Geert Duijsters | Tilburg University (original) (raw)

Papers by Geert Duijsters

Contains fulltext : 140382.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)Previous research on the r... more Contains fulltext : 140382.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)Previous research on the relation between Alliance Portfolio Diversity (APD) and organizational performance found ambiguous results and frequently only one performance dimension was researched. Additionally previous research differs on researched sectors and researched time frames. This heterogeneity limits the possibility to integrate the previous research results and hence does not provide an overview of the relations between APD and multiple performance dimensions, which in turn limits the possibility for managers to manage their alliance portfolio based on APD. In this research,the relation between APD and three important performance dimensions—financial,radical innovative and incremental innovative performance is simultaneously analyzed on the basis of the data of 480 organizations of the ego-centric networks. For financial performance a negative relation was found, while for radical innovative performance a...

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2014

Technology development in firms is frequently based on a combination of internal and external tec... more Technology development in firms is frequently based on a combination of internal and external technological learning. Consequently, firms need to develop both technological capital (a patent portfolio) and alliance capital (a portfolio of technology alliances). This paper examines the relationship between technological capital, alliance capital and their joint impact on the technological performance of firms, with an application to the ASIC industry. We find that positive marginal returns to alliance capital are decreasing at higher levels of alliance capital. Technological capital and alliance capital can either augment or reduce each others' influence on innovation performance depending on the stage of the technology life cycle in the industry. A reinforcing relationship related to absorptive capacity requirements and technological uncertainty is present in early stages, while technology leakage and market competition effects render the combination of high levels of technological and alliance capital counterproductive in later stages of the technology life cycle.

International Journal of Technology and Globalisation, 2011

Technology transfer in Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects of the Kyoto Protocol has becom... more Technology transfer in Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects of the Kyoto Protocol has become one of the important issues addressed both in policy agenda and by academic scholars. In many CDM project host countries, technology transfer is among the key provisions of sustainable development objectives of the CDM projects. This study is an effort to investigate CDM projects' related technology transfer process from the organizational learning perspective. The prerequisite for successful technology transfer and organizational technological learning is to foster technological capabilities (TC) of an organization. In this study we used data from our survey of the CDM project host organizations in four largest CDM host countries India, Brazil, Mexico and China. We assessed TC building progress and studied various characteristics of the organizations. The present paper focuses on absorptive capacity related determinants of technological capability building in the CDM projects. Absorptive capacity is a multidimensional concept thus we investigated the effect of the dimensions such as prior knowledge, personnel qualification, and training efforts. A strong positive association was established between prior knowledge and TC building; and less for qualification variable. Besides we proved a curvilinear relationship between prior knowledge and TC building outcomes.

AI & Society, 1993

In organizational ecology, the focus is on the evolution of a population of organizations. Adopti... more In organizational ecology, the focus is on the evolution of a population of organizations. Adopting a similar logic, we deal with the evolution of a population (or set) of related of inventions. More specifically, by employing a population perspective to technology, we aim to determine to what extent the pattern of technological growth can be attributed to the structural characteristics of the technology itself. Through an empirical investigation of patent data in the biotechnology industry, we show that a technology's internal (i.e., density and diversity) and external (i.e., crowding and status) characteristics have a significant effect on its growth rate. Finally, we discuss the implication of our findings for the development of what we coin the ecology of technology.

Industrial Marketing Management, 2016

While many scholars claim that Performance-based Contracts (PBCs) foster supplier-led innovation,... more While many scholars claim that Performance-based Contracts (PBCs) foster supplier-led innovation, empirical research into their actual use and effects remains limited. We therefore explore two cases of IT outsourcing through such contracts to see whether, and if so how, PBCs foster innovation. Our findings suggest that in both cases, the low degree of term specificity in PBCs (i.e., their openness regarding how to render the contracted services) provides suppliers with autonomy in their daily service operations, which in theory allows them to innovate. However, only one of the suppliers exhibited high innovative performance. Other relevant factors aside, our findings further suggest that a lack of granted autonomy during contract execution is an important factor in explaining the level of supplier-led innovation. Our findings imply that outsourcers that remain too closely involved with the outsourced service delivery and do not allow their suppliers to act autonomously during contract execution limit their suppliers' innovation potential.

