IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/techno/v113y2022ics0166497221002017.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The influence of performance feedback and top management team orientation on decisions about R&D in technology-based firms

Author

Listed:
  • Saemundsson, Rögnvaldur
  • Candi, Marina
  • Sigurjonsson, Throstur Olaf

Abstract

The purpose of this work is to investigate the influence of performance feedback on decisions about R&D—more specifically R&D intensity and R&D direction, ranging from exploitation to exploration—and how this varies depending on top management team orientation. Using panel data collected from a large sample of technology-based firms over nine years, hypotheses about how the relationship between performance feedback and decisions about R&D are moderated by the technology orientation of top management teams are tested. Overall, the findings support the basic premises put forth, namely that top management team orientation influences decisions about R&D in response to performance feedback. This sheds new light on our understanding of the relationship between performance feedback and decisions about R&D in technology-based firms.

Suggested Citation

  • Saemundsson, Rögnvaldur & Candi, Marina & Sigurjonsson, Throstur Olaf, 2022. "The influence of performance feedback and top management team orientation on decisions about R&D in technology-based firms," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 113(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:techno:v:113:y:2022:i:c:s0166497221002017
    DOI: 10.1016/j.technovation.2021.102420
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166497221002017
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.technovation.2021.102420?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Christian Schumacher & Steffen Keck & Wenjie Tang, 2020. "Biased interpretation of performance feedback: The role of CEO overconfidence," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(6), pages 1139-1165, June.
    2. David J. TEECE, 2008. "Profiting from technological innovation: Implications for integration, collaboration, licensing and public policy," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: The Transfer And Licensing Of Know-How And Intellectual Property Understanding the Multinational Enterprise in the Modern World, chapter 5, pages 67-87, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    3. Kahn, Kenneth B. & Candi, Marina, 2021. "Investigating the relationship between innovation strategy and performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 56-66.
    4. Vincent L. Barker , III & George C. Mueller, 2002. "CEO Characteristics and Firm R&D Spending," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 48(6), pages 782-801, June.
    5. Theresa K. Lant, 1992. "Aspiration Level Adaptation: An Empirical Exploration," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 38(5), pages 623-644, May.
    6. John Joseph & Vibha Gaba, 2015. "The fog of feedback: Ambiguity and firm responses to multiple aspiration levels," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(13), pages 1960-1978, December.
    7. Joel A. C. Baum & Kristina B. Dahlin, 2007. "Aspiration Performance and Railroads’ Patterns of Learning from Train Wrecks and Crashes," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 18(3), pages 368-385, June.
    8. Stephen J. Smulowitz & Horacio E. Rousseau & Philip Bromiley, 2020. "The behavioral theory of the (community‐oriented) firm: The differing response of community‐oriented firms to performance relative to aspirations," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(6), pages 1023-1053, June.
    9. Kyung Min Park, 2007. "Antecedents of Convergence and Divergence in Strategic Positioning: The Effects of Performance and Aspiration on the Direction of Strategic Change," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 18(3), pages 386-402, June.
    10. S. Trevis Certo & John R. Busenbark & Hyun‐soo Woo & Matthew Semadeni, 2016. "Sample selection bias and Heckman models in strategic management research," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(13), pages 2639-2657, December.
    11. J. H. Jung & Christoph Schneider & Joseph Valacich, 2010. "Enhancing the Motivational Affordance of Information Systems: The Effects of Real-Time Performance Feedback and Goal Setting in Group Collaboration Environments," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 56(4), pages 724-742, April.
    12. Herbert A. Simon, 1955. "A Behavioral Model of Rational Choice," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 69(1), pages 99-118.
