The Ambidextrous Organization: Designing Dual Structures for Innovation
Foundational book chapter by Robert B. Duncan, published in “The Management of Organization Design: Strategies and Implementation” (Kilman, Pondy, Slevin, eds., North Holland, New York, pp. 167-189). Duncan coined the term “ambidextrous organization,” arguing that firms need dual structures to manage innovation: organic, flexible structures for initiation and mechanistic, efficient structures for implementation. This work laid the conceptual groundwork for all subsequent research on Organizational Ambidexterity, influencing March (1991), O’Reilly, Tushman, and others.