Other publications TiSEM, Sep 21, 2021

In organizational ecology, the focus is on the evolution of a population of organizations. Adopti... more In organizational ecology, the focus is on the evolution of a population of organizations. Adopting a similar logic, we deal with the evolution of a population (or set) of related of inventions. More specifically, by employing a population perspective to technology, we aim to determine to what extent the pattern of technological growth can be attributed to the structural characteristics of the technology itself. Through an empirical investigation of patent data in the biotechnology industry, we show that a technology’s internal (i.e., density and diversity) and external (i.e., crowding and status) characteristics have a significant effect on its growth rate. Finally, we discuss the implication of our findings for the development of what we coin the ecology of technology. Key words population, ecology, technology, technological growth 1

Microeconomics: Search; Learning; Information Costs & Specific Knowledge; Expectation & Speculation eJournal, 2017

We explore the conditions enabling partners in strategic alliances to acquire valuable technologi... more We explore the conditions enabling partners in strategic alliances to acquire valuable technological knowledge from each other, and to specialize in complementary areas. Our findings show that knowledge acquisition across alliance partners is maximized when the technological knowledge bases of alliance partners are moderately similar, whereas highly similar or highly dissimilar knowledge bases enable partners to specialize in complementary areas. Moreover, both knowledge acquisition and specialization are enhanced when partners have experience in prior alliances. In rare cases, we observed knowledge acquisition and specialization occurring simultaneously between partners with similar knowledge bases and prior alliance experience.

Microeconomics: Search; Learning; Information Costs & Specific Knowledge; Expectation & Speculation eJournal, 2017

We explore the conditions enabling partners in strategic alliances to acquire valuable technologi... more We explore the conditions enabling partners in strategic alliances to acquire valuable technological knowledge from each other, and to specialize in complementary areas. Our findings show that knowledge acquisition across alliance partners is maximized when the technological knowledge bases of alliance partners are moderately similar, whereas highly similar or highly dissimilar knowledge bases enable partners to specialize in complementary areas. Moreover, both knowledge acquisition and specialization are enhanced when partners have experience in prior alliances. In rare cases, we observed knowledge acquisition and specialization occurring simultaneously between partners with similar knowledge bases and prior alliance experience.

Industry and Innovation, 2017

This paper assesses the impact on firm innovation of combining alliance-specific and partner-spec... more This paper assesses the impact on firm innovation of combining alliance-specific and partner-specific attributes within a firm's alliance portfolio. In a panel data analysis of the innovation performance of 119 firms operating in the pharmaceutical industry during 1985-2007, we test whether firm's alliance portfolio displays complementarities across four dimensions. The results suggest that specific combinations of attributes may diminish innovation by decreasing the efficiency of diversity management or by generating redundancies. On the other hand, other alliance portfolio practices are mutually reinforcing and thus foster innovation. 1 In this paper, we follow the generally accepted in the literature definition of an alliance portfolio: 'a focal firm's past as well as ongoing strategic alliances of all types' Wassmer (2010, 44).

The International Journal of the History of Sport, 2015

Against the background of economic transformation and globalization, the impact of sports industr... more Against the background of economic transformation and globalization, the impact of sports industrialization on economic development has become a hot spot. The relationship between sports events and urban development, which lies at the core of sports industrialization, is receiving growing attention from researchers. Existing studies have looked primarily at the direct economic benefits. However, it is the brand elements, condensed in core value, that are actually the source of the general competitiveness in terms of urban sustainable development and long-term intangible assets. Sporting events have a very special meaning and impact in terms of moulding city brands and building urban awareness. They enable cities to acquire resources and build momentum for continued development. Some examples of this include acquiring better basic facilities and an enhanced urban environment; increased development of relevant industries; publicity and promotion of city brands; greater urban renown, tourism, and investment; and formation of an urban sports culture. However, maximizing the promotion benefits requires integrating the common elements that exist between the sports event and the host city, namely the coherence points in co-branded marketing. This paper explores the evolution of the relationship between sporting events and host cities, and discusses how to improve the integration of common elements and match the integrating elements in order to maximize the synergistic effect of co-branding.

Strategic Alliances, Mergers and Acquisitions

DOI to the publisher's website. • The final author version and the galley proof are versions of t... more DOI to the publisher's website. • The final author version and the galley proof are versions of the publication after peer review. • The final published version features the final layout of the paper including the volume, issue and page numbers. Link to publication General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal. If the publication is distributed under the terms of Article 25fa of the Dutch Copyright Act, indicated by the "Taverne" license above, please follow below link for the End User Agreement:

Revue d'économie industrielle, 2003

This paper longitudinally explores the technology positioning strategies, i.e. block membership o... more This paper longitudinally explores the technology positioning strategies, i.e. block membership or non-block membership, in interorganizational networks that maximize innovative performance. Hence, we will derive some basic propositions on the effect of block membership on innovative performance under various network evolutionary conditions, i.e. structure reinforcing or structure-loosening developments in the industry. Empirical testing is performed on the microelectronics industry from 1980-2000.

