The nuances of knowledge creation and development in Indian pharmaceutical industry

– Based on strategic management approaches, this paper aims to develop a systemic and dynamic model of knowledge creation. The boundaries of the environment are changing in terms of contract research, in‐licensing, out‐licensing where strategic intent also changes and gets redefined., – This is an exploratory study using available theories and evidences of companies fanning in different directions in the form of novel types of alliances. Suitable propositions are developed for further study., – The study concludes that organisations will have to reach for tacit knowledge and enhance the knowledge stock by constantly absorbing and assimilating new ideas and research findings., – More study in depth and across a variety of companies is required to validate the findings particularly comparing the research and development (R&D) paths of organisations located in multiple countries. Not merely big firms, even small to medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) can be the subject of further study., – Previous studies concentrated on conservation, accumulation and recycling of knowledge without considering the absorption capacity of firms. This study takes for its heart the absorptive capacity as the ingredient of dynamic learning opportunities. Both for micro and macro initiatives, a joint interaction is necessary for knowledge to germinate and grow. Organisational learning is also a part of this process. Intellectual property in specialised research fields therefore must be created and defended.