How organizational learning affects a firm's flexibility, competitive strategy, and performance

Journal of Business Research

Volumn 65, Issue 8, 2012, Pages 1079-1089

  Santos Vijande, María Leticia ^a   López Sánchez, José Ángel ^b   Trespalacios, Juan Antonio ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF OVIEDO   (Spain)

^b UNIVERSITY OF EXTREMADURA   (Spain)

Author keywords

Competitive strategy; Dynamic capability; Organizational learning; Performance; Strategic flexibility

Indexed keywords

EID: 84861691361     PISSN: 01482963     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2011.09.002     Document Type: Article

References (127)

1. Acquaah M., Yasai-Ardekani M. Does the implementation of a combination competitive strategy yield incremental performance benefits? A new perspective from a transition economy in Sub-Saharan Africa. Journal of Business Research 2008, 61(4):346-354.
2. Akgün A.E., Lynn G.S., Yilmaz C. Learning process in new product development teams and effects on product success. A sociocognitive perspective. Industrial Marketing Management 2006, 35(2):210-224.
3. Aragón-Correa J.A., García-Morales V.J., Cordón-Pozo E. Leadership and organizational learning's role on innovation and performance: lessons from Spain. Industrial Marketing Management 2007, 36(3):349-359.
4. Argyris C., Schön D. Organizational learning: a theory of action perspective 1978, Addison Wesley, Reading, MA.
5. Armstrong J.S., Overton T.S. Estimating no response bias in mail surveys. Journal of Marketing Research 1977, 14(3):396-402.
6. Azadegan A., Dooley K.J. Supplier innovativeness, organizational learning styles and manufacturer performance: an empirical assessment. Journal of Operations Management 2010, 28(6):488-505.
7. Bapuji H., Crossan M.M. From questions to answers: reviewing organizational learning research. Management Learning 2004, 35(4):397-417.
8. Barney J. Firm resources and sustained competitive advantage. Journal of Management 1991, 17(1):99-120.
9. Barney J. Gaining and sustaining competitive advantage 1997, Addison-Wensley, Ontario.
10. Barney J.B. Is the resource-based 'view' a useful perspective for strategic management research? Yes. Academy of Management Review 2001, 26(1):41-56.
11. Beer M., Voelpel S.C., Leibold M., Tekie E.B. Strategic management as organizational learning: developing fit and alignment through a disciplined process. Long Range Planning 2005, 38(5):445-465.
12. Bell S.J., Whitwell G.J., Lukas B.A. Schools of thought in organizational learning. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 2002, 30(1):70-86.
13. Bell S.J., Mengüç B., Widing R.E. Salesperson learning, organizational learning, and retail store performance. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 2010, 38(2):187-201.
14. Bentler P.M. EQS: structural equations program manual 1995, BMDP Statistical Software, Los Angeles, California.
15. Bhatnagar J. Predictors of organizational commitment in India: strategic HR roles, organizational learning capability and psychological empowerment. International Journal of Human Resource Management 2007, 18(10):1782-1812.
16. Boynton A. Achieving dynamic stability through information technology. California Management Review 1993, 35(2):58-77.
17. Chrisman J., Hofer Ch., Boulton W. Toward a system for classifying business strategies. Academy of Management Review 1988, 13(3):413-428.
18. Churchill G.A. A paradigm for developing better measures of marketing constructs. Journal of Marketing Research 1979, 16(1):64-73.
19. Constantin J.A., Lusch R.F. Understanding resource management 1994, The Planning Forum, Oxford, OH.
20. Cross R., Baird L. Technology is not enough: improving performance by building organizational memory. Sloan Management Review 2000, 41(3):69-78.
21. Cross R., Parker A., Prusak L., Borgatti S.P. Knowing what we know: supporting knowledge creation and sharing in social networks. Organizational Dynamics 2001, 30(2):100-120.
22. Cyert R.M., March J.G. A Behavioural Theory of the Firm 1963, Prentice-Hall. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.
