This document summarizes a case study of organizational incompetence in innovation at a large consumer goods company called Antinnova Inc. Interviews with managers revealed several issues: 1) there was no shared understanding of what innovation means, with differing views on process vs. product innovation; 2) the company's research center operated independently without clear priorities or deadlines set by management; 3) researchers looked down on engineers and marketing requirements and were disconnected from manufacturing; 4) while researchers distanced themselves from others, they still craved recognition within the organization. These findings suggest Antinnova lacked coordination and integration across functions needed for effective product development.
В нашем исследовании "Раскрытие силы инноваций" мы предлагаем инновационным компаниям решение пяти ключевых вопросов, чтобы впоследствии вы могли максимально эффективно использовать полученные инвестиции.
Обсудить отчет можно на странице PwC Startup Cloud в Facebook http://on.fb.me/11ZZJvU.
State of agile - How are companies increasing agilitySantiago Advisors
Changing external market conditions, sociocultural trends as well as novel technological capabilities and learnings from different domains all have contributed to the rise of “agility” to one of the most promoted management trends. Companies of all sizes and businesses have initiated Agile initiatives in various ways. But what are the concrete employed measures and what are the actual benefits that these initiatives generate? – Read the insights from interviews with many experts in different functional areas and industries on the current state of agile in our study that we performed together with the department for corporate development and organization of the University of Cologne.
В нашем исследовании "Раскрытие силы инноваций" мы предлагаем инновационным компаниям решение пяти ключевых вопросов, чтобы впоследствии вы могли максимально эффективно использовать полученные инвестиции.
Обсудить отчет можно на странице PwC Startup Cloud в Facebook http://on.fb.me/11ZZJvU.
State of agile - How are companies increasing agilitySantiago Advisors
Changing external market conditions, sociocultural trends as well as novel technological capabilities and learnings from different domains all have contributed to the rise of “agility” to one of the most promoted management trends. Companies of all sizes and businesses have initiated Agile initiatives in various ways. But what are the concrete employed measures and what are the actual benefits that these initiatives generate? – Read the insights from interviews with many experts in different functional areas and industries on the current state of agile in our study that we performed together with the department for corporate development and organization of the University of Cologne.
When finding the fastest path between discovery and delivery, pharmaceutical companies are increasingly looking toward Contract Research Organizations (CRO s).
As the face of the industry changes, 2020 Pharma (Ph) sits down with two CRO experts to discuss these trends.
Management Analysis and Innovation Management Modelijtsrd
Today innovation has become a matter of survival for you to organize them. Those who do not seek to innovate in their products or services are destined to lose their market share or even go bankrupt. Aware of this condition, organizations begin to use the methodology called Lean Startup, created primarily for startups. However, it has been observed that organizations that try to use this methodology face a kind of disorganization and create something called innovation theatres , where great projects are idealized, but it is not possible to deliver any substantive change to a product or service. To reverse this scenario, Steve Blank indicates the use of two corporate strategies in conjunction with the Lean Startup methodology in order to accelerate the innovation process in mature companies, what he calls the model of Lean Innovation Management. The objective of this article, besides pointing out what is Lean Management, is to argue that the adoption of this model in organizations will only be successful if the agile methodologies which support it are not considered just an innovation in the process of software development and related services in companies, but a new and competitive management strategy for organizations. Dilafruz Saidahmedova "Management Analysis and Innovation Management Model" Published in International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development (ijtsrd), ISSN: 2456-6470, Volume-4 | Issue-4 , June 2020, URL: https://www.ijtsrd.com/papers/ijtsrd31205.pdf Paper Url :https://www.ijtsrd.com/management/randd-management/31205/management-analysis-and-innovation-management-model/dilafruz-saidahmedova
Strategic Foresight: How to build a superior position in markets of tomorrowRené Rohrbeck
Firms use strategic foresight practices to identify change drivers, discover opportunities and threats, engage in scenario-based strategising and identify superior courses of action.
The slides are from the inaugural lecture of Professor René Rohrbeck. They provide an introduction to strategic foresight for managers and an overview of the research program of the Strategic Foresight Research Network at Aarhus University, Denmark.
An Analytic Network Process Modeling to Assess Technological Innovation Capab...drboon
To handle swift changes in global environment, Technological Innovation Capabilities (TICs) is one crucial and unique strategy to increase firms’ competitiveness. This research proposed a systematic framework of TICs assessment by employing Analytic Network Process (ANP) method for solving the complicate decision-making and assessing the interrelationship among various evaluation factors, whereas the relative important weight data were provided by industrial experts based on pair-wise comparison. With the novel TIC assessment model, high-level managers could easily gain management information to rationalizes the decision-making process based on the most important criteria which affect the firms’ competitive advantages and the highest priority factors which were needed to be handled. The last section also displayed the application of TICs assessment on three Thai automotive parts firms, as case study.
FRAME WORK ANALYSIS (STAGE 4): PROPOSING A VALIDATED FRAME WORK TO ENHANCE TH...IAEME Publication
The findings/frame work from the third stage of frame work analysis gets further validated / tested by the Grounded theory for one final time in the fourth stage of frame work analysis. The researcher used NVIVO 12 for data analysis due to the “Time and Efforts factor” involved. The Frame Work proposed by the Researcher in the Third Stage of Frame Work Analysis gets validated in the Fourth and Final stage – No New Variables/Relationships emerged or got eliminated. Very few studies have dealt with Pre-Adoption Variables in the past. Unraveling the Pre-Adoption Variables and its influences on the process of adoption are the Theoretical Contributions of the researcher to the Innovation Adoption Literature
The turmoil engulfing the global economy has forced many industries into reinvention in hope of discovering new growth. Every company faces the daily challenge of business growth; where to find it and how to generate profits from it. Every business leaders’ primary task should be aligning internal resources to capitalise on new growth opportunities quicker and better than competitors.
When finding the fastest path between discovery and delivery, pharmaceutical companies are increasingly looking toward Contract Research Organizations (CRO s).
As the face of the industry changes, 2020 Pharma (Ph) sits down with two CRO experts to discuss these trends.
Management Analysis and Innovation Management Modelijtsrd
Today innovation has become a matter of survival for you to organize them. Those who do not seek to innovate in their products or services are destined to lose their market share or even go bankrupt. Aware of this condition, organizations begin to use the methodology called Lean Startup, created primarily for startups. However, it has been observed that organizations that try to use this methodology face a kind of disorganization and create something called innovation theatres , where great projects are idealized, but it is not possible to deliver any substantive change to a product or service. To reverse this scenario, Steve Blank indicates the use of two corporate strategies in conjunction with the Lean Startup methodology in order to accelerate the innovation process in mature companies, what he calls the model of Lean Innovation Management. The objective of this article, besides pointing out what is Lean Management, is to argue that the adoption of this model in organizations will only be successful if the agile methodologies which support it are not considered just an innovation in the process of software development and related services in companies, but a new and competitive management strategy for organizations. Dilafruz Saidahmedova "Management Analysis and Innovation Management Model" Published in International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development (ijtsrd), ISSN: 2456-6470, Volume-4 | Issue-4 , June 2020, URL: https://www.ijtsrd.com/papers/ijtsrd31205.pdf Paper Url :https://www.ijtsrd.com/management/randd-management/31205/management-analysis-and-innovation-management-model/dilafruz-saidahmedova
Strategic Foresight: How to build a superior position in markets of tomorrowRené Rohrbeck
Firms use strategic foresight practices to identify change drivers, discover opportunities and threats, engage in scenario-based strategising and identify superior courses of action.
The slides are from the inaugural lecture of Professor René Rohrbeck. They provide an introduction to strategic foresight for managers and an overview of the research program of the Strategic Foresight Research Network at Aarhus University, Denmark.
An Analytic Network Process Modeling to Assess Technological Innovation Capab...drboon
To handle swift changes in global environment, Technological Innovation Capabilities (TICs) is one crucial and unique strategy to increase firms’ competitiveness. This research proposed a systematic framework of TICs assessment by employing Analytic Network Process (ANP) method for solving the complicate decision-making and assessing the interrelationship among various evaluation factors, whereas the relative important weight data were provided by industrial experts based on pair-wise comparison. With the novel TIC assessment model, high-level managers could easily gain management information to rationalizes the decision-making process based on the most important criteria which affect the firms’ competitive advantages and the highest priority factors which were needed to be handled. The last section also displayed the application of TICs assessment on three Thai automotive parts firms, as case study.