    13. Daniel Kahneman & Amos Tversky, 2013. "Prospect Theory: An Analysis of Decision Under Risk," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Leonard C MacLean & William T Ziemba (ed.), HANDBOOK OF THE FUNDAMENTALS OF FINANCIAL DECISION MAKING Part I, chapter 6, pages 99-127, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    14. Nelson, Richard R. & Winter, Sidney G., 1993. "In search of useful theory of innovation," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 22(2), pages 108-108, April.
    15. Simon, Herbert A, 1979. "Rational Decision Making in Business Organizations," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 69(4), pages 493-513, September.
    16. Henrich R. Greve, 2007. "‘Exploration and exploitation in product innovation’," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 16(5), pages 945-975, October.
    17. Chul Lee & Gunno Park & Klaus Marhold & Jina Kang, 2017. "Top management team’s innovation-related characteristics and the firm’s explorative R&D: an analysis based on patent data," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 111(2), pages 639-663, May.
    18. Kristina Dahlin & Joel A.C Baum, 2007. "Aspiration performance and railroads' patterns of learning from train wrecks and crashes," Post-Print hal-00480399, HAL.
    19. Constance E. Helfat, 1994. "Firm-Specificity in Corporate Applied R&D," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 5(2), pages 173-184, May.
    20. Dorthe Døjbak Håkonsson & Jacob Kjær Eskildsen & Linda Argote & Dan Mønster & Richard M. Burton & Børge Obel, 2016. "Exploration versus exploitation: Emotions and performance as antecedents and consequences of team decisions," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(6), pages 985-1001, June.
    21. James G. March, 1991. "Exploration and Exploitation in Organizational Learning," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 2(1), pages 71-87, February.
    22. Wei‐Ru Chen & Kent D. Miller, 2007. "Situational and institutional determinants of firms' R&D search intensity," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 28(4), pages 369-381, April.
    23. Pavitt, Keith, 1984. "Sectoral patterns of technical change: Towards a taxonomy and a theory," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 13(6), pages 343-373, December.
    24. Zi-Lin He & Poh-Kam Wong, 2004. "Exploration vs. Exploitation: An Empirical Test of the Ambidexterity Hypothesis," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 15(4), pages 481-494, August.
    25. James G. March & Zur Shapira, 1987. "Managerial Perspectives on Risk and Risk Taking," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 33(11), pages 1404-1418, November.
    26. Lori Rosenkopf & Atul Nerkar, 2001. "Beyond local search: boundary‐spanning, exploration, and impact in the optical disk industry," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 22(4), pages 287-306, April.
    27. John Joseph & Ronald Klingebiel & Alex James Wilson, 2016. "Organizational Structure and Performance Feedback: Centralization, Aspirations, and Termination Decisions," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 27(5), pages 1065-1083, October.
    28. Lee Fleming & Olav Sorenson, 2004. "Science as a map in technological search," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(8‐9), pages 909-928, August.
    29. Gautam Ahuja & Riitta Katila, 2004. "Where do resources come from? The role of idiosyncratic situations," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(8‐9), pages 887-907, August.
    30. Block, Joern H., 2012. "R&D investments in family and founder firms: An agency perspective," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 27(2), pages 248-265.
    31. Pino G. Audia & Henrich R. Greve, 2006. "Less Likely to Fail: Low Performance, Firm Size, and Factory Expansion in the Shipbuilding Industry," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 52(1), pages 83-94, January.
    32. Lant, Theresa K. & Montgomery, David B., 1987. "Learning from strategic success and failure," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 15(6), pages 503-517, December.
    33. Stephen J. Mezias & Ya-Ru Chen & Patrice R. Murphy, 2002. "Aspiration-Level Adaptation in an American Financial Services Organization: A Field Study," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 48(10), pages 1285-1300, October.
    34. Wei-Ru Chen, 2008. "Determinants of Firms' Backward- and Forward-Looking R&D Search Behavior," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 19(4), pages 609-622, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Candi, Marina & Kitagawa, Fumi, 2022. "Performance implications of business model centrality over technology-based firms’ life courses," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 118(C).
    2. Walrave, Bob & Gilsing, Victor A., 2023. "Game of skill or game of luck? Distant search in response to performance feedback," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 121(C).