European Management Review, 2016

Relative to relational governance, research into the use and effects of formal governance is scar... more Relative to relational governance, research into the use and effects of formal governance is scarce. Recent contributions suggest that a specific type of contract that has intentionally been left incomplete, the performancebased contract (PBC), fosters innovation. However, it is unknown how this effect occurs. To address this gap, we draw on transaction cost economics and agency theory to develop propositions on how PBCs affect innovation. PBCs are characterized by low term specificity and rewards that are tied to performance. We propose that low term specificity, that is, not stipulating how the focal firm's partner should deliver the performance and which resources to use, enhances the partner's autonomy, which in turn fosters innovation. However, excessive low term specificity inhibits innovation, since it may lead the partner to display opportunistic behavior. We furthermore propose that performance-based pay incentivizes the partner to engage in innovation. This suggests that linking rewards to performance attenuates the negative relationship between term specificity and innovation when the former is very low. Finally, we propose that a more risk-averse partner will engage in fewer innovative activities as such a partner will be less sensitive to the pay-for-performance clause.

AI & Society, 1993

In organizational ecology, the focus is on the evolution of a population of organizations. Adopti... more In organizational ecology, the focus is on the evolution of a population of organizations. Adopting a similar logic, we deal with the evolution of a population (or set) of related of inventions. More specifically, by employing a population perspective to technology, we aim to determine to what extent the pattern of technological growth can be attributed to the structural characteristics of the technology itself. Through an empirical investigation of patent data in the biotechnology industry, we show that a technology's internal (i.e., density and diversity) and external (i.e., crowding and status) characteristics have a significant effect on its growth rate. Finally, we discuss the implication of our findings for the development of what we coin the ecology of technology.

Contains fulltext : 140382.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)Previous research on the r... more Contains fulltext : 140382.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access)Previous research on the relation between Alliance Portfolio Diversity (APD) and organizational performance found ambiguous results and frequently only one performance dimension was researched. Additionally previous research differs on researched sectors and researched time frames. This heterogeneity limits the possibility to integrate the previous research results and hence does not provide an overview of the relations between APD and multiple performance dimensions, which in turn limits the possibility for managers to manage their alliance portfolio based on APD. In this research,the relation between APD and three important performance dimensions—financial,radical innovative and incremental innovative performance is simultaneously analyzed on the basis of the data of 480 organizations of the ego-centric networks. For financial performance a negative relation was found, while for radical innovative performance a...

SSRN Electronic Journal, 2014

Technology development in firms is frequently based on a combination of internal and external tec... more Technology development in firms is frequently based on a combination of internal and external technological learning. Consequently, firms need to develop both technological capital (a patent portfolio) and alliance capital (a portfolio of technology alliances). This paper examines the relationship between technological capital, alliance capital and their joint impact on the technological performance of firms, with an application to the ASIC industry. We find that positive marginal returns to alliance capital are decreasing at higher levels of alliance capital. Technological capital and alliance capital can either augment or reduce each others' influence on innovation performance depending on the stage of the technology life cycle in the industry. A reinforcing relationship related to absorptive capacity requirements and technological uncertainty is present in early stages, while technology leakage and market competition effects render the combination of high levels of technological and alliance capital counterproductive in later stages of the technology life cycle.

International Journal of Technology and Globalisation, 2011

Technology transfer in Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects of the Kyoto Protocol has becom... more Technology transfer in Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects of the Kyoto Protocol has become one of the important issues addressed both in policy agenda and by academic scholars. In many CDM project host countries, technology transfer is among the key provisions of sustainable development objectives of the CDM projects. This study is an effort to investigate CDM projects' related technology transfer process from the organizational learning perspective. The prerequisite for successful technology transfer and organizational technological learning is to foster technological capabilities (TC) of an organization. In this study we used data from our survey of the CDM project host organizations in four largest CDM host countries India, Brazil, Mexico and China. We assessed TC building progress and studied various characteristics of the organizations. The present paper focuses on absorptive capacity related determinants of technological capability building in the CDM projects. Absorptive capacity is a multidimensional concept thus we investigated the effect of the dimensions such as prior knowledge, personnel qualification, and training efforts. A strong positive association was established between prior knowledge and TC building; and less for qualification variable. Besides we proved a curvilinear relationship between prior knowledge and TC building outcomes.