FRAME WORK ANALYSIS (STAGE 4): PROPOSING A VALIDATED FRAME WORK TO ENHANCE TH...IAEME Publication
The findings/frame work from the third stage of frame work analysis gets further validated / tested by the Grounded theory for one final time in the fourth stage of frame work analysis. The researcher used NVIVO 12 for data analysis due to the “Time and Efforts factor” involved. The Frame Work proposed by the Researcher in the Third Stage of Frame Work Analysis gets validated in the Fourth and Final stage – No New Variables/Relationships emerged or got eliminated. Very few studies have dealt with Pre-Adoption Variables in the past. Unraveling the Pre-Adoption Variables and its influences on the process of adoption are the Theoretical Contributions of the researcher to the Innovation Adoption Literature
The turmoil engulfing the global economy has forced many industries into reinvention in hope of discovering new growth. Every company faces the daily challenge of business growth; where to find it and how to generate profits from it. Every business leaders’ primary task should be aligning internal resources to capitalise on new growth opportunities quicker and better than competitors.
Seocamp2016 : javascript et indexation, où en est-on ?Madeline Pinthon
Google annonce comprendre le JavaScript mais qu'en est-il exactement ?
Plus d'information : http://www.iprospect.com/fr/fr/le-blog/indexation-javascript/
Apostila Produçao de Leite AgroecologicoDaniel Mol
Apostila escrita através do projeto de Leite Agroecológico do NEPAL Núcleo de Estudos de Produção Agroecológica de Leite, e grupo Qualhada da Unioeste Campus Marechal Cândido Rondon PR.
How any organisation can drive culture and design systems to pursue practical...Toby Farren
This whitepaper will provide an insight into the different elements of modern innovation fostering,
including the various factors determining the capability of organisations to innovate internally;
the differences between frontend and backend innovation; and a focus on the relatively new
‘open’ innovation methods (including the advantages of utilizing sandboxes in the frontend
innovation process as well as collaborating with external bodies).
Read attachedpages about 3-M and their approach to innovationRes.docxmakdul
Read attachedpages about 3-M and their approach to innovation
Research one of 3M’s innovations.
Write a full two page paper in which you respond to the following questions:
1. How did the creative thinking process work in the development of this product? Describe what took place in each of the four steps.
2. Analyze what type of innovation this was—invention, extension, duplication, or synthesis. What characteristics of the innovation have led you to this conclusion?
3. Explain which of the sources of innovative ideas discussed in this week’s reading help account for this product’s success and why?
Include a minimum of two sources
The Entrepreneurial Mind-Set in Organizations: Corporate Entrepreneurship
Thus, 3M’s philosophy was born. Innovation is a numbers game: The more ideas, the better the chances for a successful innovation. In other words, to master innovation, companies must have a tolerance for failure. This philosophy has paid off for 3M. Antistatic videotape, trans- lucent dental braces, synthetic ligaments for knee surgery, heavy-duty reflective sheeting for construction signs, and, of course, Post-it notes are just some of the great innovations devel- oped by the organization. Overall, the company has a catalog of 60,000 products.40
Today, 3M follows a set of innovative rules that encourages employees to foster ideas. The key rules include the following:
•
Don’t kill a project. If an idea can’t find a home in one of 3M’s divisions, a staffer can devote 15 percent of his or her time to prove it is workable. For those who need seed money, as many as 90 Genesis grants of $50,000 are awarded each year.
• Tolerate failure. Encouraging plenty of experimentation and risk taking allows more chances for a new product hit. The goal: Divisions must derive 25 percent of sales from products introduced in the past five years. The target may be boosted to 30 percent in some cases.
• Keep divisions small. Division managers must know each staffer’s first name. When a division gets too big, perhaps reaching $250 million to $300 million in sales, it is split up.
• Motivate the champions. When a 3M employee has a product idea, he or she recruits an action team to develop it. Salaries and promotions are tied into the product’s progress. The champion has a chance to someday run his or her own product group or division.
• Stay close to the customer. Researchers, marketers, and managers visit with customers and routinely invite them to help brainstorm product ideas.
•
Share the wealth. Technology, wherever it is developed, belongs to everyone.41 3-4c structuring the Work environment
Structuring the Work environment
When establishing the drive to innovate in today’s corporations, one of the most critical steps is to invest heavily in an innovative environment. A top-level manager’s job is to create a work environment that is highly conducive to innovation and entrepreneurial behaviors. Within such an environment, each employee has the opport ...
Portfolio Management for New Product Development: Results of an Industry Practices Study
By Dr. Robert G. Cooper, Dr. Scott J. Edgett and Dr. Elko J. Kleinschmidt
QSO 680 Module One Journal Guidelines and Rubric Overvi.docxmakdul
QSO 680 Module One Journal Guidelines and Rubric
Overview: Journal activities in this course are private between you and the instructor. Review this tutorial for information on creating a Blackboard journal
entry.
The use of case study analysis gives you an opportunity to see project management in action. Case study analysis takes abstract methodologies and puts them
into practice. In this assignment, you will analyze the case study will be used for your final project: a program performance report.
Prompt: Begin by reading the case study Value-Driven Project and Portfolio Management in the Pharmaceutical Industry: Drug Discovery versus Drug
Development - Commonalities and Differences in Portfolio Management Practice. You will be working with this case study throughout the course, so take the
time to familiarize yourself with it. Focus on the important facts and key issues. Use the following guiding questions to focus your reading and assist in writing
your overview:
What is/are the defining objective(s) identified in the case study?
What are the differences and similarities and the advantages and disadvantages of managing at the project, portfolio, and program levels?
Who is the target stakeholder group that would benefit from understanding the portfolio management process?
How does corporate strategy align with the project portfolio in the case study?
What role does the project manager play in this case study?
Write a concise (3 to 5 paragraph) overview of the case study addressing the above questions and summarizing your final thoughts on the case study presented.
Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed:
I. Define the objective(s) in the case study.
II. Identify the target stakeholder group and explain the benefits of the portfolio management process to this group.
III. Explore the differences/similarities and the advantages/disadvantages of managing at the project, portfolio, and program levels.
IV. Explain how corporate strategy aligns with the project portfolio in the case study.
V. Assess the role of the project manager in the case study.
Note: If you need additional guidance in case study analysis, refer to this article: Guidelines for Writing a Case Study Analysis.
https://my.snhu.edu/Offices/ITS/IS/resources/Documents/Creating_a_Journal_Entry.pdf
http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.snhu.edu/docview/232912662?pq-origsite=summon&accountid=3783
http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.snhu.edu/docview/232912662?pq-origsite=summon&accountid=3783
https://awc.ashford.edu/tocw-guidelines-for-writing-a-case-study.html
Rubric
Guidelines for Submission: Your 3- to 5-paragraph journal entry must be submitted with 12-point Times New Roman font and any sources cited in APA format.
Instructor Feedback: This activity uses an integrated rubric in Blackboard. Students can view instructor feedback in the Grade Center. For more information,
review these instructions. ...
Week 6 - Assignment Rate Methods of HR and Technology Practices f.docxhelzerpatrina
Week 6 - Assignment: Rate Methods of HR and Technology Practices for Developing Sustainable Innovation
Assignment
Top of Form
Due December 8 at 11:59 PM
Bottom of Form
For this week’s assignment, you will create a video presentation by using the Kaltura CaptureSpace tool located in NCUOne. To access the video capturing tool, follow the tutorial found in your Books and Resources for this Week.
For this assignment, you are asked to read the story about Progressive Insurance (Megson & Hammer, 2004) as a foundation for your presentation. Your task is to act like a business reporter covering a story for a business news network. You are expected to provide a summary of the human resource, technology, and process improvement efforts explained by Megson and Hammer, and then, provide a grade of A-F on the company performance. You are expected to give a grade on each of the summary elements and then an overall grade of the company’s performance. Your news story and grading should be no more than 5 minutes. You are expected to submit a transcript of your video. Feel free to be creative with your video as this is your news story to tell. Please keep in mind that while you are not expected to note your sources in your video presentation, you are expected to cite them in your transcript. You should reference at least 4 resources for this assignment using sources from the Library.
Length: Your video should be no more than 5 minutes.
References: You may reference any of the other resources provided in your reading this week.
Your video presentation should demonstrate thoughtful consideration of the ideas and concepts presented in the course and provide new thoughts and insights relating directly to this topic. Your response should reflect scholarly writing and current APA standards.
Reference
Megson, L., & Hammer, M. (2004). Deep change: How operational innovation can transform your company. Harvard Business Review, 82(7/8), 182–183.
