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  • 2010
  • Working Paper
  • HBS Working Paper Series

Boundary Spanning in a For-profit Research Lab: An Exploration of the Interface Between Commerce and Academe

By: Christopher C. Liu and Toby E. Stuart
  • Format:Print
  • | Language:English
  • | Pages:42
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Abstract

In innovative industries, private-sector companies increasingly are participants in open communities of science and technology. To participate in the system of exchange in such communities, firms often publicly disclose what would otherwise remain private discoveries. In a quantitative case study of one firm in the biopharmaceutical sector, we explore the consequences of scientific publication—an instance of public disclosure—for a core set of activities within the firm. Specifically, we link publications to human capital management practices, showing that scientists' bonuses and the allocation of managerial attention are tied to individuals' publications. Using a unique electronic mail dataset, we find that researchers within the firm who author publications are much better connected to external (to the company) members of the scientific community. This result directly links publishing to current understandings of absorptive capacity. In an unanticipated finding, however, our analysis raises the possibility that the company's most prolific publishers begin to migrate to the periphery of the intra-firm social network, which may occur because these individuals' strong external relationships induce them to reorient their focus to a community of scientists beyond the firm's boundary.

Keywords

For-Profit Firms; Higher Education; Information Publishing; Innovation and Invention; Science-Based Business; Social and Collaborative Networks; Boundaries; Biotechnology Industry; Pharmaceutical Industry

Citation

Liu, Christopher C., and Toby E. Stuart. "Boundary Spanning in a For-profit Research Lab: An Exploration of the Interface Between Commerce and Academe." Harvard Business School Working Paper, No. 11-012, August 2010.
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About The Author

Toby E. Stuart

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    Sirtris Pharmaceuticals: Living Healthier, Longer (Abridged)

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    GSK's Acquisition of Sirtris: Independence or Integration? (Abridged)

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    • 2011
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    Inside the Black Box of the Corporate Staff: An Exploratory Analysis Through the Lens of E-Mail Networks

    By: Toby E. Stuart
More from the Authors
  • Sirtris Pharmaceuticals: Living Healthier, Longer (Abridged) By: Toby Stuart and James Weber
  • GSK's Acquisition of Sirtris: Independence or Integration? (Abridged) By: Toby Stuart and James Weber
  • Inside the Black Box of the Corporate Staff: An Exploratory Analysis Through the Lens of E-Mail Networks By: Toby E. Stuart
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