23. Danneels E. The dynamics of product innovation and firm competences. Strategic Management Journal 2002, 23(12):1095-1121.
24. Darroch J. Knowledge management, innovation and firm performance. Journal of Knowledge Management 2005, 9(3):101-115.
25. Dawson R. Knowledge capabilities as the focus of organisational development and strategy. Journal of Knowledge Management 2000, 4(4):320-327.
26. Day G. Market driven strategy: processes for creating value 1990, The Free Press, New York, NY.
27. Day G.S. Continuous learning about markets. California Management Review 1994, 9-31. [summer].
28. Day G.S., Wensley R. Assessing advantage: a framework for diagnosing competitive superiority. Journal of Marketing 1988, 52(April):1-20.
29. De Holan P., Phillips N., Lawrence T.B. Managing organizational forgetting. Sloan Management Review 2004, 45(2):45-51.
30. Dess G.G., Davis P.S. Porter's (1980) generic strategies as determinants of strategic group membership and organisational performance. Academy of Management Journal 1984, 27(3):467-488.
31. Dickson P.R., Farris P.W., Verbeke W. Dynamic strategic thinking. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 2001, 29(3):216-237.
32. Dreyer B., Grønhaug K. Uncertainty, flexibility and sustained competitive advantage. Journal of Business Research 2004, 57(5):484-494.
33. Eisenhardt K., Santos F.M. Knowledge-based view: a new theory of strategy?. Handbook of strategy and management 2002, 139-164. Sage, London. A. Pettigrew, H. Thomas, R. Whittington (Eds.).
34. Fang W.S., Cavusgil T. Organizational learning, commitment, and joint value creation in interfirm relationships. Journal of Business Research 2005, 59(1):81-89.
35. Fang S.C., Wang J.F. Effects of organizational culture and learning on manufacturing strategy selection: an empirical study. International Journal of Management 2006, 23(3):503-514.
36. Fornell C., Larcker D.F. Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research 1981, 18(1):39-50.
37. Gerbing D.W., Anderson J.C. An updated paradigm for scale development incorporating unidimensionality and its assessment. Journal of Marketing Research 1988, 25(2):186-192.
38. Grant R. A resource-based theory of competitive advantage: implications for strategy formulation. California Management Journal 1991, 33(3):114-135.
39. Grant R.M. Contemporary strategy analysis: concepts, techniques, applications 1995, Basil Blackwell Inc., Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA. 2nd ed.
40. Greenley G.E. Market orientation and firm performance. British Journal of Management 1995, 6(1):1-13.
41. Grewal R., Tansuhaj P. Building organizational capabilities for managing economic crisis: the role of market orientation and strategic flexibility. Journal of Marketing 2001, 65(April):67-80.
42. Hamel G., Prahalad C.K. Strategic intent. Harvard Business Review 1989, 67(3):63-74.
43. Helfat C.E., Peteraf M.A. The dynamic resource-based view: capability lifecycles. Strategic Management Journal 2003, 24:997-1010.
44. Hershey R. Commercial intelligence on a shoestring. Harvard Business Review 1980, 22-30. [September-October].
45. Hitt M., Keats B., DeMarie S. Navigating in the new competitive landscape: building strategic flexibility and competitive advantage in the 21st century. The Academy of Management Executive 1998, 12(4):22-42.
46. Hitt M.A., Ireland R.D., Hoskisson R.E. Strategic management: competitiveness and globalization, concepts and cases 2007, South-Western College Pub. 7th edition.
47. Hooley G.J., Greenley G.E., Cadogan J.W., Fahy J. The performance impact of marketing resources. Journal of Business Research 2005, 58:18-27.
48. Hoskisson R.E., Hitt M.A., Ireland R.D. Competing for advantage 2008, Thomson South-Western, Cincinnati. 2nd ed.
49. Hu L., Bentler P.M. Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis. Structural Equation Modeling 1999, 6(1):1-55.
50. Huber G.P. Organizational learning: the contributing processes and the literatures. Organization Science 1991, 2(1):88-115.
51. Hult G.T., Ferrell O.C. A global learning organization structure and market information processing. Journal of Business Research 1997, 40(2):155-166.
