The Critical Resource,Strategic Capability And Growth Performance Of Enterprise In Industrial Cluster Context

The experiences from developed countries and regions have shown that those with international or regional competitive advantage in industries are mostly clustered in certain specific areas and in the form of industrial cluster. The unique organizational form of industrial cluster and its vitality have made remarkable achievement in the development of Chinese industries and upgrading of regional economy. During the last two decades, Chinese industrial clusters have contributed a lot to the strong economic vitality, high employment level, improved innovation and competitiveness of the industrial structure. However, what should not be overlooked is that the development of Chinese industrial clusters is facing many challenges at this stage. With the economic globalization, Chinese industrial clusters are facing the pressure of structural transforming and upgrading. The firms in industrial cluster are rendering more and more obvious differences in growth performance. Some clustered firms demonstrate lack of development potential, and even demise, while others are still able to maintain sustainable and stable development. The main body of industrial cluster is a firm, and only to resolve the clustered firm sustainable development, we can resolve the issues about industrial clusters transformation and upgrading better. Therefore, the current study of Chinese industrial cluster is necessary to be transferred from the industrial cluster level into the clustered firm level.This dissertation focuses on "why the clustered firms will appear different growth performance in the same industrial cluster context". Based on the literature review, this dissertation discusses the question about "how critical resources influence growth performance of clustered firms", "which are these critical resources characteristics in the industrial cluster context". And has the development practice of Chinese traditional industrial cluster as its empirical support.Based on the industrial cluster and firm growth theory, the resource-based theory, organizational capability theory, strategic capability view, this dissertation aims to answering the basic question of "how critical resources influence growth performance of clustered firms". According to introduce the strategic capability as the intermediate variable, this dissertation tries to open the black box of the interaction mechanism to analyze in depth the significant impact of the critical resources, strategic capability on clustered firms growth performance. Particularly, this research can be break down to the following four issues. Firstly, what are the critical resource factors that influence the different growth performance between the same industrial cluster firms? Secondly, what is the relationship between a firm's strategic capability and growth performance? Thirdly, what is the relationship between the critical resource factors and firm's strategic capability? Finally, what is the whole relationship between the critical resource factors, strategic capability and clustered firms growth performance?This dissertation explores these issues by four sub-researches with combination of theoretical study and empirical study, literature review and investigation, and as well as qualitative research and quantitative research.Based on literature review, the first sub-research uses grounded theory method to interview 26 traditional clustered firms. Firstly, the research explores the critical resource factors which influences the clustered firm growth performance, and then analyzes the relationship between each critical resource factor and growth performance specifically. The first sub-research concludes the three critical resource factors' dimension in industrial cluster, brings forward a primary theoretical supposition relationship between the critical resources factor and growth performance.The second sub-research supplements and confirms the firm strategic capability measurement index by the semi-structured interview, and then puts forward the supposition relationship between the strategic capability and growth performance.The third sub-research analyzes in depth the mechanism between the three critical resource factors which including the entrepreneur trait, the top management team characteristic and firm network and strategic capability which including the strategy making capability and resource integration capability. And then gives some hypotheses between the critical resource factors of clustered firms and strategic capability. The fourth sub-research builds a concept model of "critical resources—strategic capability—growth performance", and puts forward some hypothesizes. 304 clustered firms are investigated via questionnaires, and factor analysis, multiple regression analysis, structural equation modeling is conducted to testify and modify the concept model. The results show that the critical resource factors can promote growth performance through strategic capability.Drawing on the above research, some conclusions can be presented as follows:(1) According to the grounded theory research, the dissertation find out three critical resource factors which are the source of influencing the traditional clustered firms growth performance difference: the entrepreneur trait, the TMT characteristic and firm network.(2) The entrepreneur trait has a positive effect on clustered firm growth performance. In this regard, the entrepreneur initiative, innovative and risk-taking can be beneficial to the improvement of clustered firm growth performance.(3) The TMT characteristic has a positive effect on clustered firm growth performance. In this regard, the TMT mind consistency, knowledge Heterogeneity and behavior interactive can be positive effect to improving the clustered firm growth performance.(4) The firm network has a positive effect on clustered firm growth performance. In this regard, the relation range, relation intensity and relation stability can be beneficial to the improvement of clustered firm growth performance.(5) Strategic capability includes strategy making capability and resource integration capability, they have positive effect for the growth performance.(6) The critical resource factors have a positive effect on clustered firm growth performance by the strategy capability. In this regard, the entrepreneur trait influences growth performance indirectly through the mediating role of strategy making capability. The TMT characteristic promotes growth performance through strategy making capability and resource integration capability respectively. The firm network improves growth performance through the strategy making capability and resource integration capability. As a whole, focusing on how critical resources influence growth performance of traditional clustered firm, this dissertation conducts some innovations as follows.(1) It's a complement of the existing research on resource-based theory for it builds up linkages among theory of critical resources, strategic capability and growth performance in the industrial clusters context. This dissertation analyses the unique characteristic of critical resources which including the entrepreneur trait, the TMT characteristic and the firm network in industrial cluster. These critical resources embodied individual, group, and organization level respectively, could answer the black box of growth performance differences between the clustered firms.(2) It's an expansion of the research on clustered firms' strategic capability for its concept, elements and mechanism. Firstly, based on review the organizational capabilities theory, this dissertation proposed the practical and theoretical value on the strategic capability research. The constituent elements of strategic capability include the strategy making capability and resource integration capability. Secondly, this dissertation analyses the unique characteristic of strategic capability in industrial cluster.(3) It's an in-depth analysis of the mechanism of firm critical resources on growth performance in industrial cluster. Considering the traditional industrial cluster feature and clustered firms feature, this dissertation puts forward a theoretical framework of "critical resource-strategic capability-growth performance". According to the empirical study, this dissertation reveals the path and the intrinsic mechanism which critical resources affect growth performance in industrial cluster context.