Knowledge codifiability, resources, and science‐based innovation

Abstract

Industry descriptions often depict science‐driven industries as a single industry class, dominated by explicit knowledge in the form of patents, blueprints, diagrams, etc. This one‐dimensional view limits our ability to effectively manage the activities and routines across various stages of a science life cycle. The life cycle concept refers to the extent of development of the underlying scientific knowledge base. The knowledge in developed science fields (e.g. chemicals) is well codified, whereas in developing fields (e.g. biotechnology), it is less so. This variance creates interesting implications for innovation – product development routines will differ across developed and developing sciences. The purpose of this paper is to compare and contrast the knowledge‐ and resource‐based requirements of developed and developing science industries and the link to competitive advantage.