Site-shifting as the source of ambidexterity: Empirical insights from the field of ticketing

Huang, Jimmy; Newell , Sue; Huang, Jingsong; Pan, Shan-Ling

Abstract

Ambidexterity, defined as the capability to simultaneously explore knowledge to identify new market opportunities and exploit knowledge to capitalise on a firm's existing niches, is considered to be crucial in todays competitive marketplace. However, there is relatively limited research on how such a capability can be developed, and even less on the role of IT-enabled practices in promoting this. Drawing on the strategy-as-practice perspective, we investigate how interrelationships amongst practitioners, IT-enabled practices and praxis create a particular site of practice. More importantly, we consider how a site gets shifted over time through the emergence of changes in the interrelationships between practices, practitioners and praxis in conjunction with exploiting affordances offered by the use of different types of IT. Building on the findings derived from a case study of DaM 1 , the leading ticketing company in China, we explain how the phenomenon of site-shifting can provide a useful conceptual lens for explaining ambidexterity. In doing this, we bring to the fore the importance of IT in achieving an ambidexterity capability.

Citation

Huang, J., Newell, S., Huang, J., & Pan, S.-L. (2014). Site-shifting as the source of ambidexterity: Empirical insights from the field of ticketing. Journal of Strategic Information Systems, 23(1), 29-44. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsis.2014.01.001

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Oct 30, 2013
• Online Publication Date: Feb 15, 2014
• Publication Date: Feb 15, 2014
• Deposit Date: Nov 11, 2020
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 12, 2020
• Journal: Journal of Strategic Information Systems
• Print ISSN: 0963-8687
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 23
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 29-44
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsis.2014.01.001
• Keywords: ambidexterity; strategy-as-practice; site; information systems strategy; case study
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/5035079
• Publisher URL: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S096386871400002X