Do Market Leaders Lead in Business Process Innovation? The Case(s) of E-Business Adoption
April 2011
Working Paper Number:
CES-11-10
Abstract
This paper investigates the relationship between market position and the adoption of IT-enabled process innovations. Prior research has focused overwhelmingly on product innovation and garnered mixed empirical support. I extend the literature into the understudied area of business process innovation, developing a framework for classifying innovations based on the complexity, interdependence, and customer impact of the underlying business process. I test the framework's predictions in the context of ebuying and e-selling adoption. Leveraging detailed U.S. Census data, I find robust evidence that market leaders were significantly more likely to adopt the incremental innovation of e-buying but commensurately less likely to adopt the more radical practice of e-selling. The findings highlight the strategic significance of adjustment costs and co-invention capabilities in technology adoption, particularly as businesses grow more dependent on new technologies for their operational and competitive performance.
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demand,
market,
manufacturing,
sale,
technology,
technical,
technological,
invention,
commerce,
product,
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organizational,
competitive,
strategic,
innovation,
innovator,
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technology adoption,
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