“The existing literature usually stresses the capacity of organizations to learn about and adapt to uncertain, changing environments. We think this emphasis is misplaced. The most important issues about the applicability of evolutionary-ecological theories to organizations concern the timing of changes. Learning and adjusting structure enhance the chance of survival only if the speed of response is commensurate with the temporal patterns of relevant environments.”

— Michael T. Hannan

Source: Organizational ecology, 1989, p. 70; About structural inertia.

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Michael T. Hannan 12

US-American sociologist of Stanford University 1943

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