IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jmgtgv/v3y1999i2p137-160.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The Role of Knowledge Bases in Complex Product Systems: Some Empirical Evidence from the Aero Engine Industry

Author

Listed:
  • Massimo Paoli
  • Andrea Prencipe

Abstract

In this paper we argue that the virtual corporation as understood in current management literature does not hold as a universal model throughout various industrial sectors. Complex product systems industries show peculiar features in terms of product characteristics, innovation dynamics and strategic and management options that may render the virtual corporation model inapplicable. The paper begins with a contrast between the simplistic neoclassical approach to the interpretation of the concept of knowledge and the more in-depth evolutionary view. The former understands knowledge as information and its production process and outcomes as easily decomposable. Based on this, advocates of virtual corporation claim the viability of outsourcing strategies based on simple economic factors. The evolutionary approach, on the other hand, considers knowledge as a system of processes deeply rooted in their contexts of production. Tacitness and non-decomposability of the knowledge production processes are highly emphasised in this view. In the light of this contrast and relying on a study of the aero engine industry we reinterpret the notion of virtual corporation showing its limits. Copyright Kluwer Academic Publishers 1999

Suggested Citation

  • Massimo Paoli & Andrea Prencipe, 1999. "The Role of Knowledge Bases in Complex Product Systems: Some Empirical Evidence from the Aero Engine Industry," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 3(2), pages 137-160, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jmgtgv:v:3:y:1999:i:2:p:137-160
    DOI: 10.1023/A:1009999823012
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1023/A:1009999823012
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1023/A:1009999823012?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hobday, Mike, 1998. "Product complexity, innovation and industrial organisation," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 26(6), pages 689-710, February.
    2. Kenneth Arrow, 1962. "Economic Welfare and the Allocation of Resources for Invention," NBER Chapters, in: The Rate and Direction of Inventive Activity: Economic and Social Factors, pages 609-626, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Langlois, Richard N. & Robertson, Paul L., 1992. "Networks and innovation in a modular system: Lessons from the microcomputer and stereo component industries," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 21(4), pages 297-313, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Prencipe, Andrea & Tell, Fredrik, 2001. "Inter-project learning: processes and outcomes of knowledge codification in project-based firms," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 30(9), pages 1373-1394, December.
    2. García-Vega, María & Vicente-Chirivella, Óscar, 2024. "The role of public external knowledge for firm innovativeness," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 93(C).
    3. Roberta Apa & Valentina De Marchi & Roberto Grandinetti & Silvia Rita Sedita, 2021. "University-SME collaboration and innovation performance: the role of informal relationships and absorptive capacity," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 46(4), pages 961-988, August.
    4. Ilaria Brocanello & Marina Gigliotti & Andrea Prencipe, 2013. "Internazionalizzazione, trasformazione delle core competence e post crisi economica: il caso della Bimal Srl," MERCATI & COMPETITIVIT?, FrancoAngeli Editore, vol. 2013(3), pages 83-105.
    5. Biggiero, Lucio & Angelini, Pier Paolo, 2015. "Hunting scale-free properties in R&D collaboration networks: Self-organization, power-law and policy issues in the European aerospace research area," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 94(C), pages 21-43.
    6. Guffarth, Daniel & Barber, Michael J., 2013. "The European aerospace R&D collaboration network," FZID Discussion Papers 84-2013, University of Hohenheim, Center for Research on Innovation and Services (FZID).
    7. Nanik Kustiningsih & Bambang Tjahjadi & Noorlailie Soewarno, 2022. "Projecting Experience of Technology-Based MSMEs in Indonesia: Role of Absorptive Capacity Matter in Strategic Alliances and Organizational Performance Relationship," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-19, September.
    8. Massimo Paoli & Andrea Prencipe, 2003. "Memory of the Organisation and Memories within the Organisation," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 7(2), pages 145-162, June.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Kuan, Jennifer & West, Joel, 2023. "Interfaces, modularity and ecosystem emergence: How DARPA modularized the semiconductor ecosystem," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(8).
