Abstract

What makes similar firms respond differently to the emergence of a new institutional logic? I draw on practice theory to study the differences between firms that are largely similar in the conventional macro-institutional differentiators such as position, structure and governance. To do so, I conducted a qualitative study inside two firms in the automobile industry in Jamshedpur, India and discuss that in conjunction with the cognitive (head) aspects of strategy making, the daily practices may (hands) provide a complimentary understanding. I find, surprisingly, that a machine can have an agentic role to play in a firm's response to a new institutional logic and this response could vary depending on the impact that a firm's materials have on its supply chain practices, organizational practices and the mindset of top management. Finally, my model of the centrality of materiality conceptualizes the inter-relatedness of the role of materiality, cognitive aspects and daily practices within an organization.