The Elements of Learning : Coordination Capacity and Search Scale

Given a firm’s limited coordination capacity, the balance between the initiation of new search and the termination of old search appears critical to its long-term survival. But the current research on technological innovation and organizational learning has exclusively concerned how to initiate a new search and neglected the need for the termination. This study aims to uncovering the balance between the initiation and termination of searches. Using patent applications in the telecommunications equipment industry from 1991 to 1999, this study suggests that the change in a firm’s search scale is related to its human resources capabilities, prior knowledge, and organizational age.