This article examines what Joseph Schumpeter said on the emergence of novelty in economic institutions, what Sidney Winter did to build on and deviate from that foundation, and what puzzles remain. Winter built a framework for answers to a puzzle that Schumpeter could not solve--how novelty...

Over twenty years have passed since Nelson and Winter put the concept of routines firmly at the center of the analysis of organizational and economic change. A growing number of researchers have followed their example since. However, researchers have not always had the same idea of what routines...

This article proposes a framework for applying the concept of organizational routines in empirical research. The framework is built up in three steps: (i) reviewing the methods for operationalizing organizational routines that have been employed in empirical research; (ii) identifying the most...

The concept of an 'organisational routine' is central to the evolutionary theory of the firm. However, the concept itself is still unclear. There is not much consensus in the literature regarding its dimensions, its characteristics and its functions. Despite increasing use of the concept, not...

This paper considers the trade-off between leveraging external sources of innovation by outsourcing design and engineering activities and the ability to develop internal product development competences. The trade-off arises because the division of labor within and across firms' boundaries has a...