The Diminishing Role of Tacit Knowledge: An Opportunity-Based Theory of the Digital Economy

The strategic importance of digital transformation has been ushered into the strategy literature primarily through the role of big data and big data analytics in the creation of sustainable competitive advantage under the Resource-based View of the firm. Looking beyond the role of RBV, the authors discuss the implications of interchange between big data and big data analytics and the role of tacit knowledge. Specifically, developing a narrative through the interconnection between corporate entrepreneurship and organizational learning literatures, the authors argue that firms led by executives who embrace an entrepreneurial mindset, characterized by opportunity recognition, value creation, and strategic renewal, have and will outperform in the digital economy by employing both exploitation and exploration activities.