Knowledge-Based Innovation: Emergence and Embedding of New Practice Areas in Management Consulting Firms
- 1 April 2007
- journal article
- Published by Academy of Management in The Academy of Management Journal
- Vol. 50 (2), 406-428
- https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2007.24634457
Abstract
How do innovative knowledge-based structures emerge and become embedded in organizations? We drew on theories of knowledge-intensive firms, communities of practice, and professional service firms to analyze multiple cases of new practice area creation in management consulting firms. Our qualitative analysis identified four critical generative elements: socialized agency, differentiated expertise, defensible turf, and organizational support. We demonstrate that these elements must be combined in specific pathways for knowledge-based innovative structures to emerge and embed. These pathways emerge from practitioner networks, markets for knowledge-based services, and professional firms' hierarchies. Our findings have important implications for studying innovation in the knowledge-based economy.Keywords
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