Study identifies open-innovation microfoundations for capability creation in African markets

A study of multinational corporations operating in African emerging markets identifies seven microfoundations linking open innovation with the development of dynamic capabilities. The research centers on environmental alertness, access to diverse knowledge streams, outward projection of corporate capabilities, strategic relationships, systematic resource accumulation and organizational fluidity, with an additional microfoundation identified in the full analysis but not named in the published summary. The findings offer a microfoundational account of how multinational corporations may acquire and evolve resources through interactions between external collaboration and internal capabilities.

The analysis examines open innovation and dynamic capabilities as complementary approaches to corporate strategy in African emerging markets. Open innovation represents the incorporation of external collaborative activity, while dynamic capabilities concern the capacity to adapt and strengthen internal resources in response to changing conditions. The study emphasizes that firms operating across African markets must balance outside knowledge and relationships with the continued fine-tuning of internal resources.

This balance is particularly demanding because the research describes the region’s business environments as culturally, regulatory and economically varied. In this setting, the analysis argues, open innovation can become an important part of corporate survival and growth rather than an optional activity isolated from the firm’s internal organization. Environmental alertness is the first major element of the proposed framework.

It represents the capacity to remain attentive to shifts and opportunities within the surrounding business environment. Firms also need contact with varied sources of knowledge that may contribute to the pursuit or development of new resources and capabilities. The study identifies a seventh microfoundation in its fuller examination of open-innovation initiatives, although the available summary does not specify its name.

All seven are described as connecting the adoption of open innovation with the evolution of dynamic capabilities and potentially hastening the acquisition of novel resources. The research also emphasizes the difficulties surrounding this process. Open innovation depends on intricate social interactions, and firms must reconcile external resources with established internal capabilities.

Those challenges can be magnified by the cultural, regulatory and economic diversity found across African emerging markets. The authors consequently present vigilance, engagement with diverse knowledge sources, outward-facing capabilities, strong relationships, resource accumulation and fluidity as central considerations for MNCs using open innovation in African emerging markets. The published summary does not report sample size, quantitative effect estimates or controlled causal comparisons, so the framework should be understood as an analytical account of capability creation rather than a quantified demonstration of performance gains.

Subject of Research: Open-innovation microfoundations for capability creation by multinational corporations in African emerging markets

Article Title: The microfoundational view of capability creation and environmental alertness of multinational corporations in emerging markets

Article References: Kofar Naisa, F. U., Zhao, Z., Hussien Emam, N. G., Zaki Abo alazm, M. A., Saleh Abdesalam, F. G., Sani, A. A., Abdullahi, M. S., & Ado, A. B. (2026). The microfoundational view of capability creation and environmental alertness of multinational corporations in emerging markets. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-026-09475-z

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1057/s41599-026-09475-z

Keywords: open innovation, dynamic capabilities, multinational corporations, emerging markets, Africa, environmental alertness, knowledge exchange, strategic relationships, resource accumulation, organizational fluidity, microfoundations, microfoundational