The Role of Communication Depth for Overcoming Blindness to Knowledge Utilization

Abstract

The open innovation literature highlights the need for firms to search deeply across the organizational boundaries to allow the subsequent internal development process to move forward. This study complements and extends prior research on search depth in open innovation by focusing on how a deep link to external partners within one particular search channel, public research organizations (PROs), shapes a firm’s perception of new technology concepts. It examines how the depth of communication, conceived as a composite notion of high-quality information and close participation by the partners, in such collaborations helps firms in utilizing new knowledge in the future. However, due to narrowed perceptions, attention allocation problems, and increased internal communication boundaries, it can also blind firms to identify new opportunities for co-developed knowledge. We address these mixed implications of communication depth in conjunction with two context-specific factors—partner fit and the asset specificity of co-developed knowledge—that can weaken the curvilinear (inverted U-shaped) effect of communication depth on knowledge utilization. The results of our study suggest that firms may need no excessive communication depth with PROs and may align it with partner- and asset-specific contexts to best utilize knowledge from R&D collaborations with PROs in the long-term.