Innovation in social economy firms

Abstract

PurposeThis study aims to examine whether the determinant factors of innovations broadly accepted for traditional firms – the personal traits of the entrepreneurs, the features of the firms and the environment – also influence innovation in social economy companies.Design/methodology/approachBased on a sample carried out between small cooperatives and worker‐owned companies – which are the most representative legal forms in the Spanish social economy collective – the authors develop an empirical study using a logistic regression model.FindingsThe results show that, on the whole, innovation in these kinds of firm seems to be determined by the same set of variables as in the case of traditional firms. In addition to this, the present research reveals that the influence of these variables on entrepreneurial innovations depends on the kind of innovation. Finally, the findings also give evidence about the existence of an inter‐dependence among the different types of innovation in social economy firms.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is limited to small firms within the Spanish industrial and service sectors, but provides future researchers with further replication opportunities.Originality/valueTaking into account the relevant contribution of social economy companies to the Spanish economy, and having noted the scarce number of studies about innovation in the social economy sector, this research offers a significant contribution by specifying the innovative behavior of social economy firms in Spain.