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Proceedings of the 3rd European Conference on Intellectual Capital

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Maurizio Massaro et al.<br />

crucial factors for increasing <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> learning process in order to supplementing <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> effect <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> absorptive<br />

capacity (Teece, 1987).<br />

Our study centered <strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> role <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> KM during innovati<strong>on</strong> strategies and using previous literature, we<br />

tried to analyse <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> role <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> Management and C<strong>on</strong>trol Systems (MCS) as a blend <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> tools that support<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> KM during innovati<strong>on</strong> strategies processes within and across organizati<strong>on</strong>s. The c<strong>on</strong>necti<strong>on</strong><br />

between Innovati<strong>on</strong> and MCS is not quite clear (Bisbe, Otley, 2004) but seems to be related more to<br />

<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> use <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> MCS than to <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> characteristics <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> a single tool (Henry, 2006). Indeed, <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> outcome <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> our<br />

literature review shows that <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>re is more than <strong>on</strong>e definiti<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> MCS. Many textbooks adopt <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

narrow definiti<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> c<strong>on</strong>trol: management activities are categorised separately as planning, c<strong>on</strong>trol<br />

and decisi<strong>on</strong>-making. Emmanuel et al. (1990) reject this approach and adopt a wider definiti<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

c<strong>on</strong>trol which encompasses both planning and ensuring that plans are implemented for achieving<br />

objectives. Thus, planning, c<strong>on</strong>trol and decisi<strong>on</strong>-making are inextricably linked within <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> wider<br />

c<strong>on</strong>cepti<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> management c<strong>on</strong>trol. Indeed <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> literature recognises that MCS could have two<br />

complementary and interdependent roles (Ahrens and Chapman, 2004; Sim<strong>on</strong>s, 1994): i) <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>y can be<br />

used to extend c<strong>on</strong>trol over <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> attainment <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> organisati<strong>on</strong>al goals; ii) <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>y can also be used to enable<br />

managers and employees to search for opportunities and solve problems. Scholars recognise that<br />

this blend <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> aims requires a combinati<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> multiple c<strong>on</strong>trol systems that work toge<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>r (Otley, 1980),<br />

and different levers <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> c<strong>on</strong>trol (Sim<strong>on</strong>s, 1994).<br />

Numerous prior studies have highlighted <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> importance <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> achieving a fit between a firm’s strategy<br />

and its MCS (Chenhall, 2003; Langfield-Smith, 1997). Traditi<strong>on</strong>ally, <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> relati<strong>on</strong>ship between strategy<br />

and MCS has been viewed as a passive <strong>on</strong>e, suggesting that <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> MCS is an outcome <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> a firm’s<br />

strategy. However, Hopwood (1987) and Dent (1990) recognised that <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> MCS might have a<br />

proactive role in influencing strategy. Thus, <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> role <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> MCS and its impact <strong>on</strong> innovati<strong>on</strong> processes<br />

has emerged as an important research questi<strong>on</strong> (Shields, 1997) but few empirical studies address <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

relati<strong>on</strong>ship am<strong>on</strong>g <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>se variables, especially c<strong>on</strong>sidering SMEs. By focusing <strong>on</strong> this line <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> research,<br />

we adopted an exploratory study that aims to investigate <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> relati<strong>on</strong>ships between <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> KM processes<br />

adopted during innovati<strong>on</strong> strategies and <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> use <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> MCS. Thus, our research questi<strong>on</strong>s are:<br />

RQ1: How do enterprises manage knowledge in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> specific process <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> innovati<strong>on</strong> strategy?<br />

RQ2: How do enterprises design and use MCSs in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> specific process <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> innovati<strong>on</strong> strategy?<br />

RQ3: Is <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>re a link between KM processes adopted by <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> enterprises <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> sample in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

specific process <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> innovati<strong>on</strong> strategies and <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> use <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> MCSs?.<br />

2. Methodology<br />

A sample <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> 40 SMEs located in north-eastern Italy was drawn from a list <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> 200 manufacturing firms<br />

supplied by local SMEs associati<strong>on</strong>s, which provided company names and c<strong>on</strong>tacts. The overall<br />

selecti<strong>on</strong> criteri<strong>on</strong> for creating <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> sample was <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> introducti<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> at least <strong>on</strong>e new product by <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> firm<br />

during <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> last three years and with expected costs for innovati<strong>on</strong> strategies projects above 100.000<br />

Euros. This enabled <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> selecti<strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> companies with an history <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> innovati<strong>on</strong> and with relevant<br />

innovati<strong>on</strong> strategy projects.<br />

Our research was c<strong>on</strong>ducted under <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> form <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> a knowledge audit where owner-managers were<br />

interviewed in <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>ir role as “experts” (Ketchen and Shook, 1996). We adopt a multi-method, multicase<br />

field research design to capture, in depth, <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> richness needed to investigate patterns <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> KM and<br />

MCS-use within innovati<strong>on</strong> strategies and <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> link between <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>m. Our multi-method design employs<br />

qualitative and quantitative data collected through four main informati<strong>on</strong> sources: public data,<br />

company reports and <strong>on</strong>e semi-structured interview and a structured questi<strong>on</strong>naire. This<br />

questi<strong>on</strong>naire was created based <strong>on</strong> <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> interviews and <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> o<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>r materials and sent to <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> CEO, <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

CFO and <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> Research and Innovati<strong>on</strong> Manager asking <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>m to rate <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>ir answers <strong>on</strong> a 1-7 Likert<br />

scale.<br />

To identify <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> KM processes involved in innovati<strong>on</strong> strategies we refer to <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> knowledge model <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g><br />

Holsapple and J<strong>on</strong>es (2004). Thus, <str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g> KM processes taken into c<strong>on</strong>siderati<strong>on</strong> were: i) knowledge<br />

acquisiti<strong>on</strong>: acquiring knowledge from external sources and making it suitable for subsequent use; ii)<br />

knowledge generati<strong>on</strong>: producing knowledge by ei<str<strong>on</strong>g>the</str<strong>on</strong>g>r discovery or derivati<strong>on</strong> from existing<br />

knowledge and making it suitable for subsequent use; iii) knowledge selecti<strong>on</strong>: selecting knowledge<br />

generated and making it suitable for subsequent use. The variables we chose to characterise KM<br />

were: i) knowledge origin or “where”: repositories <str<strong>on</strong>g>of</str<strong>on</strong>g> acquired, generated and selected knowledge; ii)<br />

232

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