Gwendolyn K. Lee

From a Firm-Based to a Community-Based Model of Knowledge Creation: The Case of the Linux Kernel Development

We propose a new model of knowledge creation in purposeful, loosely coordinated, distributed systems, as an alternative to a firm-based one. Specifically, using the case of the Linux kernel development project, we build a model of community-based, evolutionary knowledge creation to study how thousands of talented volunteers, dispersed across organizational and geographical boundaries, collaborate via the Internet to produce a knowledge-intensive, innovative product of high quality. By comparing and contrasting the Linux model with the traditional/commercial model of software development and firmbased knowledge creation efforts, we show how the proposed model of knowledge creation expands beyond the boundary of the firm. Our model suggests that the product development process can be effectively organized as an evolutionary process of learning driven by criticism and error correction. We conclude by offering some theoretical implications of our community-based model of knowledge creation for the literature of organizational learning, community life, and the uses of knowledge in society.

Bringing a Resource and Capability Lens to Resource Allocation

This article highlights a perspective that has been underexplored in resource allocation research. By viewing resource allocation through a resource and capability lens, three connections are developed between resource-based theories of strategy and strategy research on resource allocation. First, the lens is applied to frame capital investments as investing in capabilities. This framing provides a theoretical path connecting the strategic purpose of investments, through value creation from resource commitments, to the creation of competitive advantage. Second, resource allocation for the purpose of capability development is related to a resource-based model of asset accumulation. Placing resource allocation decisions in the context of capability development suggests that key features of the asset accumulation process can usefully inform research on the resource allocation process. Last, corporate capital allocation is connected to resource redeployment in multibusiness firms. This connection explicates ways in which corporate headquarters can add to firm value. These connections illustrate the potential that resource-based theories have to contribute insights to resource allocation research.

Resource Allocation and Strategy

Resource allocation is fundamental to strategic management. Yet, surprisingly, there is not a large body of literature specifically about the allocation of financial, physical, technological, and human resources that support firm strategies. This special issue seeks to bring renewed attention to resource allocation as an important topic for strategy research. The curated set of articles and commentaries offer conceptual and empirical contributions that assess the current state of research on the topic, present analyses and new insights, and propose promising directions for future research. Through this special issue, we hope to encourage more research that examines resource allocation as a central focus of study for achieving deeper and better understandings about firm strategies.

RELATIVE SIZE, ENTRY AND EXIT OF FIRMS, AND SEARCH BEHAVIOR.

We examine the antecedents of local search behavior by focusing on relational and contextual factors, as opposed to typical focus on internal firm factors. We developed the concept of a firms relative size, defined as the number of rivals in the market that have fewer resources than the focal firm, and found in a panel study that firms with larger relative size in a market search more intensely within the local domain than firms with smaller relative size. We also found that the entry and exit of similar and dissimilar firms moderate this relationship. The implications for innovation, capabilities and evolution literatures are discussed.