Rigidity, exploratory patience, and the ecological resilience of organizations

Rigidity has been described as a major contributor to both organizational failure and survival. In this essay, we seek to clarify the position of rigidity in organizational adaptation by making some conjectures about exploratory patience, organizational failure, and the nature of learning for further study. These perspectives are illustrated in a study of an emerging biotechnology industry in a scenario that nuances the role of rigidity in adaptation—rigid organizations produce adaptive populations—if the knowledge gained in the course of a failed pursuit is released to, and absorbed by, the population of companies in the industry.