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A Study on the Effect of Dynamic Capabilities on the Ambidexterity of Technological Innovation

Seo, Changjeok1 · Lee, Chanhyeong1

1 Sogang University

Published: January 2015 · Vol. 44, No. 1 · pp. 305-330

DOI: https://doi.org/10.17287/kmr.2015.44.1.305

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Abstract

Ambidextrous technological innovation, which pursues a balance between exploratory and exploitative innovation activities, has emerged as a major research topic, and it is generally recognized that firms possessing ambidexterity—the ability to appropriately pursue both types of technological innovation activities—have an advantage in survival and sustainable performance improvement. Prior research has identified organizational structural characteristics and environmental uncertainty as important factors related to technological innovation ambidexterity. However, pursuing technological innovation ambidexterity requires the appropriate coordination and integration of mutually contradictory and conflicting exploratory and exploitative technological innovation activities. Therefore, this study specifically examined dynamic capabilities that serve as coordination mechanisms, and investigated how these dynamic capabilities moderate the relationships among organizational structure, environmental uncertainty, and technological innovation ambidexterity. To this end, this study focused on top management team integration, connectedness, and absorptive capacity as coordination mechanisms for reconciling conflicting demands in achieving technological innovation ambidexterity. A research model and hypotheses were developed and tested regarding the effects of the dynamic capabilities obtained through these coordination mechanisms on the relationships among organizational structure, environmental uncertainty, and technological innovation ambidexterity. The analysis results showed the following. First, higher levels of top management team integration positively moderated the effect of structural separation on technological innovation ambidexterity. Second, stronger interpersonal connectedness positively moderated the effect of decentralization on technological innovation ambidexterity. Third, absorptive capacity showed statistically significant moderating effects, positively moderating the relationship between environmental dynamism and technological innovation ambidexterity. Moreover, the relationship between competitive intensity and technological innovation ambidexterity was found to be negatively moderated. These research findings provide practical implications for how firms can coordinate and integrate the conflicts between mutually opposing innovation activities and effectively carry out both exploratory and exploitative innovation activities simultaneously when pursuing technological innovation ambidexterity.
Keywords: 기술혁신양면성동적역량경영진통합연결성흡수역량