Week 6
Print
Leading and Managing Sustainable Innovation
Perhaps there is no important rule in business than understanding that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to creating innovation. Even if you can create a spark of innovation, there is no guarantee that it can be maintained if there is no culture to maintain it. Simply stated, organizational leaders have to build an environment where innovation can occur and where it can be maintained. For innovation to happen, many conditions must be met. However, the conditions are not formulas for perfect innovations but simple elements that a manager must mix in the proper proportions for their respective organization. These elements include, but are not limited to, employees being encouraged to participate in process improvement; managers being willing to allow for failures with innovation; and finally, risk management must occur and must become socially ingrained. Keep in mind this is not risk avoidance; it is risk management of the inherent risks of seeking to be an innova ...
Organisation Effectiveness Assessment looks at some diagnostic models that can help diagnose the problems of organisations and how to find solutions to such problems. Consults need to have skills in how to assess organisations for change, efficiency or funding in the case of non-profit organisations.
The Slides cover:
1. What is an organisation?
2. The Open Systems Model
3. What is organisational effectiveness?.
4. Approaches to measuring organisational effectiveness
5. What is organisational Analysis?
6. Organisational Analysis Cycle
7. Purposes and perspectives of organisational analysis.
8. Data Collection Methods. (Imagery; questionnaire; interviews;Observation;Focus groups; Secondary material, etc.
9. Advantages and Disadvantages of Data Collection Methods
10.Use of appropriate organizational diagnostic models to assess organisations.
a. Kurt Lewin’s Force Field Model;
b. Likert’s Management System Model;
c. McKenzie’s 7S Model;
d. Weisbord 6-Box Model
11. Organisational Capacity Assessment Tools (OCAT).
a. Why conduct Organisational Capacity Assessment?
b. Organisational Capacity Assessment Process;
c. Application of an OCAT Tool
Writing an Organisational Assessment Report.
Research Paper titled “Innovation through Intrapreneurship – A Management’s Perspective” on how manager's can foster an environment of innovation & spirit of startups in an Enterprise.
Organisations continue to search for the magic snake oil that will bring their innovation programs to life. But there is no magic. Its about building a portfolio of experiments and abolishing the "big-bang" approach that looks for the one thing to transform the business.
Early Enterprise 2.0 perspectives (circa 2005) from Stephen Danelutti of netoCiety. Essentially covers the functions of innovation and change in business transformation efforts supported by social software.
ONE POINT OF VIEWPaul N. Friga and Richard B. ChapasMA.docxhopeaustin33688
ONE POINT OF VIEW
Paul N. Friga and Richard B. Chapas
MAKE BETTER BUSINESS DECISIONS
Decision-making in today’s environment is difficult, and
new managers in R&D and other technical positions are
often shocked at the lack of systematic decision-making
they find in their interactions with upper management
and their peers in other parts of the organization.
However, there is a well-tested source of insight into how
to improve the decision-making in business: the scien-
tific method. Although it has revolutionized our lives and
the ability to manipulate our material world, the scien-
tific method has not been widely adapted for business
executives. Nevertheless, we believe it can improve the
efficiency and effectiveness of decision-making for
executives, research managers, and business leaders in
general.
In this article, we first examine the typical decision-
making environment in organizations, highlighting the
challenges executives face in their quest for better per-
formance. Next, we introduce some of the basic tenets
from the scientific method and describe how they can
play a role in overcoming several of the key decision-
making deficiencies. We then describe a five-step
process that can assist in the implementation of scientific
method techniques in daily decision-making, illustrated
by a case study relating to new technology develop-
ment.
Challenges Executives Face
Three key macro-level elements that differentiate the
daily decision-making of today include information
overload, shareholder pressure, and shortened business
cycle time:
• The search tools in use for problem solving by execu-
tives at most companies today yield a quantity of infor-
mation that can be overwhelming. This situation has
increased the importance of knowledge management
skills to sort the data, identify what is truly relevant, and
then to create value from it.
• Shareholder pressure, a result of the rise in worldwide
capital markets, has led to a relentless drive to achieve
short-term financial results, often at the expense of long-
term considerations. A number of well-known corporate
failures may have resulted from the pressure to achieve
consistent growth at any cost.
• Finally, the time-to-market and overall business cycles
have shortened to a level unimaginable 50 years ago.
Decisions must be made faster than ever before (1).
Ultimately, decision-making is done on an individual
level. Alarmingly, much of the research suggests that
humans are extremely limited in their decision-making
Paul Friga was clinical associate professor of strategic
management at the Kelley School of Business at
Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana, when this
article was written. He is now a professor at the
Kenen-Flager School of Business, Chapel Hill, North
Carolina. He researches strategic decision-making,
knowledge transfer, intuition, management consulting
practices, and entrepreneurship. His work has been
published in The Academy of Management Learning
and Educa.
Welcome to TechSoup New Member Orientation and Q&A (May 2024).pdfTechSoup
In this webinar you will learn how your organization can access TechSoup's wide variety of product discount and donation programs. From hardware to software, we'll give you a tour of the tools available to help your nonprofit with productivity, collaboration, financial management, donor tracking, security, and more.
We all have good and bad thoughts from time to time and situation to situation. We are bombarded daily with spiraling thoughts(both negative and positive) creating all-consuming feel , making us difficult to manage with associated suffering. Good thoughts are like our Mob Signal (Positive thought) amidst noise(negative thought) in the atmosphere. Negative thoughts like noise outweigh positive thoughts. These thoughts often create unwanted confusion, trouble, stress and frustration in our mind as well as chaos in our physical world. Negative thoughts are also known as “distorted thinking”.
How to Create Map Views in the Odoo 17 ERPCeline George
The map views are useful for providing a geographical representation of data. They allow users to visualize and analyze the data in a more intuitive manner.
Unit 8 - Information and Communication Technology (Paper I).pdfThiyagu K
This slides describes the basic concepts of ICT, basics of Email, Emerging Technology and Digital Initiatives in Education. This presentations aligns with the UGC Paper I syllabus.
This is a presentation by Dada Robert in a Your Skill Boost masterclass organised by the Excellence Foundation for South Sudan (EFSS) on Saturday, the 25th and Sunday, the 26th of May 2024.
He discussed the concept of quality improvement, emphasizing its applicability to various aspects of life, including personal, project, and program improvements. He defined quality as doing the right thing at the right time in the right way to achieve the best possible results and discussed the concept of the "gap" between what we know and what we do, and how this gap represents the areas we need to improve. He explained the scientific approach to quality improvement, which involves systematic performance analysis, testing and learning, and implementing change ideas. He also highlighted the importance of client focus and a team approach to quality improvement.
Instructions for Submissions thorugh G- Classroom.pptxJheel Barad
This presentation provides a briefing on how to upload submissions and documents in Google Classroom. It was prepared as part of an orientation for new Sainik School in-service teacher trainees. As a training officer, my goal is to ensure that you are comfortable and proficient with this essential tool for managing assignments and fostering student engagement.
Ethnobotany and Ethnopharmacology:
Ethnobotany in herbal drug evaluation,
Impact of Ethnobotany in traditional medicine,
New development in herbals,
Bio-prospecting tools for drug discovery,
Role of Ethnopharmacology in drug evaluation,
Reverse Pharmacology.
The French Revolution, which began in 1789, was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France. It marked the decline of absolute monarchies, the rise of secular and democratic republics, and the eventual rise of Napoleon Bonaparte. This revolutionary period is crucial in understanding the transition from feudalism to modernity in Europe.
For more information, visit-www.vavaclasses.com
Model Attribute Check Company Auto PropertyCeline George
In Odoo, the multi-company feature allows you to manage multiple companies within a single Odoo database instance. Each company can have its own configurations while still sharing common resources such as products, customers, and suppliers.
The Indian economy is classified into different sectors to simplify the analysis and understanding of economic activities. For Class 10, it's essential to grasp the sectors of the Indian economy, understand their characteristics, and recognize their importance. This guide will provide detailed notes on the Sectors of the Indian Economy Class 10, using specific long-tail keywords to enhance comprehension.
For more information, visit-www.vavaclasses.com
The Art Pastor's Guide to Sabbath | Steve ThomasonSteve Thomason
What is the purpose of the Sabbath Law in the Torah. It is interesting to compare how the context of the law shifts from Exodus to Deuteronomy. Who gets to rest, and why?