    3. Su, Taoyong & Yu, Yuzhu & Chen, Yongheng & Hou, Wanrong, 2023. "On or off: The triggering effect of underperformance duration on cooperative innovation," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Walrave, Bob & Gilsing, Victor A., 2023. "Game of skill or game of luck? Distant search in response to performance feedback," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 121(C).
    2. Cheng, Lulu & Xie, En & Fang, Junyi & Mei, Nan, 2022. "Performance feedback and firms’ relative strategic emphasis: The moderating effects of board independence and media coverage," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 139(C), pages 218-231.
    3. David W. Lehman & Jungpil Hahn & Rangaraj Ramanujam & Bradley J. Alge, 2011. "The Dynamics of the Performance--Risk Relationship Within a Performance Period: The Moderating Role of Deadline Proximity," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 22(6), pages 1613-1630, December.
    4. Lin-Hua Lu & Poh-Kam Wong, 2019. "Performance feedback, financial slack and the innovation behavior of firms," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 36(4), pages 1079-1109, December.
    5. Wei-Ru Chen, 2008. "Determinants of Firms' Backward- and Forward-Looking R&D Search Behavior," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 19(4), pages 609-622, August.
    6. Ilídio Barreto, 2012. "A Behavioral Theory of Market Expansion Based on the Opportunity Prospects Rule," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 23(4), pages 1008-1023, August.
    7. Martínez-Noya, Andrea & García-Canal, Esteban, 2021. "Innovation performance feedback and technological alliance portfolio diversity: The moderating role of firms’ R&D intensity," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(9).
    8. Abraham Carmeli & Ari Dothan & Dev Kumar Boojihawon, 2020. "Resilience of sustainability‐oriented and financially‐driven organizations," Business Strategy and the Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(1), pages 154-169, January.
    9. Su, Taoyong & Yu, Yuzhu & Chen, Yongheng & Hou, Wanrong, 2023. "On or off: The triggering effect of underperformance duration on cooperative innovation," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 126(C).
    10. Linda Argote & Sunkee Lee & Jisoo Park, 2021. "Organizational Learning Processes and Outcomes: Major Findings and Future Research Directions," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 67(9), pages 5399-5429, September.
    11. Elizabeth Boyle & Zur Shapira, 2012. "The Liability of Leading: Battling Aspiration and Survival Goals in the Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 23(4), pages 1100-1113, August.
    12. Stephan Billinger & Kannan Srikanth & Nils Stieglitz & Terry R. Schumacher, 2021. "Exploration and exploitation in complex search tasks: How feedback influences whether and where human agents search," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 42(2), pages 361-385, February.
    13. Zhong, Xi & Chen, Weihong & Ren, Ge, 2022. "The effects of performance shortfalls on firms’ exploitation and exploration R&D internationalization decisions: Does industry environmental matter?," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    14. Kent Ngan-Cheung Hui & Yuanyuan Gong & Qi Cui & Naipeng Jiang, 2022. "Foreign investment or divestment as a near-term solution to performance shortfalls? The moderating role of vicarious learning," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 39(4), pages 1481-1509, December.
    15. Linda Argote & Henrich R. Greve, 2007. "A Behavioral Theory of the Firm ---40 Years and Counting: Introduction and Impact," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 18(3), pages 337-349, June.
    16. Tom Van Caneghem & Walter Aerts & Oveis Madadian, 2021. "Peer‐based comparison and firms' discretionary cost decisions," Australian Economic Papers, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 60(1), pages 163-185, March.
    17. Elizabeth N. K. Lim & Brian T. McCann, 2014. "Performance Feedback and Firm Risk Taking: The Moderating Effects of CEO and Outside Director Stock Options," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 25(1), pages 262-282, February.
    18. Lampert, Curba Morris & Kim, Minyoung, 2019. "Going far to go further: Offshoring, exploration, and R&D performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 103(C), pages 376-386.
    19. Choi, Jaeho & Rhee, Mooweon & Kim, Young-Choon, 2019. "Performance feedback and problemistic search: The moderating effects of managerial and board outsiderness," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 21-33.
    20. Beverly B. Tyler & Turanay Caner, 2016. "New product introductions below aspirations, slack and R&D alliances: A behavioral perspective," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(5), pages 896-910, May.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:techno:v:113:y:2022:i:c:s0166497221002017. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/01664972 .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.