snyder, W.M. (2002). Cultivating communities of practice. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.
48.
Zahra, S.A., & George, G. (2002). Absorptive capacity: A review, reconceptualization, and extension. Academy of Management Review, 27(2), 185-203.
