Dynamic Capabilities and Organizational Resilience of Manufacturing Firms in Nigeria

Abstract

The study examined the relationship between dynamic capabilities and organizational resilience of manufacturing firms in Nigeria. The dynamic capability was decomposed into sensing capability and reconfiguration capability, while organizational resilience had adaptability and agility as it measures. A cross-sectional survey research design was followed, while primary data was collected via the administration of a structured questionnaire. Copies of the questionnaire were randomly handed over to 86 respondents, comprising foremen, supervisors and managers in 11 manufacturing firms that are clustered around Trans Amadi Industrial Area, Port Harcourt. Two research objectives with a corresponding number of research questions and research hypotheses were formulated. Descriptive statistics were analysed with the aid of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 25.0, while the Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) was deployed to test the hypothesized relationships via SmartPLS 3.2.7. The results of the analyses affirmed the alternate hypotheses, which stated that dynamic capabilities are positively correlated with the measures of organizational resilience. This shows that dynamic capabilities amplify the manufacturing firms’ resilience. It was recommended that managers of the firms should encourage quick response to environmental changes, by enhancing their employees’ capability to detect, monitor and respond to environmental volatilities. Likewise, management of the manufacturing firms should strategically position the firms to be among the first to identify and acquire external knowledge about their market trends, technology and industry. This will help the firm to adapt quickly to disturbances from the environment and be more resilient. It was suggested that similar studies be conducted in other sectors of the economy.