How should a dynamic capability be defined

The meaning of the dynamic capability term in the organizational literature seems to be evolving. The original meaning of Teece et al (1997) had somewhat of a tautological character as it refered to the ability to change the resource base of an organization in order to adapt to changes in the environment. More recent treatments simply refer to “a capacity to modify the resource base of an organization” (Peteraf & Maritan, 2007). But maybe we should call this meta-routine (Nelson & Winter, 1982) or second-order capability (Winter, 2003) to be clearer. The term dynamic capability should perhaps be reserved for a capability which is dynamic, i.e. which changes over time in the sense that it can be refined or modified.

Nelson, R. & Winter, S. 1982. An evolutionary theory of economic change. Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.

Teece, D., Pisano, G. & Shuen, A. 1997. Dynamic capabilities and strategic management. Strategic Management Journal, 18: 509-534.