Not-Sold-Here: How Attitudes Influence External Knowledge Exploitation

Ulrich Lichtenthaler (), Holger Ernst () and Martin Hoegl ()
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Ulrich Lichtenthaler: WHU--Otto Beisheim School of Management, Chair of Technology and Innovation Management, D-56179 Vallendar, Germany
Holger Ernst: WHU--Otto Beisheim School of Management, Chair of Technology and Innovation Management, D-56179 Vallendar, Germany
Martin Hoegl: WHU--Otto Beisheim School of Management, Chair of Leadership and Human Resource Management, D-56179 Vallendar, Germany

Organization Science, 2010, vol. 21, issue 5, 1054-1071

Abstract: Employee attitudes with regard to the usefulness of external knowledge may influence a firm's extent of inter-organizational knowledge transactions. Prior research has focused on “not-invented-here (NIH)” tendencies, which refer to negative attitudes in organizations toward the acquisition of knowledge from external sources. In this research, we develop the concept of “not-sold-here (NSH)” tendencies, which result from protective attitudes in firms toward the external exploitation of knowledge, for example, technology licensing. We show conceptually how NSH tendencies develop and how they can influence the extent of outward knowledge transfer. We test five hypotheses regarding antecedents and consequences of NSH tendencies with data from 152 firms spanning multiple industries. The empirical findings show that NSH tendencies exist in organizations and that they constitute a major barrier to the implementation of external knowledge commercialization strategies. The concept of NSH therefore helps explain the varying degrees of activity in external knowledge exploitation, and it contributes to understanding particular microfoundations of dynamic capabilities.

Keywords: employee attitudes; dynamic capabilities; external knowledge exploitation; microfoundations; not-invented-here; technology licensing (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2010
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

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