Incumbent Resurgence: Lessons from the U.S. Machine Tool Industry, 1975-2000

该提案旨在研究美国机床行业公司对其环境变化的适应情况，了解影响公司向计算机数字控制设计和模块化生产技术过渡的能力的因素，以及该设备所需的与客户更广泛的关系。许多美国制造商缺乏应对技能，其结果是，该行业的就业人数及其对国内经济的重要性大幅下降。然而，其他公司不仅生存了下来，而且在变化的环境中蓬勃发展。这项研究将追踪美国机床在位企业对1975年至2000年该行业面临的技术和市场挑战的反应，以辨别倒闭和存活企业之间的差异。以前的研究集中在导致行为惯性的因素上，对于企业在没有表现出惯性时如何行动，或者这些行为如何影响绩效，提供的洞察很少。研究人员认为，现任者可能会对变化表现出三种类型的反应：(1)他们可能会继续现有的战略；(2)他们可能会模仿新进入者的产品；(3)他们可能会在现有产品和竞争对手提供的产品之外进行创新。企业制定的战略及其对企业生存和业绩的影响，预计将取决于企业能力在竞争挑战时的适应性。因此，这项研究超越了现有的文献，通过实证调查提出的生存和绩效之间的权衡，关注激进技术变革的幸存者，并通过探索累积的能力和坚定的选择在影响这些结果中的相对影响。

This proposal seeks to examine the adaptation of firms in the U.S. machine tool industry to changes in their environment, to understand the factors affecting firms' capability to transition to computer-numerically controlled designs and modular production techniques, as well as more extended relationships with customers required by this equipment. Many U.S. manufacturers lacked the skills to respond, and as a result employment in the industry and its importance to the domestic economy was substantially reduced. Nevertheless, other firms not only survived but thrived in the changed environment. This study will trace the responses of U.S. machine tool incumbents to the technological and market challenges facing the industry between 1975 and 2000 to discern the differences between failing and surviving firms.Prior studies have focused on factors that lead to behavioral inertia, offering little insight for how firms act when not demonstrating inertia, or how performance is affected by these behaviors. The researchers suggest that incumbents may exhibit three types of responses to change: (1) They may continue with their existing strategy; (2) they may imitate new entrants' products; or (3) they may innovate away from both their existing products and those offered by rivals. The strategy a firm enacts, and its effect on the firm's survival and performance is expected to depend upon the adaptability of the firm's competencies at the time of competitive challenge. Thus this study goes beyond extant literature by empirically investigating the proposed tradeoff between survival and performance, by focusing on survivors of radical technological change, and by exploring the relative influence of accumulated competencies and firm choice in affecting these outcomes.