Abstract
In the face of increasing competition in the space industry driven by companies such as SpaceX, organizational ambidexterity: the ability for space companies to manage both exploitation and exploration activities, is increasing vital for these companies to compete successfully. This research applies the concept of organizational ambidexterity to the space sector to explore the validity of organizational ambidexterity in space companies. First, the academic concepts and frameworks behind organizational ambidexterity are explored. Next, the space sector is analyzed empirically to identify key success factors vital to the success of space companies. Subsequently, the connections between the academic framework and empirical factors are drawn to propose an organizational ambidexterity model specific to the space industry. The proposed model is discussed and validated in the context of several case studies, especially that of SpaceX. Finally, we make recommendations for the use and future research of organizational ambidexterity models for the space sector.
