Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Business Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Faculty Publications

Adaptation

Publication Year

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Business

Presumptive Adaptation And The Effectiveness Of Knowledge Transfer, Robert J. Jensen, Gabriel Szulanski Oct 2006

Presumptive Adaptation And The Effectiveness Of Knowledge Transfer, Robert J. Jensen, Gabriel Szulanski

Faculty Publications

Adaptation is almost invariably accompanies the cross-border transfer of firm specific practices. The existing literature contains two conflicting approaches to adaptation. The first, more traditional approach, following institutional, motivation, and pragmatic efficiency considerations, presumes that a modified practice can be fine-tuned, stabilized, and institutionalized without consulting a working example and that practices should thus be adapted as quickly as possible to create fit with the local environment. The second approach argues, instead for the need to maintain the diagnostic value of the original practice by adapting cautiously and gradually. In this paper, we report an in-depth field investigation of the …


Stickiness And The Adaptation Of Organizational Practices In Cross-Border Knowledge Transfers, Robert J. Jensen, Gabriel Szulanski Jun 2004

Stickiness And The Adaptation Of Organizational Practices In Cross-Border Knowledge Transfers, Robert J. Jensen, Gabriel Szulanski

Faculty Publications

The re-use of organizational practices in multiple locations is a fundamental way MNCs leverage knowledge to seek competitive advantage. Scholars approaching the issue of adaptation from both a market and an institutional perspective argue that, in order to achieve fit with the local environment, some degree of adaptation is advisable with the need for adaptation increasing as the institutional distance between source and recipient locations increases. However, arguments to date have examined the effect of adaptation primarily on a subsidiary's long term performance. A necessary precursor is to understand the effect of adaptation on the transfer process itself as transfer …