Capacidade de absorção é um tipo de capacidade dinâmica da firma, presente na literatura de gestão estratégica e que demonstra a aprendizagem organizacional, a partilha de conhecimentos, a inovação e o desempenho da empresa. Estudos anteriores indicam que é importante se concentrar nas rotinas e processos que as organizações usam para adquirir, assimilar, transformar e explorar o conhecimento, dentro do conceito de capacidade de absorção. Entretanto, é ainda um tema recente e pouco estudado na academia e, por isso, alguns autores chamam a atenção para a falta de estudos dos processos relacionados a efetiva implementação e realização da capacidade de absorção nas empresas. Nesse contexto, o objetivo deste trabalho é fornecer uma compreensão de como a capacidade de absorção ocorre nas startups, que mantém relacionamentos interorganizacionais com grandes empresas, para obtenção de vantagem competitiva, sob a perspectiva do gerenciamento de processos de negócio. Para atender aos objetivos propostos, foi utilizado o estudo de caso como método de pesquisa, permitindo identificar os gatilhos que iniciam e terminam os processos de absorção de conhecimento nas startups, bem como as atividades estruturadas e sistematizadas que operacionalizam o conceito. Foi construído um diagrama de atividades que representa o modelo de processos para o desenvolvimento da capacidade de absorção, indicando que os processos de negócio estão relacionados aos fluxos de informações que são processados pelas startups nos programas de aceleração corporativa. As vantagens competitivas decorrentes da capacidade de absorção concretizam-se nas startups por meio da flexibilidade estratégica, inovação do tipo organizacional e no desempenho organizacional, avaliado na perspectiva de seus processos internos. O estudo contribui para o avanço no estado da arte ao descrever os processos de negócio relacionados à operacionalização do conceito de capacidade de absorção em startups, por meio dos relacionamentos interorganizacionais com as grandes empresas. / Absorptive capacity is a type of dynamic capabilities of the firm, present in the strategic management literature, that demonstrates the organizational learning, the knowledge sharing, the innovation and the performance of the company. Previous studies indicate that it is important to focus on the routines and processes that organizations use to acquire, assimilate, transform and exploit knowledge within the concept of absorptive capacity. However, it is still a recent and little-studied topic at the academy and therefore some authors draw attention to the lack of studies of the processes related to the effective implementation and realization of the absorptive capacity in the companies. In this context, the aim of this work is to provide an understanding of how absorptive capacity occurs in startups, which maintains interorganizational relationships with large companies, to gain competitive advantage, from the perspective of Business Process Management. To meet the proposed objectives, the research method was the case study, that is allowing the identification of triggers that initiate and end the processes of absorptive of knowledge in the startups, as well as structured and systematized activities that operationalize the concept. An activity diagram was made that represents the process model for the development of absorptive capacity, indicating that the business processes are related to the information flows that are processed by the startups in the corporate accelerator programs. The competitive advantages arising from the absorptive capacity are achieved in the startups through strategic flexibility, organizational-type innovation and organizational performance, evaluated from the perspective of their internal processes. The study contributes to the advancement in the state of the art by describing the business processes related to the operationalization of the concept of absorptive capacity in startups, through the interorganizational relationships with the large companies.

The objective of this study is to understand how the integration of digital technology (DT) in the Bangladesh Film industry has been responded to by its production, distribution and exhibition related organisations. Since no research on digital integration has been considered in a developing country context, and specifically within the area of concentrating on the industry rather than the films themselves, this research therefore addresses the gaps within the knowledge field. The Bangladesh Film Industry (BFI) used to be a centre for film production, distribution and exhibition, but this traditional industry has been in decline for decades. In response to the decline, the government started an integration process of DT in 2003, yet eight years after the launch only a fraction of the project has been completed. Apart from its partial adoption in the film production sector, distribution and exhibition have appeared to resist the adoption of new technology. This thesis therefore sets out to explore the causes of partial integration of DT in the film industry in Bangladesh through a study of the workforce, business owners, practitioners, scholars, government officials and executives functioning in and outside the industry. With the mixed method approach and emphasis on qualitative engagement (two case studies and 38 interviews), this thesis explores current attitudes and beliefs and identifies potential barriers to effective integration. In particular this dissertation examines five areas: technology integration, training for workforce development, production, distribution and exhibition capabilities, and argues that the political factor was the most important driver in integrating DT, while knowledge integration, training, and development of digital production, distribution and exhibition compatibility at individual and organisational levels were ignored. Moreover, the greatest concern of losing a job or business within the industry community due to inadequate knowledge, skills and finance is impeding the possibility of full completion of the integration process within the industry. Overall, two important contributions of this research include 1) an exploration of factors that impeded progress of the film industry in responding to the DT and 2) a formulation of some suitable recommendations to overcome the challenges in order to completely realise the integration of DT within the Bangladesh Film Industry. However, further research is recommended to investigate whether completion of the integration process will save the industry from decline or not.

