Will the Real Innovator Please Stand Up? Claiming Ownership of an Organizational Capability

We present an inductive, single case study of the role of groups in the development of organizational capabilities. Our findings highlight the perception of capability value and organizational ambiguity around capability ownership as antecedents of group social identity processes. Building on evidence from our research we attempt to make the following contributions: First, the more favorable the perception of a capability’s value on organizational level, the more likely different organizational groups will attempt claiming ownership of this capability. This relationship will be stronger in the presence of organizational ambiguity around formal ownership of a highly valued capability. Second, we propose that a balanced configuration of intergroup competition and intragroup cooperation is likely to lead to the development of group level competences. Finally, the more group level competences are shared and adopted across groups, the more likely this will benefit capability development. We conclude this paper with implications for theory and practice