 Managerial Commitments and Technological Change in the US Tire IndustryDonald N Sull, Richard S Tedlow and Richard S Rosenbloom Industrial and Corporate Change, 1997, vol. 6, issue 2, 461-501 Abstract: This paper examines the response of the five largest American producers of automotive tires to a radical technological change, the introduction of radial tires. Many theories attempt to explain firms' response to radical technological change. The effects of new technologies on economic incentives and on established firm capabilities are the factors highlighted in existing theory. The tire producers invested heavily in radial technology despite the expected destruction of manufacturing competencies and the prospect of poor financial returns. This paper suggests that an additional factor, managerial commitments, can also play an important role in shaping firms' response to disruptive technology. It argues that firms are more likely to adopt "commitment-enhancing" than "commitment-destroying" technologies and are likely to choose paths of implementation that are compatible with existing commitments. Copyright 1997 by Oxford University Press. Date: 1997 There are no downloads for this item, see the EconPapers FAQ for hints about obtaining it. Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:oup:indcch:v:6:y:1997:i:2:p:461-501 Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from Access Statistics for this article Industrial and Corporate Change is currently edited by Josef Chytry More articles in Industrial and Corporate Change from Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC Oxford University Press, Great Clarendon Street, Oxford OX2 6DP, UK. |
Is your work missing from RePEc? Here is how to contribute.
Questions or problems? Check the EconPapers FAQ or send mail to .
EconPapers is hosted by the
School of Business at Örebro University.