External knowledge sourcing is not only an integral practice within knowledge management, its successful facilitation through leadership has a pressing importance for companies in order to stay innovative and thus competitive in an economic environment, shaped by the dominant and continuous influence of globalization and the increasingly fast pace of technological innovation. Hereby, only limited research has been conducted in the relation between knowledge-oriented leadership, knowledge management, and innovation.This thesis is contextualized in the scientific discourse which concerns itself with the role of individual attitudes towards external knowledge sourcing, as well as the facilitating role of leadership towards changing individual attitudes. This thesis is, furthermore, also contextualized within the concepts of open innovation and absorptive capacity, which, respectively, are consequences of the spatial effects of globalization and the temporal effects of the fast pace of technological innovation.Research Question: Facing the challenges of globalization and the fast-changing pace of technology, what patterns between employee’s attitudes towards external knowledge acquisition and employee’s perceived leadership behaviors can be observed within tech companies in Sweden?In order to answer the proposed research question, we conducted a qualitative research including nine semi-structured interviews with employees with a technical background in tech companies in Sweden, ranging from small to large companies and with local to multinational operations.Our main findings represent a generally positive attitude towards external knowledge sourcing within our research scope, which relates with high levels of transformational leadership. Still, we were not able to explore the existence of knowledge-oriented leadership.This thesis contributes to the body of knowledge management, innovation, and leadership research, as it provides a first look into previously identified research gaps, namely the impact of knowledge-oriented leadership and knowledge management on open innovation (Naqshbandi & Jasimuddin, 2018) and the missing connection of the three separate bodies: leadership, knowledge management, and innovation (Donate & de Pablo, 2015)

Die rapide voranschreitende Globalisierung der Weltwirtschaft wird letztlich getragen von der zunehmenden Anzahl international aktiver Unternehmen. Diese Prozesse der verstärkten Involvierung von Unternehmen in internationale Aktivitäten, bzw. die Anpassung von Strategien, Strukturen und Ressourcen von Unternehmen an internationale Umgebungen werden als ‚betriebliche Internationalisierungsprozesse‘ definiert. Aus Sicht der Betriebswirtschaftslehre als einer gestaltungsorientierten Disziplin erwachsen aus betrieblichen Internationalisierungsprozessen neue Anforderungen an das Management von Unternehmen. Diese bestehen darin, Internationalisierungsprozesse aktiv zu gestalten und so das Überleben des Unternehmens in einer zunehmend globalisierten Wettbewerbsumwelt nachhaltig zu sichern. Ziel der Arbeit ist es erstens, einen Vorschlag für ein integratives Prozessverständnis von betrieblicher Internationalisierung auszuarbeiten, indem eine konzeptionelle Brücke zwischen Stufenmodellen, Netzwerkmodellen und International-New-Venture Modellen der Internationalisierung geschlagen wird. Zweitens wird dieses integrative Prozessverständnis dazu genutzt, wesentliche Gestaltungsfelder eines betrieblichen Internationalisierungsmanagement aufzuzeigen. Für die Entwicklung eines integrativen Prozessverständnisses und damit verbunden für ein Managementmodell der Internationalisierung erschließt die Arbeit das Konzept der Absorptionsfähigkeit von Unternehmen.

In this research, our main goal rests in the analysis of the main determinants and the features of output performance of firms. First, we will investigate the direct and the indirect effects (spillovers) of Research and Development (R&D) investments on firms’ total factor productivity growth. To that end, we begin by estimating the returns to R&D by using international micro level data, as first proposed in Griliches (1979). We quantify the effects on firms’ productivity of exogenous variations in the state of technology and of the R&D of other firms (R&D spillovers, Jaffe, 1986). Second, we will try to take into account the firms’ ability to identify, assimilate and exploit existing information, that is their absorptive capacity (Cohen, Levinthal 1989). We assume that the elasticity of output (or value added) to national or foreign stock of spillovers depend on the chosen measure of Absorptive Capacity, which generally is represented by own R&D capital. The positive effect of the interaction between own R&D capital and the spillover pool term indicates the firm ability to absorb new ideas from outside, while its negative effect gives evidence of necessity to invest more in own R&D. Third, we will explore the question whether geographic and technological proximities affect the knowledge flows, proxied by patent citations for large international firms and how these effects change over time. We expect that the geographical proximity impact on knowledge flows is decreasing over time, since information travels at lower communication costs over time (Coyle, 1997 and Friedman, 2005). Yet, according to Evans and Harringan (2005), distance is still relevant in some technological sectors, where face-to-face interaction is fundamental and knowledge is tacit and hard to codify. Then, it is also interesting to analyse the impact of technological proximity on knowledge flows over time. / Doctorat en Sciences économiques et de gestion / info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