AI & Society, 1993

In organizational ecology, the focus is on the evolution of a population of organizations. Adopti... more In organizational ecology, the focus is on the evolution of a population of organizations. Adopting a similar logic, we deal with the evolution of a population (or set) of related of inventions. More specifically, by employing a population perspective to technology, we aim to determine to what extent the pattern of technological growth can be attributed to the structural characteristics of the technology itself. Through an empirical investigation of patent data in the biotechnology industry, we show that a technology's internal (i.e., density and diversity) and external (i.e., crowding and status) characteristics have a significant effect on its growth rate. Finally, we discuss the implication of our findings for the development of what we coin the ecology of technology.

Industrial Marketing Management, 2016

While many scholars claim that Performance-based Contracts (PBCs) foster supplier-led innovation,... more While many scholars claim that Performance-based Contracts (PBCs) foster supplier-led innovation, empirical research into their actual use and effects remains limited. We therefore explore two cases of IT outsourcing through such contracts to see whether, and if so how, PBCs foster innovation. Our findings suggest that in both cases, the low degree of term specificity in PBCs (i.e., their openness regarding how to render the contracted services) provides suppliers with autonomy in their daily service operations, which in theory allows them to innovate. However, only one of the suppliers exhibited high innovative performance. Other relevant factors aside, our findings further suggest that a lack of granted autonomy during contract execution is an important factor in explaining the level of supplier-led innovation. Our findings imply that outsourcers that remain too closely involved with the outsourced service delivery and do not allow their suppliers to act autonomously during contract execution limit their suppliers' innovation potential.

Other publications TiSEM, Sep 21, 2021

In organizational ecology, the focus is on the evolution of a population of organizations. Adopti... more In organizational ecology, the focus is on the evolution of a population of organizations. Adopting a similar logic, we deal with the evolution of a population (or set) of related of inventions. More specifically, by employing a population perspective to technology, we aim to determine to what extent the pattern of technological growth can be attributed to the structural characteristics of the technology itself. Through an empirical investigation of patent data in the biotechnology industry, we show that a technology’s internal (i.e., density and diversity) and external (i.e., crowding and status) characteristics have a significant effect on its growth rate. Finally, we discuss the implication of our findings for the development of what we coin the ecology of technology. Key words population, ecology, technology, technological growth 1

Microeconomics: Search; Learning; Information Costs & Specific Knowledge; Expectation & Speculation eJournal, 2017

We explore the conditions enabling partners in strategic alliances to acquire valuable technologi... more We explore the conditions enabling partners in strategic alliances to acquire valuable technological knowledge from each other, and to specialize in complementary areas. Our findings show that knowledge acquisition across alliance partners is maximized when the technological knowledge bases of alliance partners are moderately similar, whereas highly similar or highly dissimilar knowledge bases enable partners to specialize in complementary areas. Moreover, both knowledge acquisition and specialization are enhanced when partners have experience in prior alliances. In rare cases, we observed knowledge acquisition and specialization occurring simultaneously between partners with similar knowledge bases and prior alliance experience.

Microeconomics: Search; Learning; Information Costs & Specific Knowledge; Expectation & Speculation eJournal, 2017

We explore the conditions enabling partners in strategic alliances to acquire valuable technologi... more We explore the conditions enabling partners in strategic alliances to acquire valuable technological knowledge from each other, and to specialize in complementary areas. Our findings show that knowledge acquisition across alliance partners is maximized when the technological knowledge bases of alliance partners are moderately similar, whereas highly similar or highly dissimilar knowledge bases enable partners to specialize in complementary areas. Moreover, both knowledge acquisition and specialization are enhanced when partners have experience in prior alliances. In rare cases, we observed knowledge acquisition and specialization occurring simultaneously between partners with similar knowledge bases and prior alliance experience.

