Scale for classifying organizations as explorers, exploiters or ambidextrous

This paper presents a scale developed to classify organizations through cluster analysis as being exploiters, explores, ambidextrous or with no defined orientation. The theoretical framework helps identify that the concepts associated with exploration and exploitation may be classified into six practical dimensions: organizational knowledge practices, innovative practices, competition, strategic orientation, organizational efficiency and partnerships. After stripping the data, the scale was underpinned by 45 attributes related to these dimensions. Convergent and divergent validity statistics are presented resulting from a questionnaire being applied to 249 respondents from companies located in Brazil.

► Here I present a scale developed to classify organizations as being exploiters, explorers, ambidextrous or with no defined orientation. ► Exploration and exploitation may be classified into six practical dimensions: organizational knowledge practices, innovative practices, competition, strategic orientation, organizational efficiency and partnerships. ► The scale allows the identification of links to other theoretical currents addressing organizational strategies and learning processes. ► Applying the scale in the company, may establish a set of actions designed to strengthen exploitation, or exploration, or even both of them simultaneously.