Abstract
Purpose – This study attempts to build an integrated framework to discuss the influence of three types of innovations, i.e. strategic, management, and technological innovations, on firm competitiveness. Design/methodology/approach – Paired survey responses are collected from 303 firms located in China. A confirmatory factor analysis is implemented with SPSS AMOS software to check the reliability and validity of all measures through structural equation modeling. Four hypotheses are empirically examined with SPSS PROCESS Macro in combination with a bias-corrected bootstrapping technique to test the chain multiple mediation model linking strategic, management, and technological innovations to firm competitiveness. Findings – Although strategic, management, and technological innovations are carried out at different organizational levels, they formulate a holistic framework to jointly improve firm competitiveness. Strategic innovation strengthens firm competitiveness through three parallel routes, i.e. via management innovation, via technological innovation, and via the serial mediating mechanism of management and technological innovations. Also, the mediation effect of management innovation is significantly stronger than that of technological innovation. Originality/value – This study integrates strategic, management, and technological innovations into the process of improving firm competitiveness to account for their joint influences, challenging the conventional paradigm where different types of innovations are investigated separately. Cross-domain knowledge flow, exchange, and combination are realized within the broad innovation construct.
Highlights
Innovation is a hot topic for both academics and practitioners
We assessed four measurement models: (i) a one-factor model with all items loaded to a single latent construct; (ii) a two-factor model in which firm competitiveness formed the first latent factor and other items related to firm innovation constituted the second latent factor; (iii) a three-factor model in which firm competitiveness and technological innovation were two latent factors and other measures were loaded to the third factor reflecting non-technological innovation, including both strategic innovation and management innovation; (iv) a four-factor model linking each item to its corresponding latent construct
This paper starts with the relationship among strategic innovation, management innovation, and technological innovation, and proceeds to construct a research framework discussing how they jointly improve firm competitiveness
Summary
Innovation is a hot topic for both academics and practitioners. Scholars continue to promote innovation research from various perspectives. Crossan and Apaydin’s (2010) systematic review of the innovation literature analyzes academic articles published between 1981 and 2008 to synthesize various perspectives into a multi-dimensional framework of the field of innovation. Scholars continue to promote innovation research from various perspectives. Crossan and Apaydin’s (2010) systematic review of the innovation literature analyzes academic articles published between 1981 and 2008 to synthesize various perspectives into a multi-dimensional framework of the field of innovation. They note that one crucial aspect of the innovation research is concerned with the classification of innovation into different types, among which the differentiation between technological and non-technological innovation is fundamental. The value of distinguishing between the concept of non-technological innovation and the overwhelmingly more studied construct of technological innovation is increasingly recognized, the literature on nontechnological innovation is highly fragmented, loosely connected, conceptually ambiguous, and lacks a comprehensive understanding (Černe, Kaše, & Škerlavaj, 2016; Damanpour & Aravind, 2012) Extant literature drawing on the technological vs non-technological typology acknowledges that non-technological innovation is increasingly becoming a prominent yet previously overlooked factor which stimulates firm performance through facilitating product and process innovation (Armbruster, Bikfalvi, Kinkel, & Lay, 2008) and enhancing productivity and flexibility (Goldman, Nagel, & Preiss, 1995; Womack, Jones, & Roos, 2007).
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