Research On The Enhancement Of Enterprise Dynamic Capabilities Under Environmental Uncertainty Based On IS Resources

In an increasingly complex world called "hyper-competition" and "turbulence",companies do not only need to take full advantage of existing resources and capabilities in order to maintain a competitive advantage,but also to adjust their resource portfolios and develop new resources and capabilities in a timely manner to deal with environmental uncertainty.This is the emergence of dynamic capacity theory,which is an important branch of the strategic management theory area in recent years.The research subject,enterprise is placed in a dynamic environment under the view of dynamic capabilities,which makes the theoretical research more in line with the survival of the enterprise reality.So that many scholars made deep discussions on the nature,emergence,development,and the impact to the enterprise long-term competitive advantages of dynamic capabilities after the theory were brought forward.We need to notice that dynamic capabilities are still difficult to be measured and validated in such kind of researches.There are relevant literatures from the strategic level to understand how enterprises successfully configured and manage rare resources quickly and effectively,but few on the development and enhancement of dynamic capabilities from the perspective of enterprise informatization.A basic question is put forward in this paper,that how can enterprises acquire and enhance their dynamic capabilities in an uncertain environment?There are many factors that result in development of enterprise capabilities,and the enterprise informationzation construction is one of the important aspects.This paper reviews the existing research of dynamic capability theory in the field of information system(IS),some of which focus on the impact of IT/IS application on dynamic capability enhancement,establish the research framework of dynamic capability enhancement,and analyze the relationship between the various components of the framework.Although scholars at home and abroad have made some useful exploration,there is still some deviation between the conclusions of the analysis and the current main trend of understanding dynamic capabilities.This paper proposes that the accumulation of information system(IS)resources in the process of enterprise informatization is an important aspect of cultivating enterprise capabilities.Based on the realistic and theoretical background,the basic problem of the research can be further decomposed into three questions that are more specific.(1)What is the connotation of enterprise dynamic capabilities,how to measure the dynamic capability;(2)whether the enterprise IS resources are an important source of dynamic capabilities enhancement;(3)what role does environmental uncertainty play in the relationship of IS resources and dynamic capabilities.Normative analysis and empirical analysis are combined in this paper.Based on the literature review,theoretical analysis and questionnaire survey,this paper analyzes the basic problem of enterprise dynamic capability enhancement based on IS resource perspective in uncertain environment.For the first sub-question,this paper first puts forward the application of Viable System Model(VSM)theory as an instruction to analyze the connotation and the conformation dimensions of dynamic capabilities,and the internal relations of the dimensions.VSM theory is widely used to analyze how organizations survive in a changing environment.For the second sub-question,this paper develops a research framework of the enhancement of dynamic capabilities on IS resources based on the exiting literature,and then test it empirically.As for the third sub-question,the paper divides environmental uncertainty into two dimensions of environmental dynamics and environmental hostility,and analyzes empirically their role in the relationship of IS resources and enterprise dynamic capabilities.Through the analysis of the above three sub-questions,this paper draws on the following conclusions:(1)Dynamic Capabilities concept is a five Dimensional research frameworkDynamic capabilities concept is a multi-dimensional and multi-level research framework.Under the guidance of literature analysis and VSM theory,this paper considers that the connotation of dynamic capabilities can be described as a systemic problem-solving potential for the enterprise in the process of adapting to the environmental change,through dynamically updating its strategy,alternating its resources,integrating internally,coordinating externally and learning organizationally.Dynamic capability is a "viable system" composed of strategy updating capability,organizational learning capability,and operations controlling capability,relationship coordinating capability and resources integrating capability,which is proved empirically.At the same time,the empirical results also show that dynamic capability is a capability integrating system,with the dimensions interacting with each other.Dynamic capabilities improve and evolve in the process of the interaction and acceleration of the five dimensions.(2)IS resources are important sources of dynamic capabilities enhancement in uncertain environmentFirst,the empirical results show that the IS resources as a whole have significant positive effects on the dynamic capabilities.In addition,according to the division of IS resources,the positive effect between the outside-in IS resources and dynamic capabilities is verified,so is the positive effect of the spanning IS resources,while the effect of the inside-out IS resources is not significant.Secondly,the organizational process alignment is a complementary resource to IS resources in the effect to dynamic capabilities.Process alignment plays mediation role in the relationship.Particularly,Process alignment plays partial mediation role in the relationship of the outside-in IS resources and dynamic capabilities,and complete mediation effect in the relationship of the spanning IS resources and dynamic capabilities,while no mediation effect in the relationship of the inside-out IS resources and dynamic capabilities.(3)Further reason analysis on the effect mechanism of IS resources on the enhancement of enterprise dynamic capabilities attributes to the imitability and substitutability of IS resources vary significantlyIn the IS resources,there is no significant difference in both the attribute of imitability and substitutability between the outside-in IS resources and the the spanning IS resources.While there is significant difference between the aforementioned two kinds of IS resources and the inside-out IS resources.That is,the imitability and substitutability of inside-out IS resources is on a higher level than the other two IS resources,which is exactly the deep-seated reason of the different effect mechanism of IS resources on the enhancement of enterprise dynamic capabilities.(4)Environmental uncertainty is a moderator in the relationship of the IS resources and the enterprise dynamic capabilities.The empirical results show that the environmental uncertainty can be decomposed into two factors of environmental dynamics and environmental hostility.At the same time,environmental dynamics and environmental hostility play a positive role in the relationship between IS resources and dynamic capabilities enhancement.That is,the role of IS resources in the enhancement of dynamic capabilities in more turbulent and more hostile environment significantly strengthened.The main innovations of this paper lie in:(1)based on the Viable System Model and the existing literature,puts forward the content and dimensions of dynamic capabilities,and empirical validation of inherent mechanism of dynamic capabilities of the five dimensions;(2)to shows that IS resources have direct significant effect on dynamic capabilities enhancement,as well as indirect effcet with the complementary resource of process alignment as a mediator;(3)to clarify that the moderate effect of environmental uncertainty in the relationship of IS resources and dynamic capabilities enhancement.In conclusion,the theoretical analysis and empirical results of this paper have important theoretical contributions and managerial implications,which provides a useful exploration for enterprises to construct and enhance their dynamic capabilities from the perspective of IS resources in an uncertain environment.