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Introduction

By: Stefano Brusoni, Joachim Henkel, Michael G Jacobides, Samina Karim, Alan MacCormack, Phanish Puranam and Melissa Schilling
  • Format:Print
  • | Pages:10
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Abstract

In 2000, Carliss Baldwin and Kim Clark published Design Rules: The Power of Modularity, a book that introduced new ways of understanding and explaining the architecture of complex systems. This Special Issue of Industrial and Corporate Change celebrates this seminal work, the research it has inspired, and the insights that these collective efforts have generated. In this introductory essay, we review the impact of Design Rules across numerous fields, including organization theory, competitive strategy, industry structure, and innovation management. We offer perspectives on key themes that emerge from contributions in this issue, including the alignment between organizational and technical designs (“mirroring”), the dynamics of industry evolution, and the role that individuals play in shaping and responding to system designs. We close by highlighting opportunities to apply the theory in Design Rules to new phenomena and puzzles that have emerged in the past 20 years.

Keywords

Complex Systems; Industry Structure; Systems Design; Complexity; Organizational Design; Competitive Strategy; Innovation and Management

Citation

Brusoni, Stefano, Joachim Henkel, Michael G Jacobides, Samina Karim, Alan MacCormack, Phanish Puranam, and Melissa Schilling. "Introduction." Special Issue on The Power of Modularity: Twenty Years of Design Rules. Industrial and Corporate Change 32, no. 1 (February 2023): 1–10.
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About The Author

Alan D. MacCormack

Technology and Operations Management
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