Industry and Innovation, 2017

This paper assesses the impact on firm innovation of combining alliance-specific and partner-spec... more This paper assesses the impact on firm innovation of combining alliance-specific and partner-specific attributes within a firm's alliance portfolio. In a panel data analysis of the innovation performance of 119 firms operating in the pharmaceutical industry during 1985-2007, we test whether firm's alliance portfolio displays complementarities across four dimensions. The results suggest that specific combinations of attributes may diminish innovation by decreasing the efficiency of diversity management or by generating redundancies. On the other hand, other alliance portfolio practices are mutually reinforcing and thus foster innovation. 1 In this paper, we follow the generally accepted in the literature definition of an alliance portfolio: 'a focal firm's past as well as ongoing strategic alliances of all types' Wassmer (2010, 44).

The International Journal of the History of Sport, 2015

Against the background of economic transformation and globalization, the impact of sports industr... more Against the background of economic transformation and globalization, the impact of sports industrialization on economic development has become a hot spot. The relationship between sports events and urban development, which lies at the core of sports industrialization, is receiving growing attention from researchers. Existing studies have looked primarily at the direct economic benefits. However, it is the brand elements, condensed in core value, that are actually the source of the general competitiveness in terms of urban sustainable development and long-term intangible assets. Sporting events have a very special meaning and impact in terms of moulding city brands and building urban awareness. They enable cities to acquire resources and build momentum for continued development. Some examples of this include acquiring better basic facilities and an enhanced urban environment; increased development of relevant industries; publicity and promotion of city brands; greater urban renown, tourism, and investment; and formation of an urban sports culture. However, maximizing the promotion benefits requires integrating the common elements that exist between the sports event and the host city, namely the coherence points in co-branded marketing. This paper explores the evolution of the relationship between sporting events and host cities, and discusses how to improve the integration of common elements and match the integrating elements in order to maximize the synergistic effect of co-branding.

Strategic Alliances, Mergers and Acquisitions

DOI to the publisher's website. • The final author version and the galley proof are versions of t... more DOI to the publisher's website. • The final author version and the galley proof are versions of the publication after peer review. • The final published version features the final layout of the paper including the volume, issue and page numbers. Link to publication General rights Copyright and moral rights for the publications made accessible in the public portal are retained by the authors and/or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. • Users may download and print one copy of any publication from the public portal for the purpose of private study or research. • You may not further distribute the material or use it for any profit-making activity or commercial gain • You may freely distribute the URL identifying the publication in the public portal. If the publication is distributed under the terms of Article 25fa of the Dutch Copyright Act, indicated by the "Taverne" license above, please follow below link for the End User Agreement:

Revue d'économie industrielle, 2003

This paper longitudinally explores the technology positioning strategies, i.e. block membership o... more This paper longitudinally explores the technology positioning strategies, i.e. block membership or non-block membership, in interorganizational networks that maximize innovative performance. Hence, we will derive some basic propositions on the effect of block membership on innovative performance under various network evolutionary conditions, i.e. structure reinforcing or structure-loosening developments in the industry. Empirical testing is performed on the microelectronics industry from 1980-2000.

European Management Review, 2016

Relative to relational governance, research into the use and effects of formal governance is scar... more Relative to relational governance, research into the use and effects of formal governance is scarce. Recent contributions suggest that a specific type of contract that has intentionally been left incomplete, the performancebased contract (PBC), fosters innovation. However, it is unknown how this effect occurs. To address this gap, we draw on transaction cost economics and agency theory to develop propositions on how PBCs affect innovation. PBCs are characterized by low term specificity and rewards that are tied to performance. We propose that low term specificity, that is, not stipulating how the focal firm's partner should deliver the performance and which resources to use, enhances the partner's autonomy, which in turn fosters innovation. However, excessive low term specificity inhibits innovation, since it may lead the partner to display opportunistic behavior. We furthermore propose that performance-based pay incentivizes the partner to engage in innovation. This suggests that linking rewards to performance attenuates the negative relationship between term specificity and innovation when the former is very low. Finally, we propose that a more risk-averse partner will engage in fewer innovative activities as such a partner will be less sensitive to the pay-for-performance clause.

AI & Society, 1993

In organizational ecology, the focus is on the evolution of a population of organizations. Adopti... more In organizational ecology, the focus is on the evolution of a population of organizations. Adopting a similar logic, we deal with the evolution of a population (or set) of related of inventions. More specifically, by employing a population perspective to technology, we aim to determine to what extent the pattern of technological growth can be attributed to the structural characteristics of the technology itself. Through an empirical investigation of patent data in the biotechnology industry, we show that a technology's internal (i.e., density and diversity) and external (i.e., crowding and status) characteristics have a significant effect on its growth rate. Finally, we discuss the implication of our findings for the development of what we coin the ecology of technology.