Companies are increasingly motivated to deal with the issue of sustainability not just from a moral standpoint, but also because these issues may be a major root of innovation. To achieve these sustainable innovations, the number of manufacturers who invest in specific resources has been increasing. Supplier contributions to manufacturing company sustainable innovations are influenced by particular investments and specially the human capital investments, which emphasizes the supplier's role in supporting the producer with sustainable innovations. The precise investments might help suppliers contribute to sustainable innovation. However, if a company invests too much in certain resources, such as human capital, the beneficial impacts of such investments may diminish, and the supplier's participation in sustainable innovation may be hampered. Various internal contingency variables can moderate the relationship between the specific investments and sustainable innovation contribution of suppliers. Thus, this study aims at this research gap. This research aimed to study the relationship between human capital specific investments and supplier sustainable innovation contribution in developed markets considering the role of learning and absorptive capacity, and market orientation. This research can be considered as the deductive, quantitative and field research in which the researchers collected the primary data by using a structured questionnaire. The validity and reliability of the questionnaire confirmed through different quantitative and qualitative approaches. The research sample was chosen by using the convenience sampling. In order to respond to the questionnaire surveys, top- and middle-level managers from 355 Swedish corporations in which suppliers have been incorporated in the corporation’s sustainable innovation activities addressed. Finally, A total of 960 questionnaires for 355 companies handed out, and 102 being returned and analysed. The regression curve estimation method revealed that there is a linear relationship between human capital specific investments and supplier sustainable innovation contribution. Besides, through the hierarchical multiple linear regression, the researchers demonstrated that absorptive capacity and market orientation can play the moderating role in this relationship, while the learning capacity can partially play such role in this relationship. Eventually, the theoretical, managerial and sustainability implications discussed and the limitations of the research in addition to the future research possibilities addressed.

How can we understand the innovativeness of firms or organizations in general, and how should we assess it in terms of nontechnological innovation? My paper deals with these two questions. The “ability” of companies to adapt to new circumstances, to create new products, processes and new knowledge, has been conceptualized in many approaches. Some of them simply define a list of “(critical) success factors” or “(key) performance indica-tors”, as tools for ranking and evaluation, without any theoretical reference. Others, like the resource-based or capability-based approach(es), work with theoretical references, but are still very weak in operationalizing of what they call “capability”. My paper gives a critical description of this situation and offers a new proposal to classify and to measure the “inclination” of organizations to innovate in all dimensions. This proposal roots in pragmatistic thinking as represented in the theory of reflexive modernization and in the pragmatist version of organizational learning theory. Empirically, it has been applied merely in case studies yet. A survey project is in preparation.

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Emerging technologies are reshaping the digital landscape and competitive environment of highly technological companies with the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI). Firms are reacting by implementing digital transformation (DT) strategies aligning the organizational and technological factors towards leveraging AI-generated information. This thesis sheds new light on the topics of knowledge management (KM), DT, and AI in organizational practices with an emphasis on AI-enhanced software-as-a-service (SaaS). The research results in a conceptual framework, designed from the literature on AI, DT, KM, and dynamic capability view (DCV) uncovering three overarching concepts (internal capabilities, absorptive capacity, and technological competitiveness). This conceptual framework was then complemented by empirical data featuring primary data gathered from a single case study and secondary data from an internet-mediated data collection. The interviews in the case study were focused on managers with extensive experience in the semiconductor industry and operators working with the AI-enhanced SaaS tool. The analysis concludes in an updated conceptual framework, highlighting the interplay of a firm’s internal capabilities and an AI-enhanced absorptive capacity indicating three pathways toward achieving technological competitiveness in a highly technological environment. Additionally, a proposed solution is presented featuring an AI-enhanced tool operator as a new role, responsible for supporting organization-wide activities with AI-generated information.

Absorptive capacity plays an important role in the organizational adaptation process. Prior research on absorptive capacity focuses on its role in organizational outcomes such as financial performance, innovation, new product development, etc. Recently, scholars have called for research on factors that influence absorptive capacity. Because absorptive capacity plays a vital role in achieving organizational outcomes, it behooves us to improve our understanding of absorptive capacity and its antecedents to serve both researchers and practitioners. In this investigation, strategic thinking is posited to be a key antecedent of absorptive capacity. Capability theory suggests that strategic thinking is a metaphysical (higher order) capability that influences an organization's absorptive capacity. Combining this argument with Miles and Snow's typology of organizational adaptation process, it is posited that the relationship between strategic thinking and absorptive capacity can be clustered into different "groups." Prospectors, defenders, and analyzers, characterized in Miles and Snow's typology of firms are viewed as distinctive groups that exhibit different relationships between strategic thinking and absorptive capacity. Results from an empirical examination suggest that strategic thinking is positively related to absorptive capacity. The results also suggest that the relationship between these two constructs is different between these groups and that the strategic thinking of prospectors has a weaker relationship with absorptive capacity than other type of firms.