From individual to organization: the nesting architecture of T- shaped capacities in the knowledge economy

Purpose – With the aim of deepening the study of the human and organizational cognitive endowment necessary to survive and innovate in a knowledge economy, in this study we theoretically explore and discuss the nesting architecture of ‘T-shaped’ capacities from individual to organizational level. Design/methodology/approach – The paper is rooted in the recent notion of ‘T-shaped’ knowledge and moves from the distinction between capacities and competences. A T-Shaped knowledge configuration means an endowment which includes both vertical competences (I-Shaped competences), but also ‘horizontal capacities’. Originality/value – We propose an innovative organizational design characterized by a nesting (“recursive”) architecture of T-shaped capacities. The “recursive” way to think of a T-shaped capacities set could lead to new way to frame and link together different dimensions of an organization: individual, structural and systemic. The emerging need for T-Shaped capacities set both at individual and organizational level is stimulating to deep understanding the basic elements of the T-shaped endowments. Practical implications – The “recursive” way to conceive a T-shaped capacities set could support organization in defining the cognitive richness and abundance (variety) necessary to effectively survive in environmental conditions of complexity. The principle of Ashby’s law of requisite variety is not an abstract concept. Rather it is a very concrete managerial principle: if an organization is not capable to change by adapting itself in response to external changes, it will not be able to survive.