The IfSTO would like to cordially invite you to the upcoming research talk by

Associate Professor Elisa Operti (ESSEC Business School)

Topic: What Drives Exploration? Convergence of Exploration Tendencies Among Alliance Partners and Competitors

Abstract (short):
Strategy research has alluded to organizational and environmental conditions that drive firms’ tendencies to explore versus exploit. We complement this research by demonstrating how convergence with the dominant corporate behaviors of the firm’s alliance partners and competitors drives these tendencies. Using panel data on 182 U.S.-based publicly traded electronics firms, we reveal an inverted U-shaped association between the firm’s exploration tendency and the exploration levels of its partners and competitors. Convergence is explained by imitation and legitimation, while divergence is associated with risk perception, balance across modes, and differentiation. We show how the convergence of the exploration tendency becomes stronger under firm-specific uncertainty but weaker when the exploration patterns exhibited by the firm’s partners and competitors are incoherent. Finally, counter to expectations, we show that this convergence is weakened by the technological proximity of the firm’s competitors. Our findings inform research on the antecedents of exploration and underscore the role of interdependence in firms’ exploration tendencies.

Time: Thursday, 14 June 2018 from 12 - 1.30 pm

Location: University of Vienna, Meeting Room 4.313 (4th floor), Oskar-Morgenstern-Platz 1, 1090 Wien (please check for updates on: <link ifsto seminar-series>www.wu.ac.at/ifsto/seminar-series/)

If you are interested in attending the presentation, for planning purposes kindly confirm your interest to Karoline Eadie (karoline.eadie@univie.ac.at) until June 8 2018

The speaker series is hosted jointly by the Institute for Strategy, Technology and Organization (Christopher Lettl) and the Strategic Management Subject Area at the University of Vienna (Markus Reitzig). The series addresses topics at the interface of strategic management, innovation, technology, and organization design. Aim of the series is the facilitation of research dialogue within our department, boundary spanning to other WU departments, and the facilitation of networking with renowned scholars in the field. See http://www.wu.ac.at/ifsto/speaker-series/ for details on future talks (speakers, dates). The series is associated with the RESEARCH PROGRAM ON OPEN INNOVATION of the Institute for Strategy, Technology and Organization.

We are greatly looking forward to seeing you!