MARUTI SUZUKI- A Successful Joint Venture in India.pptx
Aula 3. artigo durand (2000). forms of-incompetence
1. Forms of Incompetence
By Thomas DURAND
Professor, Ecole Centrale Paris, 92295 Châtenay Malabry, France
Tel : +33 (0)1 47 12 53 06 – Thomas.durand@ecp.fr
Published as a chapter in:
Sanchez, Ron, and Aimé Heene, editors (2000), Theory Development for Competence-Based
Management, Volume 6(A) in Advances in Applied Business Strategy, Lawrence Foster, series
editor, Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
I-Introduction
This paper addresses the issue of documenting the concept of competence in organizations by
adopting the perspective of incompetence. The rationale of the research project behind this
paper stems from three preliminary comments serving as starting points for the analysis.
a-The competence-based management literature has focused much attention on learning, i.e.
knowledge and competence building, much less on the real nature of competence itself. Much
has been described about the process of learning in organizations, i.e. about the flux, much
less about the accumulated stock resulting from the flux, namely the competence base of the
organization.
The main reason for this may have to do with the difficulties encountered in grasping and
describing the real essence of organizational competence. This actually leads to the issue of
the epistemic status of the concept of competence. This is clearly the result of well-known
characteristics of competence, e.g. tacit versus articulated knowledge, individual vs.
organizational, etc.
b-A corollary feature of the competence-based literature in management is the lack of
empirical work. This point is quite striking. At this stage, too little has been done to document
and illustrate the existing theoretical contributions around the concept of competence ; not to
speak about empirically testing the validity of the whole theoretical constructs of the resource-
based view or the competence-based theory.
It seems to us that this has to do with the difficulties of operationalizing the concept, which
again directly relates to the specific nature of the concepts at hand. To be of interest, a theory
does not necessarily need to be operationalized nor even operationalizable. Yet, in
management research, some form of empirical validation or at least some documentation is
desirable.
c-The whole argument behind the competence-based theory is designed to apply at the level of
organizations. Yet, many contributions tend to implicitly or explicitly extrapolate what is
known for individuals, extending this knowledge to the organizational level.
This is actually one of the key elements of the epistemic challenge posed to management
researchers by this still emerging concept of competence. A very promising line of research is
currently being explored through the idea of interactionism (Durand, Mounoud, Ramanantsoa,
1996) or autopoeisis (Von Krogh & Roos, 1995). Yet, again, there is still a long way to go
before a self sustained, documented and empirically tested theory of organizational
competence is available.
2. - page 2 -
Although clearly debatable, these three comments tend to reinforce each other. In turn, they
led to the idea behind this paper:
"If you cannot tell them what they are good at, tell them what they are incompetent for". If it
seems so difficult to describe competence, what about incompetence? If the literature lacks
empirical work, why not attempting to empirically describe incompetence? If the individual
level is significantly more documented than organizational competence, why not approaching
and describing the incompetence of an organization?
A research project was designed to explore this line of research further. A case study was
organized in a large firm which over the years has become unable to innovate, especially when
dealing with new products.
In that sense this company is clearly ‘incompetent’ compared to its major competitors. The
company is (still) highly profitable, efficient in its operations but, when it comes to designing
developing and bringing new products to the market place, this company is evaluated as
helpless, incapable, i.e. incompetent, by its own top management.
The research project was designed and conducted as a way to analyze and document the
reasons behind this inability to innovate.
The methodology relied on in-depth interviews with key players within the organization. This
led to a diagnosis of the situation and in turn to an empirical exploration of the innovation-
related incompetence of this firm.
The paper first presents the case study. It aims at showing what organizational incompetence
may be. Some form of incompetence is thus illustrated and documented concretely. The paper
then briefly presents a framework model of competence built around three dimensions
(knowledge, know-how and attitudes), pointing out both the specificities and linkages of these
three interdependent elements of competence.
On that basis, the case study is revisited, analyzed and discussed in relation to the framework
model presented. Incompetence is then discussed in light of the model. Some theoretical and
applied implications are then drawn, including a development about the theme of unlearning.
Suggestions are also made for further investigation.
A brief conclusion ends the paper, advocating for more empirical work to help establish a
self-sustained, documented theory of competence in management.
II- The case of Antinnova Inc.
The context
Antinnova Inc is 2 b$ division of a major consumer goods, publicly owned, multinational
corporation. The division operates essentially in Europe. Antinnova is a leader in its markets
and owns widely recognized brands.
Antinnova designs, mass-manufactures and sells its products through various distribution
channels. Marketing and advertising is an essential component of the business.
The whole industry is currently going through significant technological changes associated to
a scientific revolution which occurred some years ago. Thus, in addition to its ‘development’
department, Antinnova has its own research center with scientists recognized as experts in
their field.
On a non-growing oligopolistic market, with a few smaller players focusing on niches,
Antinnova has a long track record of high profitability. The company is well respected in its
industry.
3. - page 3 -
Yet, the top management at Antinnova is well aware of the difficulties faced by the
organization when it comes to developing new products. Most of the products launched in the
last 5 years either have been failures or have generated limited sales, significantly below
expectations. More recently, the rate of development of new products has even slowed down.
This is a major problem for the management of Antinnova as the proclaimed strategy is
precisely to try to innovate on this non growing market as a way to search for growth. ‘The
only other option would indeed be to fight for market shares through a price war. Since we
are the market leader, that would in fact hurt the profitability of Antinnova before anything
else’ says the CEO. Innovation, and more specifically product innovation, is thus a strategic
priority for the firm.
The top management has some difficulties in grasping what goes wrong within the
organization but clearly considers that Antinnova, while still being profitable and otherwise
efficient, has developed some form of incompetence regarding product development.
Our research project selected this context in order to conduct an exploration of what was
identified ex ante as a case of organizational incompetence.
30 in depth interviews over a 3 month time span were conducted with managers in all major
functional departments (marketing, research, development, manufacturing, human resources)
as well as with top managers. Some of them were met several times.
Major findings
The interviews show that the representation of the concept of innovation is not shared among
Antinnova staff. Some managers primarily advocate for process innovation to cut
manufacturing costs. Others claim that ‘incremental adaptations of existing products is
essential’ as the priority is to fit the continuously changing requirements of demand. Some
others reject ‘me-too’ products as “non-innovative imitations” which cannot bring any
significant competitive advantage; in turn, they advocate for radical innovation based upon
“real research projects”.
In other words, right from the beginning, there is a clear misfit around the key word used by
the top management when attempting to promote innovation.
Antinnova’s research center is located on the division headquarters premises. The scientific
revolution which took place upstream of the business led to hiring basic scientists in order to
understand and transfer these new scientific developments into technological applications.
These experts are thus connected to the international scientific community, worldwide. They
tend to deny any real ability of the top management at Antinnova to understand and evaluate
their work. They tend to think evaluation in terms of peer review. They have been accustomed
to define their own research agenda, based on their own view of the ‘real’ research needs of
the company. (The top management explicitly recognized in private with us how difficult it is
to assess the relevance of the research projects which are submitted for approval). As a
consequence, the monitoring of the ongoing research projects is limited and deadlines are
uncertain and flexible.
The interviews clearly show that the leading researchers have a tendency to look down upon
the development engineers (the former have PhD’s while the latter hold engineering degrees)
and do not give much credit to the requirements coming from marketing. In addition they are
far away from the world of manufacturing.
Paradoxically, despite these distant feelings for their colleagues from other departments, the
researchers at Antinnova are nevertheless in bad need for recognition and respect from the rest
of the organization. This should not be regarded as a contradiction but more as the same
symptom of lack of trust and poor working relations between the research center and the other
4. - page 4 -
functions. It must be said clearly that no positive sign coming from the rest of the organization
in direction of the research center could be observed during the course of our investigations.
The marketing department at Antinnova is the leading player and behaves as such. Marketers
at Antinnova are more concerned with advertising campaigns to sustain their brands than with
new product developments. No or little strategic marketing is conducted. Most of the focus of
Marketing has to do with sales and communication issues. They view product innovation as
“difficult and costly in our [supposedly] mature market”. The marketing department claims
that they have good working relations with the engineers of the development department. The
truth of the matter is that the modus operandi between Marketing and Development reflects a
situation of domination of the latter obeying the former. As such, the marketing department
does not comply to its advocate position towards top management, as described by Freiling
(this volume): it actually takes over top management responsibility in defining strategic
objectives. Marketing views the research center as ‘operating on another planet, and happy to
stay there’. There is simply no contact whatsoever between Research and Marketing.
