The influence of peer pressure on organizational imitation

Purpose The purpose of this study is to provide an insight into organizational imitation and why managers engage in these types of strategies. While imitating other organizations is sometimes a good business strategy, there are also negative examples of imitation that hurt the organization. Thus, this paper will provide some insight into why people managing organizations decide to imitate other organizations, give examples of imitation and provide guidelines for organizational leaders when considering organizational decisions. Design/methodology/approach The authors provide examples of organizations and a discussion of notable events that surround the decision for organizations to imitate one another. In doing so, the authors view imitation as a cognitive choice made by managers consisting of individual traits, external factors and intrinsic desires as a group of interrelated factors associated with social conformity. Findings The decision to imitate another organization is made by people, not organizations. Based on different factors of social conformity, the authors present guidelines for organizational leaders to consider when faced with the decision whether to imitate other organizations. These questions presented are intended to enable executives to better understand their personal motives and the implications associated with imitating other organizations. Originality/value Thus far, there is insufficient information in the research literature to determine when imitation is beneficial or harmful to an organization from an operational perspective; however, there is research that examines why individuals imitate others from a psychological perspective. By proposing different factors which impel managers to imitate other companies, the authors hope to shed light on this under-researched area of the literature while providing practical suggestions to guide managers in making decisions associated with this practice, social conformity, social norms, risk aversion, institutional isomorphism and organizational imitation.