I develop a System Dynamics simulation model to examine the conditions under which large firms adapt to sharp changes in the competitive landscape. This paper capitalizes on, and aims to extend the intra-organizational ecological theory of organizational adaptation, which reconciles the workings of selection and adaptation forces in the process of organizational change. The paper interprets the narrative theory from the feedback perspective, translates it into a system dynamics model, and simulates the model under different assumptions of firm characteristics. More specifically, I experimentally reproduce in vitro a firm’s adaptation process to closely scrutinize how the morphology of firm’s resource allocation mechanisms interacts with stocks of available resources to mould an unfolding adaptation path. The simulation experiments unveil the role of timing, path-dependence and self-reinforcing mechanisms in decision-making.