52. Hult G.T., Nichols E.L., Giunipero L.C., Hurley R.F. Global organizational learning in the supply chain: a low versus high learning study. Journal of International Marketing 2000, 8(3):61-83.
53. Hult G.T., Ketchen D.J., Slater S.F. A longitudinal study of the learning climate and cycle time in supply chains. The Journal of Business and Industrial Marketing 2002, 17(4):302-323.
54. Hult G.T., Hurley R.F., Knight G.A. Innovativeness: its antecedents and impact on business performance. Industrial Marketing Management 2004, 33(5):429-458.
55. Hult G.T., Ketchen D.J., Nichols E.L. Organizational learning as a strategic resource in supply management. Journal of Operations Management 2003, 21(5):541-557.
56. Hunt S.D. On the service-centered dominant logic of marketing. Journal of Marketing 2004, 68(1):21-22.
57. Hunt S.D., Morgan R.M. The comparative advantage theory of competition. Journal of Marketing 1995, 59(2):1-15.
58. Jeréz-Gómez P., Céspedes-Lorente J., Valle-Cabrera R. Organizational learning capability: a proposal of measurement. Journal of Business Research 2005, 58(6):715-725.
59. Johnson J.L., Pui-Wan L.R., Saini A., Grohmann B. Market-focused strategic flexibility: conceptual advances and an integrative model. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 2003, 31(1):74-89.
60. Kaleka A., Berthon P. Learning and locale: the role of information, memory and environment in determining export differentiation advantage. Journal of Business Research 2006, 59(9):1016-1024.
61. Kandemir D., Hult G.T. A conceptualization of an organizational learning culture in international joint ventures. Industrial Marketing Management 2005, 34(5):430-439.
62. Katila R., Ahuja G. Something old, something new: a longitudinal study of search behaviour and new product introduction. Academy of Management Journal 2002, 45(6):1183-1194.
63. Kenny J. Strategy and the learning organization: a maturity model for the formation of strategy. The Learning Organization 2006, 13(4):353-368.
64. Koffman F., Senge P.M. Communities of commitment: the heart of learning organizations. Organizational Dynamics 1993, 22(2):5-23.
65. Kotha S. Mass customization: implementing the emerging paradigm for competitive advantage. Strategic Management Journal 1995, 16:21-42.
66. Kraft K. Are product and process innovations independent of each other?. Applied Economics 1990, 22(8):1029-1038.
67. Lawrence B.S. Historical perspective: using the past to study the present. Academy of Management Review 1984, 9(2):307-312.
68. Lei D., Hitt M., Goldhar J. Advanced manufacturing technology: organizational design and strategic flexibility. Organization Studies 1996, 17(3):501-517.
69. Li C.B., Li J.J. Achieving superior financial performance in China: differentiation, cost leadership, or both?. Journal of International Marketing 2008, 16(3):1-22.
70. Lings I.N. Internal market orientation: constructs and consequences. Journal of Business Research 2004, 57(4):405-413.
71. Liu C.-L., Ghauri P.N., Sinkovics R.R. Understanding the impact of relational capital and organizational learning on alliance outcomes. Journal of World Business 2010, 45(3):237-249.
72. López-Sánchez J.A., Santos-Vijande M.L., Trespalacios-Gutiérrez J.A. Organisational learning and value creation in business markets. European Journal of Marketing 2010, 44(11/12):1612-1641.
73. López-Sánchez J.A., Santos-Vijande M.L., Trespalacios-Gutiérrez J.A. The effects of manufacturer's organizational learning on distributor satisfaction and loyalty in industrial markets. Industrial Marketing Management 2011, 40(4):624-635.
74. Lumpkin G.T., Lichtenstein B.B. The role of organizational learning in the opportunity-recognition process. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice 2005, 29(4):451-472.
75. Madhavaram S., Hunt S.D. The service-dominant logic and a hierarchy of operant resources: developing masterful operant resources and implications for marketing strategy. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science 2008, 36:67-82.
76. Mahoney J.T., Pandian J.R. The resource-based view within the conversation of strategic management. Strategic Management Journal 1992, 13:363-380.
