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Age-Related Structural Inertia: A Distance-Based Approach

Author

Listed:
  • Gaël Le Mens

    (Universitat Pompeu Fabra and Barcelona School of Management, 08005 Barcelona, Spain)

  • Michael T. Hannan

    (Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305)

  • László Pólos

    (Durham University, Durham DH1 3LE, United Kingdom)

Abstract

This paper proposes a distance-based characterization of age-related structural inertia as an increasing constraint on the speed of change as organizations age. Our framework regards organizations as points in multidimensional metric spaces of architectures. Organizational change means movement in this space. The speed of change is the ratio of the distance between positions in a space and the time it took for the organization to make the move. We illustrate how our distance-based approach can be used to formulate theories of age-related organizational inertia by using this representation to develop a model for a possible mechanism: age-related cultural resistance to change based on the dynamics of exposure of organizational members to architectural features. Our proposed mechanism is distinct from prevailing explanations and leads to new predictions. We also illustrate the value of our distance-based approach in a reanalysis of Sørensen and Stuart’s study of age variations in firms’ patenting behavior [Sørensen JB, Stuart TE (2000) Aging, obsolescence, and organizational innovation. Admin. Sci. Quart. 45(1):81–112]. On the basis of patent citations, we construct a space that allows us to characterize the positions of organizations and the speed at which they change. We find that organizational age has a negative effect on the speed of change.

Suggested Citation

  • Gaël Le Mens & Michael T. Hannan & László Pólos, 2015. "Age-Related Structural Inertia: A Distance-Based Approach," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 26(3), pages 756-773, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:inm:ororsc:v:26:y:2015:i:3:p:756-773
    DOI: 10.1287/orsc.2015.0966
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Bouncken, Ricarda B. & Fredrich, Viktor & Pesch, Robin, 2016. "Configurational answer to the ongoing riddle of formal and/or emergent planning practices," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 69(9), pages 3609-3615.
    3. Glen W. S. Dowell & Suresh Muthulingam, 2017. "Will firms go green if it pays? The impact of disruption, cost, and external factors on the adoption of environmental initiatives," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 38(6), pages 1287-1304, June.
    4. Vafeas, Mario & Hughes, Tim, 2021. "Inertia, boredom, and complacency in business-to-business relationships: Identifying and interpreting antecedents and manifestations," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 130(C), pages 210-220.
    5. USHIJIMA Tatsuo, 2021. "The Liability of Aging in Internal Capital Markets," Discussion papers 21065, Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry (RIETI).
    6. Fan, Shuangrui & Wang, Cong, 2021. "Firm age, ultimate ownership, and R&D investments," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 76(C), pages 1245-1264.
    7. Dingyu Zhang & Nadia Bhuiyan & Linghua Kong, 2018. "An Analysis of Organizational Structure in Process Variation," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 29(4), pages 722-738, August.
    8. Zeng, Yuping & Xu, Dean, 2020. "Liability of Foreignness and the Constitutive Legitimation of Foreign Firms in a Host Country," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 55(5).
    9. Delmar, Frédéric & Wallin, Jonas & Nofal, Ahmed Maged, 2022. "Modeling new-firm growth and survival with panel data using event magnitude regression," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 37(5).
    10. Gavin M. Schwarz & Kuo-Pin Yang & Christine Chou & Yu-Jen Chiu, 2020. "A classification of structural inertia: Variations in structural response," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 37(1), pages 33-63, March.
    11. Ryan Federo & Angel Saz-Carranza & Xavier Fernandez-í-Marin & Carlos Losada, 2023. "CEO selection in intergovernmental organizations: the clash between control and efficiency in governance," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 27(1), pages 155-180, March.
    12. Xiaoxiao Shi & Qingpu Zhang, 2020. "Network inertia and inbound open innovation: is there a bidirectional relationship?," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 122(2), pages 791-815, February.
    13. Verver, Hugo & van Zelst, Marino & Lucas, Gerardus Johannes Maria & Meeus, Marius, 2019. "Understanding Heterogeneity in the Performance Feedback – Organizational Responsiveness Relationship: A Meta-Analysis," OSF Preprints hq4uw, Center for Open Science.
    14. Germà Bel & Thomas Elston, 2022. ""When the Time is Right: Testing for Dynamic Effects in Collaborative Performance"," IREA Working Papers 202212, University of Barcelona, Research Institute of Applied Economics, revised Jul 2022.

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