Absorptive Capacity and Organizational Mechanisms: A Systematic Review and Future Directions

Abstract

Purpose – This study aims to contribute to fill the gap in the existing absorptive capacity (AC) literature relating to how organizational mechanisms applied both at the national and international level affect a firm’s AC. Design/methodology/approach – A systematic literature review was carried out using analytical articles from two sources – Web of Science and Scopus – aiming to cover as many studies related to the AC research topic. Findings – The results show that the majority of the studies do not include a specific analysis of an organizational mechanism’s role as mediator or moderator of a firm’s AC. The analysis of the reverse knowledge set of mechanisms will provide for international business scholars and practitioners a compilation of specific strategies that MNC apply to improve AC. Originality/value – The study identifies four sets of organizational mechanisms: external search strategy; organizational knowledge management; reverse knowledge; and mechanisms not orientated to knowledge management; and it describes their specific relationships with AC.