Organizational Learning and the Business-Science Dual Identity

Michael Ciuchta

University of Wisconsin - Madison

ciuchta@wisc.edu

Resource acquisition is a critical strategic decision for entrepreneurial organizations .  While considerable scholarly research has been directed towards later stage decisions, such as IPO's, our understanding of the early processes of resource acquisition is more limited .  The question of how entrepreneurial organizations acquire key resources is a crucial issue in a broader yet also understudied area of research - the emergence of capabilities in new organizations .  My proposed dissertation addresses these shortcomings by examining why resource acquisition attempts depend on whether previous attempts resulted in success or failure.   

 Following Levitt & March , research within the organizational learning tradition often rests on the notion that routines that generate favorable outcomes are more likely to be repeated than those that generate unfavorable outcomes.  In contrast, my proposed dissertation will develop and test a counter logic in the context of start-ups deciding whether to go back to a potential resource provider who turned them down the first time.  By incorporating organizational identity theory into learning theory, I will investigate why in certain situations an organization may actually be more likely to repeat attempts to secure resources from a given source if the first attempt resulted in an unsuccessful rather than a successful outcome.

In particular, I examine how the identity of science-based academic spinoffs moderates the impact of a resource request decision.  Academic spinoffs represent a unique form of what Albert & Whetten (1985) called dual identity organizations in that they entail two value systems that appear to be at odds with each other.  I argue that these spinoffs are heterogeneous in the extent to which they adhere primarily to business-based or science-based identities.  These identities, in turn, impact how these firms interpret funding request outcomes.  Different interpretations, in turn, impact future behaviors.  

The proposed dissertation will be situated within the context of the Small Business Administration's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program.  SBIR is a public program that is designed to support small firm innovation .  For new technology organizations, SBIR awards can be an important addition to their resource base .  Previous research has employed the SBIR context to investigate such questions as firm survival  and human capital effects on commercialization .  The proposed dissertation will add to this body of work on SBIR.  I will draw upon a sample of organizations that have spun off from a large Midwestern research university.  I will rely on primary sources such as interviews and surveys, as well as secondary archival sources.