Strangely enough the ‘NIH’ syndrome known to strike usually in research units is obviously at
work within the marketing department. ‘Any new idea submitted to Marketing from anyone
else is immediately rejected’. In addition the normal career path of a marketer in the whole
Group of Antinnova means that he / she should not spend more than 18 to 24 months in the
same position in the same division. This thus generates a high turn-over within the
corresponding marketing departments. This has a clear consequence on the types of
innovation which marketers promote. Such a short time span means incremental, i.e.
cosmetic, innovations dealing with minor functionalities and marginal but visible adaptations
of the product, e.g. changes in packaging. Anything else goes beyond the normal scope of a
normally ambitious product manager. We clearly made the point by reconstructing analytically
the list of all product development briefs coming from Marketing over the last three years.
‘After five years of moving things around, we usually end up with a design of the product
looping back to what it was before; the problem is that in the meantime, Marketing has forced
us to reorganize our manufacturing lines several times to cope with their cosmetic
adaptations’ as the manufacturing manager put it.
Development does not understand why Marketing and Research would have to talk to one
another. Development engineers feel that any marketing need should be expressed to them,
thus leaving it up to Development to translate the marketing briefs into research needs,
whenever they feel that it is necessary. Development insists that process innovation is key for
manufacturing costs and thus as important as product innovation. The most striking point is
that Development runs the Development Committee with an objective of efficiency. All major
functions involved in product development indeed meet in this monthly committee but little
discussion goes on during the meeting as the Development manager has arranged all decisions
to be made ahead of time by the General Manager. The development committee is thus
extremely efficient, essentially making decisions already made elsewhere, without any real
confrontation of ideas, ‘hence saving a lot of lengthy, although really important discussion !’
as someone joked about it. While innovation requires creativity, interaction and iteration,
Development views product development projects as processes to be managed and run
efficiently. Development is thus short term and efficiency oriented. The competitive mode
implicitly defended by Development is operational, as opposed to entrepreneurial or
contractual (Haanes and Fjelstad, this volume). Nevertheless, Development engineers express
anger and frustration because Marketing does not pay enough attention to the proposals and
ideas coming from technicians.
5. - page 5 -
Manufacturing has been under heavy pressure to rationalize operations out of a decreasing
number of plants where the productivity gains have been spectacular over the years. Their
innovative thrust obviously goes for process improvement and productivity. From that
perspective, they appreciate the support of Development. Manufacturing has tried to establish
some linkages with Research as they wish to prepare actively for the implementation of new
production technologies stemming from the scientific revolution affecting the industry. Their
working relations with Marketing are minimum and rather difficult, given the continuous flow
of marginal product adaptations pushed by marketers, thus significantly disturbing the
organization of production “while in fact bringing little innovative value to the customers”.
Human resources mobility across functions within Antinnova are minimum. The worst
situation is found at the research center where no researcher has been in any other function at
Antinnova or elsewhere before. Some exceptions may be noted in other departments: the head
of Development spent some years in Manufacturing as the head of one of the largest plant;
one marketer was previously a development engineer. Nevertheless these few cases do not
seem to be sufficient to significantly improve the working relations across organizational
borders at Antinnova.
It should be stressed here that the quality and dedication of the staff of each of the functional
departments which we interviewed are not to be questioned. These are really very good
people, doing their best to contribute to Antinnova success. They are great individuals, active,
dedicated and even positive thinkers, nice to deal with, but collectively unable to cooperate
across organizational borders. It appears that collectively, the satff at Antinnova lacks many of
the Agile people attributes described by Amos and Saetre (this volume).
Stories of missed opportunities are many. ‘A few weeks after I arrived as the new marketing
manager, I organized a meeting with researchers. I did not do it twice. These guys are
strange’. On another occasion, Development carefully prepared proposals to be submitted at
the yearly key strategic planning meeting. ‘We did not get any feed back on what we
suggested, except a vague comment about keeping the focus on the core business’. 18 months
before we conducted our own investigation, the CEO decided to organize a creativity program
with various working groups across the organization to collect and assess ideas for new
products. 32 interesting items were pre-selected, out of which 8 priority themes were chosen.
This was put as a top priority on the agenda by the CEO. Nevertheless, none of the persons
whom we then interviewed on the issue of innovation mentioned this process to us; except the
CEO. We subsequently found out that no significant progress had been made on most of the 8
priority themes, every team “being too busy with other priorities”.
Summary findings about Antinnova’s incompetence
The major findings of our research at Antinnova show an organization dedicated to efficiency
in all respects, including efficiency in product development regardless of the needs for
informal interaction and creativity. All internal players are extremely busy (‘busy being busy’)
with no or little time and interest to listen to anyone else from other departments. Each
member of the organization is entrenched in his / her logic attached to his / her functional
position. Each function is convinced and claims that they understand the underlying strategic
dynamics of the business better than the others. Over the years, the degree of trust among staff
and managers from the various departments has come down to a minimum.
Antinnova is a rather rich company with significant resources. The organization is heavy with
a tendency to follow competitors innovations (me-too products), accepting to bet significant
amounts of resources for every product launch, especially for advertising campaigns despite
the high risks involved. The organization is obsessed by large and costly projects, rejecting
6. - page 6 -
any smaller idea and thus becoming extremely conservative and perfectionist, precisely
because of the risk attached to any product launch when so much is at stake.
All this led to very little capacity to accept iteration and interaction in the product design.
Antinnova’s competence to compete operationally has created an incompetence to compete
entrepreneurially (Haanes and Fjelstad, this volume).
In other words, this company has slowly built an internal culture, an organizational structure
and routines which made it unable to launch new products successfully. This company has
built a strong incompetence base for itself. One may call it "in-built incompetence". And this
incompetence is built to last. At least until the company runs into difficulties.
Let us now turn to a model of organizational competence which can serve as a theoretical
basis to analyze and discuss the case of Antinnova.
7. - page 7 -
III-A model of competence
We start by reviewing briefly the competence-based perspective as it stems from the
economics and management literature before presenting a model of organizational
competence integrating and articulating what we view as the main underlying dimensions of
the concept. This model will then make it possible to revisit the case study presented and thus
address the issue of incompetence.
The resource-based view and its corollary, the competence-based perspective
The Resource based theory of the firm arose after Penrose’s (1959) work and was developed
by Wernerfelt (1984), Rumelt (1984), Barney (1986), Collis (1991), Amit and Schoemaker
(1993), Grant (1996) and several other contributions. This perspective very rightly pointed out
that the firm's performance is not just the result of the external environment in the competitive
game (Porter's five forces, the external positioning, ...); the firm's performance also varies
according to the way resources are tapped and leveraged by the organization to satisfy clients'
needs on the market place.
Interestingly enough, the resource based view of the firm did not really raise any interest
among practitioners until Prahalad and Hamel (1990) published their core competence piece,
as Wernefelt (1995) suggests. In Prahalad and Hamel's terminology, to be "core", the
competencies have to meet three criteria, namely (1) offer real benefits to customers, (2) be
difficult to imitate and (3) provide access to a variety of markets.
The heart of the matter has precisely to do with the uniqueness of the various re-combinations
of core competencies which the firm may achieve, to design, manufacture and distribute
products and services to the customers on the market place. A higher level resource bundling
process is thus at work to create an offer which may be attractive to and valued by the clients,
Mc Gee (1995).
This clearly stresses that a unique combinaison of core competencies can indeed generate a
truly competitive advantage. In addition, Prahalad and Hamel suggested to re-think strategy in
terms of competence rather than for organizational SBU's.
In turn, the resource based view led to a knowledge-based perspective, Conner and Prahalad
(1996), Kogut and Zander (1996). At the same time an attempt was made to build a theory of
competence-based strategy. The term competence is meant here to enlarge the concept of
resource while building up on the resource-based perspective.
The Prahalad and Hamel (1990) core competencies lead to Hamel and Heene (1994) and
Sanchez, Heene and Thomas (1996) as well as to the Heene and Sanchez (1997) and Sanchez
and Heene (1997) volumes.
As Durand (1998) puts it: ‘In medieval times, alchemists were seeking to turn base metals into
gold. Today managers and firms seek to turn resources and assets into profit. A new form of
alchemy is needed in the organization. Let's call it competence’.
We follow Heene and Sanchez who advocate that the emerging competence theory has
something more to offer than the resource based view, bringing into the picture this
"organizational alchemy" which is necessary to properly leverage the resources and assets at
hand.
In any case, the line of reasoning behind the resource / competence based view of the firm
remains essentially as follows: the firm taps sources of resources and assets and combines
these into products and services for the clients through ad hoc management processes taking
place within the organization. We choose to use the generic word competence to describe
these capabilities to combine, bundle and integrate resources into products and services, what
8. - page 8 -
Heene, Sanchez and Thomas (1996) call the integrated coordinated deployment of resources
and assets.