    2. Agarwal, Rajshree & Shah, Sonali K., 2014. "Knowledge sources of entrepreneurship: Firm formation by academic, user and employee innovators," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(7), pages 1109-1133.
    3. Joern Block & Roy Thurik & Haibo Zhou, 2013. "What turns knowledge into innovative products? The role of entrepreneurship and knowledge spillovers," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 23(4), pages 693-718, September.
    4. Simge Tuna & Stefano Brusoni & Anja Schulze, 2019. "Architectural knowledge generation: evidence from a field study," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 28(5), pages 977-1009.
    5. Di Stefano, Giada & Gambardella, Alfonso & Verona, Gianmario, 2012. "Technology push and demand pull perspectives in innovation studies: Current findings and future research directions," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 41(8), pages 1283-1295.
    6. Fiorenza BELUSSI & Luciano PILOTTI, 2006. "Eterogeneità delle imprese e varietà dei modelli organizzativi. Conoscenze, risorse, relazioni, e istituzioni: verso una prospettiva integrata della teoria dell’impresa," Departmental Working Papers 2006-27, Department of Economics, Management and Quantitative Methods at Università degli Studi di Milano.
    7. Pierre Barbaroux, 2009. "On the nature and logics of innovation capabilities within knowledge-intensive environments: a case study," Journal of Innovation Economics, De Boeck Université, vol. 0(1), pages 169-188.
    8. Arora, Ashish & Gambardella, Alfonso, 1999. "Markets for technology (why do we see them, why don't we see more of them and why we should care)," DEE - Working Papers. Business Economics. WB 6520, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Departamento de Economía de la Empresa.
    9. Andrea Renda, 2016. "Selecting and Designing European ICT Innovation Policies," JRC Research Reports JRC103661, Joint Research Centre.
    10. Tan Ngoc Vu & Duc Hong Vo & Michael McAleer, 2019. "Rent seeking for export licenses: Application to the Vietnam rice market," Documentos de Trabajo del ICAE 2019-13, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Facultad de Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales, Instituto Complutense de Análisis Económico.
    11. Sakakibara, Mariko, 1997. "Evaluating government-sponsored R&D consortia in Japan: who benefits and how?," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 26(4-5), pages 447-473, December.
    12. Ufuk Akcigit & Murat Celik & Daron Acemoglu, 2014. "Young, Restless and Creative: Openness to Disruption and Creative Innovations," 2014 Meeting Papers 377, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    13. Heine Klaus & Mause Karsten, 2003. "Politikberatung als informationsökonomisches Problem," Journal of Economics and Statistics (Jahrbuecher fuer Nationaloekonomie und Statistik), De Gruyter, vol. 223(4), pages 479-490, August.
    14. Gersbach, Hans & Schneider, Maik & Schneller, Olivier, 2010. "Optimal Mix of Applied and Basic Research, Distance to Frontier, and Openness," CEPR Discussion Papers 7795, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    15. Panayotis Dessyllas & Alan Hughes, 2005. "R&D and Patenting Activity and the Propensity to Acquire in High Technology Industries," Industrial Organization 0507008, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    16. Oliver Hinz & Jochen Eckert, 2010. "The Impact of Search and Recommendation Systems on Sales in Electronic Commerce," Business & Information Systems Engineering: The International Journal of WIRTSCHAFTSINFORMATIK, Springer;Gesellschaft für Informatik e.V. (GI), vol. 2(2), pages 67-77, April.
    17. Dirk Czarnitzki & Hanna Hottenrott & Susanne Thorwarth, 2011. "Industrial research versus development investment: the implications of financial constraints," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 35(3), pages 527-544.
    18. Asmund Rygh & Gabriel R. G. Benito, 2018. "Capital Structure of Foreign Direct Investments: A Transaction Cost Analysis," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 58(3), pages 389-411, June.
    19. Ali-Yrkkö, Jyrki, 2004. "Impact of Public R&D Financing on Private R&D - Does Financial Constraint Matter?," Discussion Papers 943, The Research Institute of the Finnish Economy.
    20. Elie Sadigh, 1996. "Endogenous growth and neoclassical school [Croissance endogène et école néoclassique]," Working Papers hal-01526907, HAL.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:kap:jmgtgv:v:3:y:1999:i:2:p:137-160. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.