How Power Influences the Interrelationships Between Different Types of Knowledge During Product Development Processes in Inter-Firm Networks

This paper develops a conceptual model of how four dimensions of power (i.e. the power of resources (e.g. expertise, coercion and political affiliations), the power of processes (e.g. non-decision-making; manipulating of agendas), the power of meaning (e.g. symbols, structure, values and language) and the power of the system (e.g. surveillance, discipline, performance measurements) influence the interrelationships between know-how (i.e. the capability to produce a component and/or a product), know-why (i.e. capability to develop/design a product), know-what (i.e. to translate customer requirements into feasible products) and know-who knowledge (i.e. who knows what and who knows to do what) throughout the innovation process in an interfirm network. Based on the ideas that innovations tend to occur at the ‘interstices’ of inter-firm networks; that all organizations without reference to a particular industry are part of an inter-firm network; that the capability to innovate products and services provides organizations with a sustainable competitive advantage; that organizations are “systems of political activity”, this paper offers a conceptual framework on how the innovation process is facilitated and/or constrained due to this interweavement. Furthermore, case study analysis, semi-structured interviews, participant observation as well as template and matrix analysis are suggested for researching the themes discussed in this paper.