77. Matsuno K., Mentzer J.T. The effects of strategy type on the market orientation-performance relationship. Journal of Marketing 2000, 64(4):1-16.
78. Matthyssens P., Pauwels P., Vandenbempt K. Strategic flexibility, rigidity and barriers to the development of absorptive capacity in business markets: themes and research perspectives. Industrial Marketing Management 2005, 34:547-554.
79. McGuinness T., Morgan R.E. The effect of market and learning orientation on strategy dynamics. The contributing effect of organisational change capability. European Journal of Marketing 2005, 39(11/12):1306-1326.
80. McNiff J. Action research in organizations 2000, Routledge, London.
81. Menguc B., Auh S., Shih E. Transformational leadership and market orientation: implications for the implementation of competitive strategies and business unit performance. Journal of Business Research 2007, 60(4):314-321.
82. Miller D. Relating Porter's business strategies to environment and structure: analysis and performance implications. Academy of Management Journal 1988, 31(2):280-308.
83. Milliken F.J. Perceiving and interpreting environmental change. Academy of Management Journal 1990, 33(1):42-63.
84. Murray A.I. A contingency view of Porter's generic strategies. Academy of Management Review 1988, 13(3):390-400.
85. Nielsen Company New product innovation in a recession: resist the impulse to pull back. Consumer Nielsen News 2009.
86. Olivera F. Memory systems in organizations: an empirical investigation of mechanisms for knowledge collection storage and access. Journal of Management Studies 2000, 37(6):811-832.
87. Overby E., Bharadwaj A., Sambamuthy V. A framework for enterprise agility and the enabling role of digital options. Business agility and information technology diffusion 2005, 295-311. Springer Verlag, New York. R. Baskerville, L. Mathiassen, J. Pries-Heje, J.I. DeGross (Eds.).
88. Paisittanand S., Digman L.A., Lee S.M. Managing knowledge capabilities for strategy implementation effectiveness. International Journal of Knowledge Management 2007, 3(4):84-110.
89. Podsakoff P.M., Mackenzie S.B., Lee J., Podsakoff N.P. Common method biases in behavioral research: a critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. Journal of Applied Psychology 2003, 88(5):879-903.
90. Porter M. Competitive strategy: techniques for analysing industries and competitors 1980, The Free Press, New York.
91. Porter M. Competitive advantage: creating and sustaining superior performance 1985, The Free Press, New York.
92. Porter M. What is strategy?. Harvard Business Review 1996, 74(6):61-78.
93. Rudd J.M., Greenley G.E., Beatson A.T., Lings I.N. Strategic planning and performance: extending the debate. Journal of Business Research 2008, 61(2):99-108.
94. Santos M.L., Sanzo M.J., Álvarez L.I., Vázquez R. Organizational learning and market orientation: interface and effects on performance. Industrial Marketing Management 2005, 34(3):187-202.
95. Schulze W.S. The two schools of thought in resource-based theory: definitions and implications for research. Advances in Strategic Management 1994, 10A:127-151.
96. Senge P.M. The fifth discipline 1990, Doubleday/Currency, New York.
97. Shimizu K., Hitt M.A. Strategic flexibility: organizational preparedness to reverse ineffective strategic decisions. The Academy of Management Executive 2004, 18(4):44-58.
98. Simon H.A. Bounded rationality and organizational learning. Organization Science 1991, 2(1):125-134.
99. Sinkula J. Market information processing and organizational learning. Journal of Marketing 1994, 58(1):35-45.
100. Slater S.F., Narver J.C. Market orientation and the learning organization. Journal of Marketing 1995, 59(3):63-74.
101. Slater S.F., Narver J.C. Competitive strategy in the market-focused business. Journal of Market-Focused Management 1996, 1(2):159-174.
102. Slater S.F., Hult G.T., Olson E.M. Factors influencing the relative importance of marketing strategy creativity and marketing strategy implementation effectiveness. Industrial Marketing Management 2010, 38(7):732-742.
103. Spanos Y.E., Zaralis G., Lioukas S. Strategy and industry effects on profitability: evidence from Greece. Strategic Management Journal 2004, 25(2):139-165.
