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Sub-theme 42: Innovation in Organizations

Convenors:
J. Richard Harrison
University of Texas at Dallas, USA
Alf Steinar Sætre
Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Norway

Call for Papers


Innovation in organizations is the essence of reimagining, rethinking, and reshaping what organizations do and how they do it. It has widespread consequences for organizational performance and survival, for economic growth, for social stability and well-being, and for the natural environment. Although most often seen as a means for increasing organizational competitiveness, innovation can also mitigate unemployment, foster cost reductions and efficiency gains in areas ranging from health and elder care to public services, and reduce the environmental footprint of economic activity.

The objective of this sub-theme is to highlight research that explores innovation in organizations in a variety of forms and from a variety of perspectives. Organizational analysis has proven to be a fruitful avenue for studying innovation, drawing on theories and concepts in areas ranging from individual and group behavior to organizational design and learning to ecological and institutional processes. We believe this sub-theme has the potential to be a stimulating and informative session on the frontiers of innovation research, its implications for organizational renewal and change, and its potential to promote sustainability and to reverse the patterns of stagnation and decline jeopardizing our society.

Research on innovation in organizations may focus on processes of innovation as well as on outcomes of innovations. Process-oriented innovation research includes work on search, evaluation, adoption, development, and implementation. Outcome-oriented innovation research includes studies of antecedents of innovative success (or failure) and analyses of the implications of innovation for organizational performance, society, and the natural environment.

Organizational research on innovation may address novelty or creativity associated with a variety of organizational topics. These include, but are not limited to:

  • Product, service, and process technologies and architectures
  • Market creation and development
  • Administrative policies, procedures, and routines
  • Organizational structural configurations
  • Interorganizational and intraorganizational collaboration
  • Competitive strategy and tactics
  • Business models
  • Sustainability
  • Implications for and of social and environmental policy


We invite papers from researchers studying innovation in both the public and private sectors. Research approaches may include conceptual and theoretical analyses; empirical analyses based on ethnographic, historical, experimental, interview, survey, and archival data; and formal modelling and computer simulation.

 

J. Richard Harrison is Associate Professor of Organizations, Strategy, and International Management in the Jindal School of Management at the University of Texas at Dallas, USA. His research interests include innovation, organizational decision making, organizational culture, organizational ecology, and computational modeling.
Alf Steinar Sætre is Professor in the Department of Industrial Economics and Technology Management at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology, where he is the Program Director of the Norwegian Research School in Innovation's Program in Innovation Management and Innovation Strategy. His research interests include innovation processes in organizations, organizational communication, and technology commercialization.