How Allocation of Resources and Attention Aids in Pursuing Multiple Organizational Goals

Abstract

Organizations often pursue multiple goals for survival and competitive advantages. We address strategies for the pursuit and achievement of multiple goals from the perspectives of the allocation of resources and attention. Using a computational simulation model, we examine the impact of resource and attention allocation from the perspective of organizational learning, considering it as a critical series of goal-oriented activities, under the argument that the pursuit of the organizational goal is the process of evaluating, searching, and decision making. Our results yield three main strategies that enhance organizational outcomes: sequential attention to goals with more individuals assigned to each goal, scheduling longer times for the achievement of each goal, and managing allowing the organization to proceed with goal-oriented work quickly while individuals take things slowly within an assigned input time as an effective way of using given time. These strategies are pivotal to the successful pursuit and achievement of multiple goals.