Raffaeilli et al (2018) Flashcards
Frame flexibility
the ability to expand the organizations categorical boundaries (domain identity) to encompass a wider range of emotionally resonating capabilities
- Cognitive, through claimed beliefs and understandings
- Emotional, through claimed appeals to feelings and aspirations
- Cognitive framing
a process of thinking, providing the “mental templates that individuals impose on the information environment to give it meaning”
Cognitive frame flexibility
used to categorize a incompatible non-incremental innovation as complementary with the organizations existing capabilities, identity and competitive boundaries. This is done by re-classifiyng the TMT’s perception of the innovation itself, the firms legacy strategy, or both, to make them more aligned.
Capability development filter: consistency vs co-existence orientations
Innovations vary in the extent to which they align with the firms existing capabilities. Non-incremental innovations always involve inconsistencies with this and can be seen as contradictory to the exploitation of existing capabilities and technologies, whereas other innovations can be associated with the exploration of new capabilities.
TMT’s that adopt a co-existence orientation are likely to embrace contradictory capabilities and innovation agendas within the firm. Co-existence orientation is facilitated by frames and processes that recognize and embrace contradiction.
Organizational identity filter: less vs more elastic
Organizational identity is the collectively agreed upon set of central, distinctive, and enduring characteristics that define an organization
Who we are and what we do
When a TMT sense of ‘who we are’ is less elastic, a narrower set of alternatives will be perceived a legitimate and the incumbents firms TMT will view innovations through a more contracted cognitive frame
Competitive boundary filter: narrower vs wider scanning
A TMTs cognitive framing of a non-incremental innovation is filtered by its conceptualization of the firms competitive boundaries. Competitive boundary scanning affects the TMTs search for strategic growth opportunities. TMTs who scan a wider landscape of their competitive environment will develop a more expansive cognitive frame; and narrower will have a more contracted frame.
Three key levels of vertical inclusion that describe classification hierarchies:
- A specific, subordinate level, having more domain specificity and concreteness (e.g. a dining room table; a bedside table)
- An intermediate level, consisting of the most typical and most used categories (e.g. table)
- An abstract superordinate level, located above the intermediate level and having a lower domain specificity and greater abstractness (e.g. a piece of furniture)
How to position vertical inclusion of classification hierarchies
TMTs who engage in more specific framing strategically position the firm at a more subordinate level and take a more limited view of what constitutes appropriate membership. Doing so, cognitive frames become fixed when the TMT is unable to expand its initially contracted lens through which it perceives the firm’s capabilities, identity and competitive boundaries (Kodak example).
- TMT emotional framing:
a process of feeling, providing “a felt alignment of a frame with the audience’s passions, desires or aspirations
Emotional frame flexibility
functions to enable a non-incremental innovation to resonate and to have a felt positive, emotionally engaging connection with the firm’s strategy.
Emotional frames and innovation adaption
When TMTs are able to attach an emotionally engaging aspiration to a non-incremental innovation, doing so permits, justifies, and contextualizes a more flexible cognitive frame. Thus, we theorize that cognitive and emotional frames are inextricably related to innovation adoption decisions.
Thus, innovation adoption is influenced by both cognitive and emotional frame. Absent TMT framing that fosters emotional engagement, the extended leadership team is less likely to engage in the work necessary to execute a more flexibile cognitive frame.
Key Message
Together, flexibility in both cognitive and emotional framing leads to greater strategic alignment with the focal innovation and, consequently, increases the likelihood of its adoption. As well, we posit the reverse to be true: Fixed cognitive and emotional framing of an innovation will be associated with threat resistance and decrease the likelihood of adoption.
Finally, a TMT’s capacity to flexibly frame innovation adoption decisions accumulate over time and affects their ability to attend to future non-incremental innovations.
