Resources and Strategy: Returning to the Primary Theoretical Perspectives

Abstract

Objective: Our objective in this article was to revisit some of the main studies on the resource-based perspective and, additionally, point out possibilities for theoretical development.

Method: The texts were accessed through the book “Resources, firms, and strategies”, by Nicolai J. Foss. We also seek insights from three contemporary papers.

Originality/relevance: The resource-based perspective is one of the most pervasive theories in the field of strategy. Revisiting the work edited by Foss, which contains texts written by seminal authors of the field, allowed us to identify their origins and reflect on the contemporary production. The study also allowed us to prospect relevant theoretical extensions for the apprehension of new realities.

Results: We present interrelations among the texts that make up the book reviewed and three papers. This exercise allowed us to look up at classic texts of the theoretical field and contemporary researches at the same time.

Theoretical/methodological Contributions: Revisiting seminal texts from the field contributes to keeping alive the academic debate on the memory of its theoretical foundations. More than three decades after the denomination of the Resource-based View - which occurred in the paper published by Birger Wernerfelt (1984) - reflective insights about the evolution of the field are appropriate. This review evokes its bases and repositions them in current times. It also draws attention to some issues that still require theoretical development, as well as suggests ways for new theoretical explorations. Context issues, such as globalization and sustainability, subsidize renewed proposals.