DYNAMIC CAPABILITIES AND TECHNOLOGICAL ORIENTATION: A CONCEPTUAL OVERVIEW

Abstract

Debate emanating from management research and practice has been particularly on the development of a framework that will effectuate organizational performance while addressing external factors. Dynamic capabilities framework has been discussed widely since it incorporates the creation, modification and reconfiguration of assets in an environment characterised by technological advancements. Management capabilities in this case play an important role of recombination of resources and capabilities. Technology orientation is equally of great importance is it lays down ways in which organizations conduct their business activities especially towards customers’ satisfaction, technological development, improvement through learning and entrepreneurial aspects like innovation and risk taking. External environment is critical in every decision making process especially the threat of new entrants if there is a weak intellectual property regime to guard the valuable assets. It is evident that there are a limited number of properly operationalised empirical studies that have been conducted on dynamic capabilities and investigations tend to be case-based and qualitative. Additionally, few studies have not been able to relate and distinguish technology orientation and dynamic capabilities. This study, therefore, seeks to critically examine the role of technology orientation in development of dynamic capabilities which encompass managerial and organizational processes, firm’s endowments and its available strategic alternatives and its attractiveness of opportunities which lie ahead and hence high organizational performance. The need to tighten the dynamic capabilities framework as a basis for extensive empirical research in strategic management has been addressed in this review as it shows a relationship with technology orientation in achieving superior firm performance.