Strategy and Institutions: a Pluralistic Account of Strategies in the Taiwanese Computing Industry

The 'new institutionalism' had led to increasing emphasis on the 'embed dedness' of organizations in local social systems. In this journal, Sorge (1991) and Whitley (1994) have shown, in particular, how the dominant forms of organization within countries or sectors are shaped by...

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Main Authors: Whittington, R, Hung, S
Format: Journal article
Published: 1997
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author Whittington, R
Hung, S
author_facet Whittington, R
Hung, S
author_sort Whittington, R
collection OXFORD
description The 'new institutionalism' had led to increasing emphasis on the 'embed dedness' of organizations in local social systems. In this journal, Sorge (1991) and Whitley (1994) have shown, in particular, how the dominant forms of organization within countries or sectors are shaped by distinct national sys tems. The liability of these institutionalist approaches, however, is a focus on broad comparisons that gives little access to the diversity that is often observ able on the ground. Examining nine Taiwanese computer firms during the 1980s and early 1990s, this paper demonstrates that their strategies followed no singular system logic, displaying instead a wide scope for strategic divers ity. The paper argues that this kind of diversity can be explained not by rejecting institutionalism, but by recognizing the plural systems — business, technology and political — in which the dis-embedded actors of modernity now engage. Such a pluralistic approach has the potential to extend institu tionalist analysis beyond the broadly comparative to the strategies of individual firms.
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spelling oxford-uuid:0bc8d8ea-412b-4206-b75f-d8a227b2ceb22022-03-26T09:31:19ZStrategy and Institutions: a Pluralistic Account of Strategies in the Taiwanese Computing IndustryJournal articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_dcae04bcuuid:0bc8d8ea-412b-4206-b75f-d8a227b2ceb2Saïd Business School - Eureka1997Whittington, RHung, SThe 'new institutionalism' had led to increasing emphasis on the 'embed dedness' of organizations in local social systems. In this journal, Sorge (1991) and Whitley (1994) have shown, in particular, how the dominant forms of organization within countries or sectors are shaped by distinct national sys tems. The liability of these institutionalist approaches, however, is a focus on broad comparisons that gives little access to the diversity that is often observ able on the ground. Examining nine Taiwanese computer firms during the 1980s and early 1990s, this paper demonstrates that their strategies followed no singular system logic, displaying instead a wide scope for strategic divers ity. The paper argues that this kind of diversity can be explained not by rejecting institutionalism, but by recognizing the plural systems — business, technology and political — in which the dis-embedded actors of modernity now engage. Such a pluralistic approach has the potential to extend institu tionalist analysis beyond the broadly comparative to the strategies of individual firms.
spellingShingle Whittington, R
Hung, S
Strategy and Institutions: a Pluralistic Account of Strategies in the Taiwanese Computing Industry
title Strategy and Institutions: a Pluralistic Account of Strategies in the Taiwanese Computing Industry
title_full Strategy and Institutions: a Pluralistic Account of Strategies in the Taiwanese Computing Industry
title_fullStr Strategy and Institutions: a Pluralistic Account of Strategies in the Taiwanese Computing Industry
title_full_unstemmed Strategy and Institutions: a Pluralistic Account of Strategies in the Taiwanese Computing Industry
title_short Strategy and Institutions: a Pluralistic Account of Strategies in the Taiwanese Computing Industry
title_sort strategy and institutions a pluralistic account of strategies in the taiwanese computing industry
work_keys_str_mv AT whittingtonr strategyandinstitutionsapluralisticaccountofstrategiesinthetaiwanesecomputingindustry
AT hungs strategyandinstitutionsapluralisticaccountofstrategiesinthetaiwanesecomputingindustry