Some of these competencies are distinctive enough to be labeled core competencies, i.e.
leveraging specific sets of capabilities and assets which give the firm a potentially significant
and sustainable competitive advantage over its competitors. In contrast some inability to
achieve part or all of this may be distinctive enough to be labeled incompetence.
Let us now try to clarify what we mean behind the concept of competence.
A model of organizational competence built round three generic forms of competence:
Knowledge, Know-how and Attitudes
From research on Education, we suggest (see Durand, 1998) to borrow the three key
dimensions of individual learning : knowledge, know-how and attitudes, following Pestalozzi
(1797) who referred to "head, hand and heart".
Knowledge corresponds to the structured sets of assimilated information which make it
possible to understand the world, obviously with partial and somewhat contradictory
interpretations. Knowledge thus encompasses the access to data, the ability to recognize them
as acceptable information and to integrate them into pre-existing schemes which obviously
evolve along the way.
Know-how relates to the ability to act in a concrete way according to predefined objectives or
processes. Know-how does not exclude knowledge but does not necessitate a full
understanding of why the skills and capabilities, when put to operations, actually work.
Know-how thus in part relates to empirism and tacitness.
Attitudes are too often neglected in the resource based view as well as in the competence
based theory of the firm. This may be due to the traditional lack of interest of economists in
behavioral and social aspects, although Barney (1986b), Fiol (1991) or Leonard-Barton (1992)
have touched upon this aspect. We believe that behavior but even more so identity and will
(determination) are essential part of the capability of an individual or an organization to
achieve anything. This view is supported by Amos and Saetre (this volume), who emphasize
the cultural dimension as key to organizational competence. This is a matter of choice in
defining concepts. We argue that a dedicated organization, eager to succeed, is more
competent than a demoralized, passive one with exactly the same knowledge and know-how.
These three dimensions are the generic axes of our competence referential. Figure 1 illustrates
some sub-dimensions worth of interest around these three principal axes, including the
distinction between techniques (essentially empirical) and technology (partly explained
scientifically), or between know how, know what and know why (Sanchez, 1996).
Going one step further, one should recognize that management is not necessarily capable of
acting upon these dimensions. Standard managerial levers are of a different nature:
Strategizing (strategic thinking leading to a strategic vision, a strategic logic thus relating to
the "know why", strategy deployment and strategic decision making). This relates to the
knowledge (know-what and know why) dimension.
Organizing (the organizational structure as well as management processes). This relates more
to the "know how" dimension.
Motivating (i.e. setting up incentives but also coaching, encouraging positive thinking and
behavior, promoting dedication and will). This thus relates to the "attitudes" dimension.
Figure 2 illustrates the respective positioning of each of these three main managerial levers for
action with respect to the proposed key dimensions of competence in our model. This thus
raises the issue of the interaction between managerial tasks and competence building and
leveraging. The links are obviously not so direct. How can management operate on the same
wavelength (according to the same dimensions) as the competence base in order to better
9. - page 9 -
build and leverage competence? This important issue will be discussed later in this paper for
the case of Antinnova.
Knowledge
Attitudes
Will
Know how
...
...
Managerial action and
the Competence Base
Strategy
Organization Motivation
Str
ate
gic
Lo
gicStr
ate
gic
Vis
ion
Strategic Deployment
Structure
Th
e
inf
or
ma
l
org
ani
zati
on
Pr
oce
sse
s
an
d
rou
tin
es
Figure 2
Knowledge
Attitudes
Know how
Technologies
Skills
Determination
Culture
BehaviourTechniques
Knowwhat
...
...
Threedimensions of
competence
Know why
Figure 1•Data
•Information
•Knowledge
•Skills
•Capabilities
•Know how
•Behavior
•Identity
•Will
Coordinated Deployment
Knowledge
AttitudesKnow-how
Shared Vision
Organizational
Structure
Management
Processes
and Routines
Identity
Figure 3
10. - page 10 -
The model also refines the heart of the concept of competence, the "organizational alchemy"
as we call it, which has to do with the coordinated deployment of resources and assets. Indeed,
while Sanchez, Heene and Thomas (1996) actually associate their coordinated deployment
function to the management processes only, the model extends the concept of competence to
integrate the cultural identity, the strategic vision and the organizational structure. The identity
(the shared values, revealed by the rites, taboos and beliefs) operate as a cement holding the
organizational pieces together at least as efficiently as any other coordinating and integrating
mechanism. Similarly, a shared vision also contributes to the coordinated deployment of
strategy, channeling people's energy, motivation and commitment. Finally, the organizational
structure is also a key element of the same coordinated deployment of assets and capabilities.
In other words, in our model, the content of the coordinated deployment concept is reviewed
and enlarged to encompass four elements: the management processes, the identity, the
strategic vision and the structure. This is shown on Figure 3. In so doing, our model clearly
relates to Strategor's (1997) tetrahedron of strategic management.
The model also includes the question of competence building. In a way, competence is a stock
accumulated as a result of an ongoing flux of learnings, reinforcing and enlarging the
competence base of the organization.
Table 1 extends to know-how and attitudes what Durand (1992) described for knowledge
building, suggesting a sequence of stages from data and information, to knowledge and
expertise as shown below :
Data Information Knowledge Expertise
accept assimilate transcend
Indeed, know-how is built through action which shapes skills and techniques. Similarly
attitudes are shaped through interaction when individuals conform to group or organizational
behavior, adopt the same cultural values and share the same basic commitments. Table 1
illustrates the parallelism which prevails in the way learning mechanisms operate for each
dimensions of the referential of the model. In this sense, learning stems from information,
action and interaction.
Expertise actually requires to go one step further. Expertise needs some form of quantic jump
in competence together with a merger of the three generic dimensions of competence. Figure 4
illustrates this idea graphically, detailing the learning processes at hand for each dimension of
the referential of competence.
At this stage, it is important to note that the pre-existing stock of competence (the knowledge
base, existing skills and identity) significantly affects the learning capabilities. It may operate
as a booster to build up competence fast. It may also transform itself into a source of bias and
inertia, hindering any real new learning. History indeed matters. The "installed base" counts.
This is also shown graphically on Figure 4. For each axis, the dotted arrows loop back on the
pre-existing competence base which in turn influences new learnings. The result of learning is
not just a function of the learning process. It also depends upon the pre-existing base of
competence.
This holds particularly true when the installed base of competence aims at cost reduction and
efficiency, whereas the new competence required emphasize creativity and innovativity
(Haanes and Fjelstad, this volume).
One final feature of our model of competence has to do with the idea that learning takes place
for the three generic dimensions of the model in a simultaneous and interdependent way. See
Figure 5. If knowledge building stems from exposure to and reception of external data which
has to be accepted as information and integrated into frameworks, if know-how is built
through action while attitudes are shaped through interaction in companionship, nevertheless,
11. - page 11 -
the three parallel modes of building up competence operate in an interrelated, simultaneous
way. This extends what Senge (1990) advocates, following Piaget : learning needs action.
A more detailed discussion of the model can be found in Durand (1998). The intent and focus
of the present paper require to turn now to the issue of incompetence, revisiting the story of
Antinnova.
12. - page 12 -
Knowledge Know-how Attitudes
Data Reception
Information
Knowledge
Action
Skills and capabilities
Know-how
Interaction
Behavior, culture, will
Attitudes
Expertise Expertise Expertise
Pa rallel le arn ing p roc esses an d stag es
Table 1
The d yn am ics
of c om pe te nc e b uild ing
Transcend
Expertise
K no w le dg e
K no w -Ho w A ttitude s
Info rm a tio n
• Formal training
• Existing knowledge ba se
• Learning by lea rning
Dat a
enact
assimilate
• Companionship
• Existing skills
• Learning by doing
Action
• Companionship
• Identity
• Learning by sharing
Interaction
S ki lls
c ap abi litie s
Be h avi o r /
Ide ntity / W ill
integrate adopt
Figure 4
conformpractice
• No real learning (know ledge
building) without action
• Know-how is v ulnerable without
knowle dge
• Knowle dge is sterile without being
embodied in attitudes
• Attitude s useless w ithout a meaning
• Weak collective know-how without the ability to
ope rate as a group (attitudes)
• Attitude s are usele ss w ithout know-how for action
Kno wled g e
A ttitu d esKno w-H o w
The th ree dim en sion s
of c om pe te nc e a re
inte r-d ep en den t
Figure 5
13. - page 13 -
IV- Revisiting the Case study : from Competence to Incompetence
The model presented above aimed at describing competence using an integrated set of three
generic and interdependent dimensions. Yet, the model may also be helpful in describing what
incompetence is about, thus in turn helping grasp the concept of competence from the
opposite perspective, as a mirror image.
