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Summary O’Reilly, C. A., & Tushman, M. L. (2013). Organizational Ambidexterity: Past, Present, and Future. The Academy of Management Perspectives, 27(4), 324–338. https://doi.org/10.5465/amp.2013.0025 $6.41   Add to cart
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Summary O’Reilly, C. A., & Tushman, M. L. (2013). Organizational Ambidexterity: Past, Present, and Future. The Academy of Management Perspectives, 27(4), 324–338. https://doi.org/10.5465/amp.2013.0025
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  • Course
  • Strategic Entrepreneurship & Organizational Renewal
  • Institution
  • Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU)

Full summary of O’Reilly, C. A., & Tushman, M. L. (2013). Organizational Ambidexterity: Past, Present, and Future. The Academy of Management Perspectives, 27(4), 324–338.

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  • October 7, 2021
  • 6
  • 2021/2022
  • Summary

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  • ambidexterity

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  • Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (VU)
  • M.Sc. Business Administration - Strategy & Organization
  • Strategic Entrepreneurship & Organizational Renewal
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O’Reilly & Tushman (2013) – Organizational Ambidexterity: Past, Present and
Future
Definition

 Ambidexterity = the ability to simultaneously pursue both incremental and discontinuous
innovation… from hosting multiple contradictory structures, processes, and culture within
the same firm

The past: origins of the construct

 Early Finding: different organizational forms are associate with different strategies and
environmental conditions
o Stable environments = mechanistic management system (hierarchy, well-defined
roles and job descriptions)
o Turbulent environments = organic system (lack of formally defined tasks, less
formalization and specialization)

 Organizational adaptation literature: firms need to change these structure alignments in the
face of environmental / technological change
 This trade-off = “a paradox of administration” (Thompson 1967)
 Adaptive challenge facing firms was the balance of having both:
o Exploitation (efficiency, control, certainty)
o Exploration (search, discovery, autonomy, innovation)
 In achieving this balance there is a bias in favour of exploitation as it results in short-term
success
 Scholars suggest that firms need both exploitation and exploration for long-term success.
Having both simultaneously leads to higher firm performance

Studies were conducted on:

 Whether there is a relation to performance and survival
 Whether ambidexterity is accomplished through structurally separate units or other means
 Under what conditions ambidexterity is most useful
 How it is achieved

Exploration of the theoretical underpinnings of ambidexterity in:

 Theories on absorptive capacity
 Theories on dynamic capabilities
 Theories on organizational learning

Problem

 The large interest has blurred some of the initial clarity regarding the concept of
ambidexterity

, The Present: What does the evidence show?

Ambidexterity and Firm Performance

 Clear pattern: ambidexterity positively affects firm performance (sales growth, innovation,
performance ratings, market valuation, firm survival, firm growth)

 3 conclusions:
o Ambidexterity is positively related to firm performance
o These effects are contingent on the environment. Most valuable when:
 Uncertainty and competitiveness is high
 Sufficient resources available
 Firms are large rather than small (meaning they have resources)
o Under- or Overuse of ambidexterity comes at a cost

 Firms with greater tech. capabilities benefit more from it

 Ambidexterity differs between manufacturing and service firms

 There is an inverted U-shaped relationship between ambidexterity and financial performance

 Unit of analysis: Studies focused on individual level, firm level, unit level and project level

 Methods: usually large samples with longitudinal data


How is Ambidexterity achieved?

 Original view by Duncan: firms need to shift their structures over time to align them with the
firm’s strategy – meaning, organizations achieve ambidexterity in a sequential way

 Other argue: in times of radical change, sequential ambidexterity is inefficient

 They propose: simultaneous ambidexterity – establishing autonomous subunit for
exploration and exploitation which are structurally separate but with targeted integration for
the use of resources and capabilities

 Gibson & Birkinshaw introduce contextual ambidexterity: permitting individuals to decide
between exploration and exploitation by building a set of enabling processes and systems as
well as a supportive organization context (consisting of discipline, stretch, trust and support)




Sequential ambidexterity

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