1 Discovery and Organization : Priorities In

This paper starts with a survey of different notions of learning, and finds that the “logic” of discovery has been neglected. The paradox of “exploitation” and “ exploration”, derived from the organization literature, is proposed as the core issue. We need to recognize the importance of organization and co-ordination, in learning and innovation. This implies, among other things, that transaction cost theory must be incorporated in our theory of learning and innovation. The paper proposes a constructivist, interactionist view of knowledge. This has implications for our concept of the firm and inter-firm relations. It discusses a cycle of discovery which extends the life-cycle theory of innovation, and it considers the implications for organizational (dis)integration.