Abstract: The underlying notion that knowledge spillovers are a win-win for firms concerned is based on the premise that there exists some implicit understanding of reciprocity between the recipient and source firms. Yet, there exists asymmetry in the degree to which these firms benefit from incoming knowledge spillovers. Given the geographic overlap between firm pairs, the organization of R&D activity within the firm has impact in determining how this asymmetry works. Firms that are increasingly collocated with peers are likely to have greater opportunity to access spillovers. However, geographic collocation is a less frequently used mechanism for firms that are connected within their own boundaries across locations. This research has implications for the role of firm internal organization in creating competitive advantage.

Abstract: To enter new markets is not easy. The most obvious challenge, judging from the majority of literature on internationalization, is to understand the new market. External aspects of internationalization are often emphasized, while internal aspects receive less attention. If we are to understand the impact and implications of why some firms succeed while others fail when entering new markets, the issue of knowledge sharing is essential. The aim is to develop our understanding of internationalization by focusing on knowledge sharing in terms of knowledge types and flows in international firms when entering new markets with special emphasis on the interaction between different levels and functions. This is a case study focusing on how and why knowledge sharing is important for the international expansion of IKEA.

Abstract: How do cluster firms source knowledge from external companies, share it within the local context and pursue knowledge accumulation both at firm- and at cluster-level? To answer these questions we concentrate on high-tech clusters in emerging economies through an inductive approach, enabling the focus on the processes through which knowledge flows from external companies to cluster firms and spreads within the cluster. Three longitudinal case studies are developed in the IT cluster in Bangalore, India. Special emphasis is given to inter-firm relationships, as major channels enabling knowledge sharing. Our preliminary evidence supports a co-evolution between the governance mode handling the relationship and the type of knowledge flowing along. Moreover, the distinction between functional and technical knowledge emerges as crucial in depicting incoming and outgoing knowledge.

Abstract: We argue that accounts of the death of authority in a knowledge economy are greatly exaggerated. First, authority relations can serve as effective coordination mechanisms under conditions of dispersed and rapidly changing knowledge, a hallmark of the knowledge economy. Moreover, despite the growing importance of “knowledge assets” for organizational performance, ownership of alienable assets is still important, and firm boundaries can be meaningfully defined in terms of these ownership patterns. Finally, complementarities between incentives, authority, and ownership suggest that transactions will tend to cluster in discrete structural forms, such that authority relations do not disappear. Authority and centralized strategy-making continues to play a key role in a knowledge economy.