Incompetence at Antinnova
One of the most striking aspects of the Antinnova case is probably the contrast between (a) the
quality and dedication of the company staff members and (b) the lack of trust and cooperation
among managers from different functional departments. The knowledge of the organization
regarding markets, client needs, competition, technologies, etc., is actually remarkable
(although it may surely be improved). Similarly, the available skills within the organization at
Antinnova are without any doubt at the fore front of the best demonstrated skills in the
industry (advertizing campaigns, lean manufacturing operations, etc.).
But when it comes to collective practices on new product development, Antinnova is just not
capable.
In that sense, the knowledge and functional know-how at Antinnova are most probably not the
problem. The problem comes from the “know how to work together” on non routine tasks.
We would argue that attitudes constitute the basis of the incompetence of the Antinnova
organization for product development.
In this instance, attitudes annihilate the knowledge and skills of the company. It is not a matter
of rare resources or assets which could be (or not be) acquired on the market from suppliers. It
is not a question of a piece of equipment or a technological process for which the blue print
would be missing. Instead, it is indeed a question of coordinated deployment of resources and
assets but going beyond management processes. The management processes are not the
problem per se. The trouble comes from the way the members of the organization play against
the management processes.
We argue that the past and current cultural behavior of this company has grown into an
organization fit for productivity and efficiency but unfit for creativity and innovation. Haanes
and Fjelstad (this volume) argue in the same direction. Distinguishing three modes of
competition, they show that the competence required for efficiency are very different than
those required for creativity. Teams are under pressure and work hard but antagonism and lack
of trust result in a streamlined but sterile product development process. How can innovation
projects be treated under similar time pressure as operations ? The development committee
and the way it is run is just the tip of the iceberg. It reflects the real nature of the culture
prevailing at Antinnova. This culture is at least twofold. On one hand the dominant values
have to do with productivity and efficiency, not creativity and trial and error. On the other
hand, historical fights and oppositions have generate a culture of suspicion and unopenness to
others’ ideas and suggestions.
It sounds like a cats and dogs story. If cats and dogs have been known to hate and fight each
other for ages, it does not mean that dogs are unable to live peacefully with other dogs or with
other animals. The same holds for cats. Some cats and some dogs can actually get along pretty
well. It is just a question of starting life on a different basis. But when a baby dog first meets a
cat, the dog usually learns the lesson once and for all. (Obviously, the same holds for cats the
other way around). Reforming these early training is known to be difficult.
14. - page 14 -
In such instances, trying to convince, explaining what the common goals are, deploying the
strategy, arguing, may not prove sufficient nor even relevant. A cognitive response to this type
of incompetence is just not adequate. This would focus on a wrong dimension of the
competence base, the knowledge axis of the referential.
Conversely, the “soon-to-be classical” literature on competence would suggest to reengineer
the management processes, typically adapting the structure and reengineering the product
development process. Yet, we argue that, in this instance, implementing new management
processes may not do the job either. The incompetence which we identify in this instance at
Antinnova is embedded in the heart (not in the hand) of the organization. It is a matter of
identity and culture which are rooted deep down in the collective behavior of the organization.
The disease may actually be even more difficult to treat. Indeed our model suggests that the
pre-existing competence base for each of the principal axes of the competence referential acts
as a filter, shaping and limiting any new learning. This holds especially true for the identity of
an organization which is known to constitute a major source of inertia.
In that sense, the model presented suggests that the incompetence encountered in the
Antinnova case is of a different nature than what conventional managerial wisdom would
indicate. This in turn would lead to recommend a different kind of managerial action. We
shall come back to this point.
All in all, the case of Antinnova thus illustrates how one single missing link among the three
generic element of competence (knowledge, know-how and attitudes) may affect the whole
performance of the organization. A major deficiency on one key dimension, namely attitudes,
and the whole ability to innovate of an otherwise efficient company turns out to be destroyed.
In addition, the classical managerial levers of figure 2, (a) strategizing (formulation and
communication of strategy which in this instance means explaining the importance of product
innovation) and (b) organizing (both the structure and the management processes) are most
probably ineffective, as they have proven to be so far for the top management of Antinnova.
Even (c) the ‘motivating’ part is not enough as it may sound as rhetoric to the staff.
Instead, what the model presented suggests in the case of Antinnova would be a different tack,
namely some attempt to transform the culture of the organization in order to generate new
attitudes more compatible with the specific needs of innovation.
However, transforming the identity in turn means unlearning part of the existing cutural base.
This raises the issue of unlearning which is most probably the core issue of the Antinnova
case.
This discussion of the case study of Antinnova thus suggests to proceed in two distinct but
complementary directions. First, we may use the model of competence presented above to
extend the theoretical analysis of incompetence to other situations than just the one discussed
empirically here. Second, we may use the same model to discuss unlearning.
Forms of incompetence
By analogy to the case study presented, our model of competence may help envision and
describe three generic forms of incompetence.
The first generic form of incompetence which we identify has to do with the lack of capability
of an organization for one or more of the three principal dimensions of competence.
We have just seen the case of a knowledgeable and skilled organization, nevertheless unable
to perform innovation tasks adequately due to the attitudes prevailing in the company. Other
situations may lead to similar dysfonctionning. A nice and smooth collective behavior of
15. - page 15 -
dedicated and skilled team members may be useless if no common strategic objective, no
shared vision, no knowledge of market needs and competitors’ position are available. Think of
a skilled orchestra without music to play or a football team without a tactics. Similarly, a well
defined strategy shared among a dedicated team of well behaved members may prove useless
if no technical and practical skill is available. Think of a well trained football team provided
with musical instruments and invited to perform a fine piece of music.
In other words a deficient and unbalanced portfolio of competence may be inadequate in many
instances.
The second generic form of incompetence which our model helps identify is the case of a
strong competence base unfit to new competitive conditions and operating as a source of
inertia, preventing the organization to adapt through new learning.
The stock of existing knowledge may impede new information acceptance. The psychology
literature suggests that individuals tend to reject data which do not fit their previous
knowledge while they overemphasize data which reinforce their existing understanding and
beliefs, Hogarth (1980), Schwenck (1984, 1988), Barnes (1984), Stubbart (1989).
The existing skills may impede new empirical action which would otherwise help build new
skills. The typist would find it difficult to adjust to a non standard key board and thus does not
even try. Routines entrench organizational skills in specific forms and, in so doing, hinder the
building of new skills.
The existing culture, the collective behavior of an organization may impede new forms of
interactions, thus making it difficult to adopt new behaviors. When the baby cat learnt the
lesson from the big dog, it was once and for all. Since suspicion arose years ago at Antinnova
among Marketing, Development, Research, Manufacturing, it is now difficult to generate
situations of positive interaction between functional departments, where new forms of trust
and confidence could be rebuilt.
In other words, too much inadequate competence (knowledge, know how, attitudes) may
impede learning and adaptation.
The third form of generic incompetence which our model helps identify corresponds to the
case of a managerial misfit. When management priorities and actions mismatch the
competence base, the conflicting dynamics most probably ends up in chaos. In such cases, the
organization is likely to be unable to achieve what the management desires while being
prevented from doing what it is good at. The organization is bound to behave as an
incompetent body. A law firm or an hospital may not necessarily perform best when managed
as a military unit.
In other words, incompetence may also stem from the misuse of managerial levers of an
otherwise competent organization.
See Table 2.
In a way the first of the generic forms of incompetence identified here relates to the lack of
one or several components of competence in an organization, as described in our referential of
competence. This first form of incompetence is a matter of deficiency (or unbalance) in the
competence base.
The second form relates to the existence of a sizeable base of inadequate competence which
impedes other learning and thus renewal. This second form of incompetence is a matter of too
much inadequate competence.
The third form relates to a mismatch between management priorities and competence. In such
instances, managerial action is not on the same wavelength as the competence base. This third
incompetence is in fact a matter of misuse of competence.
16. - page 16 -
The three generic forms of incompetence can in turn be linked to each one of the key
dimensions of our referential (knowledge, know how and attitudes), as a way to identify the
source of incompetence more precisely.
In light of these three categories of incompetence, the Antinnova case may in a way be
summarized as follows (See Table 3):
- the attitudes in the organization are not collaborative enough to permit product development
processes to operate smoothly. (first form of incompetence: deficient organizational behavior).