104. Speed R. Maximising the potential of strategic typologies for marketing strategy research. Journal of Strategic Marketing 1993, 1:171-188.
105. Stalk G., Evans P., Shulman L. Competing on capabilities: the new rules of corporate strategy. Harvard Business Review 1992, 70:57-69.
106. Steenkamp J.E.M., Baumgartner H. Assessing measurement invariance in cross-national consumer research. Journal of Consumer Research 1998, 25(1):78-90.
107. Stein A., Smith M. CRM systems and organizational learning: an exploration of the relationship between CRM effectiveness and the customer information orientation of the firm in industrial markets. Industrial Marketing Management 2009, 38(2):198-206.
108. Tang J., Wang L. Flexibility-efficiency tradeoff and performance implications among Chinese SOEs. Journal of Business Research 2010, 63(4):356-362.
109. Teece D., Pisano G., Shuen A. Dynamic capabilities and strategic management. Strategic Management Journal 1997, 18(7):509-533.
110. Templeton G.F., Lewis B.R., Snyder A. Development of a measure for organizational learning construct. Journal of Management Information Systems 2002, 19(2):175-218.
111. Theoharakis V., Hooley G. Organizational resources enabling service responsiveness: evidence from Greece. Industrial Marketing Management 2003, 32:695-702.
112. Thorpe E.R., Morgan R.E. In pursuit of the ideal approach to successful marketing strategy implementation. European Journal of Marketing 2007, 41(5/6):659-677.
113. Tippins M.J., Sohi R.S. IT competency and firm performance: is organizational learning a missing link?. Strategic Management Journal 2003, 24:745-761.
114. Tsai M.T., Shih C.M. The impact of marketing knowledge among managers on marketing capabilities and business performance. International Journal of Management 2004, 21(4):524-530.
115. Tucker A.L., Nembhard I.M., Edmonson A.C. Implementing new practices: an empirical study of organizational learning in hospital intensive care units. Management Science 2007, 53(6):894-907.
116. Vorhies D.W. An investigation of the factors leading to the development of marketing capabilities and organisational effectiveness. Journal of Strategic Marketing 1998, 6:3-23.
117. Vorhies D.W., Morgan N.A. A configuration theory assessment of marketing organization fit with business strategy and its relationship with marketing performance. Journal of Marketing 2003, 67:100-115.
118. Vorhies D.W., Morgan N.A. Benchmarking marketing capabilities for sustainable competitive advantage. Journal of Marketing 2005, 69(1):80-94.
119. Walker O.C., Ruekert R.W. Marketing's role in the implementation of business strategies: a critical review and conceptual framework. Journal of Marketing 1987, 51(3):15-33.
120. Ward P.T., Bickford D.J., Leong G.K. Configurations of manufacturing strategy, business strategy, environment and structure. Journal of Management 1996, 22(4):597-626.
121. Weerawardena J. The role of marketing capability in innovation-based competitive strategy. Journal of Strategic Marketing 2003, 11(1):15-36.
122. Weerawardena C., O'Cass A., Julian C. Does industry matter? Examining the role of industry structure and organizational learning in innovation and brand performance. Journal of Business Research 2006, 59(1):37-45.
123. Wu L.Y. Applicability of the resource-based and dynamic-capability views under environmental volatility. Journal of Business Research 2010, 63(1):27-31.
124. Yilmaz C., Alpkan L., Ergun E. Cultural determinants of customer and learning oriented value systems and their joint effects on firm performance. Journal of Business Research 2005, 58(10):1340-1352.
125. Zahay D., Griffin A. Customer learning processes, strategy selection, and performance in business-to-business service firms. Decision Sciences 2004, 35(2):169-203.
126. Zhang M.J. IS support for strategic flexibility, environmental dynamism, and firm performance: an empirical investigation. Journal of Managerial Issues 2006, XVIII(1):84-103.
127. Zollo M., Winter S.G. Deliberate learning and the evolution of dynamic capabilities. Organizational Science 2002, 13(3):339-351.