17. - page 17 -
Dia gn osis o f th e In no vation -related In com p eten ce at An tinn ova
Table 3
Competence Deficiency Competence Inadequacy Managerial M isfit
No collaborative attitudes
among functionnal
departments at Antinnova
Knowledge
Know How
Attitudes
Attitudes and culture shaped
by a permanent search for
productivity and efficiency
Strategic shift from focus
on productivity and
efficiency to creativity and
innovation, thus asking
Antinnova's organization
what it cannot deliver
Thre e Form s of Inc om pe te nc e
Table 2
Competence Deficiency Competence Inadequacy Managerial M isfit
Partial or global lack of
capability for one or several
dimensions of the
Competence Base
Not enough or unbalanced
Competence Base
Oversized inadequate
Competence Base impeding new
learning
Too much inadequate
Competence
Managerial priorities and actions
in contradiction to the
Competence Base
Misuse of the existing
Competence Base
Dim en sion s of th e D ia g nosis an d Re le van t leve rs for
m a na ge rial a ction Figure 6
Strategy
Organisation
Structure and Processes
Culture / Attitudes
(-) (+)
Difficulty of achieving change (increasing inertia)
If : Diagnosis
Then : Target
Thus : Relevant
Action
Suggested sequence of action in time (interrelated but sequential actions)
X X X
Divergence in strategic
objectives
Strategic convergence
Communication
Strategic deployment
Incentives / Constraints
Organisation is not
performing well
New structure, new
processes
Reorganize
Reengineer
Cultural Gap
among functions
Reconciliation
Cooperation
Unframing, Team
rebuilding, Reframing
18. - page 18 -
- the culture prevailing at Antinnova makes it extremely difficult for the organization to
reform itself. Productivity in operations, efficiency in project management and antagonism
among functional departments are dominant values (second form of incompetence: too strong
an inadequate culture, unfit to the requirements of innovation)
- the strategy adopted by the top management at Antinnova represents a U turn for the
organization which has been under heavy stress for productivity over the previous years, thus
becoming good at running lean operations, much less at innovating (third form of
incompetence: asking the organization what it cannot deliver)
One may thus go back to the initial aim of this paper and review the concept of competence
from the perspective of incompetence: One may indeed think of ways to promote and enrich
the competence of an organization just by looking at the mirror image of our three generic
forms of incompetence: (1) building a balanced, homogeneous competence base with all three
dimensions of our referential covered at the same time in an interrelated way (2) maintaining
the competence base open in order to keep new information, new action, new interaction and
thus new learning possible (3) adopting a strategy, an organization, a motivating scheme
(communication policy and incentives) in fit with the competence base in order to leverage the
potential of the firm instead of opposing it. On innovation matters, this is obviously not the
type of management of competence which took place at Antinnova.
In turn the diagnosis formulated on the Antinnova case leads to the issue of overcoming
incompetence. When it is just a matter of deficiency, learning mechanisms through
information, action and interaction may be activated. However, when it is a matter of
incompetence of the second or third form, the question of unlearning arises as well.
Unlearning
From an empirical study of 20 projects of product and process developments, Leonard-Barton
(1992) points out how much core competence may end up operate as core rigidities when
change affects the competence base now required. Interestingly enough, in such instances,
learning first means unlearning.
Hedberg (1981), Nystrom and Starbuck (1984), Durand (1992), McGill et Slocum (1993),
Rumelt (1995), Montgomery (1995), Bettis et Prahalad (1995) have all addressed the same
issue of obsolete competence and unlearning. When past experience and accumulated
competence are obsolete and constitute inertia, before any new learning can take place, it is
essential to unlearn.
Yet, unlearning is not a natural nor an easy move for an organization. This is actually one of
the most difficult task of management.
Seen from the perspective of our model of competence, this may be achieved in two
complementary ways. On one hand it is a matter of making sure that the existing competence
base fades away, e.g. through human resources mobility, retraining, deploying strategy,
reorganizing the structure, reengineering the management processes, etc. On the other hand, it
is also a matter of promoting new learning, escaping from the bias generated by the pre-
existing competence base as illustrated by the dotted, loop-back arrows of figure 4. New
information, new action and renewed interaction are the best ways to overcome the inertia of
obsolete competence. The organization has to move from single-loop to double-loop learning.
Yet, we argue that the three key dimensions of our referential of competence do not present
the same ability to resist change. More specifically, we argue that unlearning the culture of the
organization is more difficult than expelling an obsolete know how, which in turn is more
19. - page 19 -
difficult than getting rid of a useless piece of knowledge. In that sense, our referential of
competence is clearly asymmetrical.
In the case of Antinnova, this actually leads to suggesting that the sequence of managerial
action should be to treat the problem of inadequate culture first before trying to reorganize the
product development process and deploy the strategy. This is illustrated on figure 6.
Obviously these three elements of action have to take place in a coordinated way, but it would
most probably be irrelevant to continue what the top management of Antinnova has been
doing for years unsuccessfully, namely trying to convince the staff about the relevance of the
new strategy, i.e. the importance of innovation. Just reorganizing would not seem more
appropriate at this stage either. The urgent task is most probably to help the managers and
staff of each of the functional departments to unlearn their antagonism in order to be able to
work together again on a basis of trust and confidence. In as much as the problem is
essentially cultural, and thus embedded deeply in the heart of the organization, one probably
needs to aim at unfreezing the situation, unframing the players and attempting to have them
rebuild their modes of interaction on a different basis. It is a matter of team rebuilding. Before
this is done, no significant change should be expected at Antinnova regarding innovation.
In other words, once the diagnosis is available, one can think of a variety of solutions to
address the issue, which appears here to be a matter of reconciliating managers across
organizational borders. Understanding incompetence better may thus lead to more relevant
managerial action, concentrating first on the most important task of unlearning and then
turning to relearning.
V. Summary
We have started with three preliminary comments about the management literature on
competence, (a) pointing out to the focus of past research on learning while relatively less
attention has been paid to describing the stock of competence itself, (b) regretting the overall
lack of empirical contribution on competence and (c) suggesting that the concept of
organizational competence is more than a simple extension of individual competence. On that
basis, we have indicated that the objective of this chapter is an attempt to document
empirically the concept of organizational incompetence, as just another way of trying to grasp
the concept of organizational competence.
We have then started by presenting the case study of the Antinnova company. This highly
profitable firm, leader in its markets, has been unable to develop new products successfully in
the last years, thus showing a clear incompetence on innovation-related matters. We have
described the main findings of our field investigations showing how the firm has built for
itself an internal culture and organizational routines fit for productivity and efficiency but
unfit for creativity and innovation.
We have then turned to a model of competence as a way to analyze the incompetence of the
Antinnova company. We have first briefly reviewed the literature dealing with the resource-
based view and the competence-based perspective. We have then presented our model of
competence built around three key dimensions (knowledge, know-how and attitudes). We
have enlarged the content of the concept of coordinated deployment of assets and resources,
what we call the "organizational alchemy", to include not only management processes but also
the identity, a shared vision and the organizational structure.
We have also shown how managerial levers (strategizing, organizing, motivating) relate to the
three generic dimensions of our referential before introducing the dynamics of competence
building into the model, discussing the importance of the pre-existing competence base
20. - page 20 -
influencing the flow of new learning. We have finally suggested that the three generic
dimensions of competence in our model are interdependent, reinforcing each other as learning
takes place simultaneously in all directions through information, action and interaction.
On the basis of the model, we have then revisited the case study. Since the core problem of the
Antinnova organization is not an issue of a missing piece of knowledge or know-how but has
to do with attitudes and behavior, we have suggested that it thus requires more than strategy
deployment or process reengineering to treat the problem.
On that basis we have then described the three forms of incompetence which the model helped
us identify, namely (a) competence deficiency or unbalance, (b) competence inadequacy, and
(c) managerial misfit. We have further argued some form of asymmetry among the three key
dimensions of our referential as it appears to be more difficult to unlearn attitudes than to
unlearn obsolete know-how or even more so obsolete knowledge. Analyzing the various
forms of incompetence described by table 3 is indeed a way to grasp what competence is
about.
As an illustration, we have seen in more details the nature of the incompetence of Antinnova
when it comes to product development and have discussed the implications of this diagnosis
for potential managerial action.
All in all, this discussion is a typical example of a research aimed at helping build and
document a self-sustained competence based theory of the firm, recognizing that indeed more
work need to be conducted on the concept of organizational competence, especially with an
empirical intent.
21. - page 21 -
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