Knowledge and innovation in start-up ventures: A systematic literature review and research agenda

Abstract

This paper studies the use of knowledge for innovation purposes in start-ups. Studies at the thematic intersection of knowledge, innovation, and start-ups are spread across different research fields and exhibit various aims and foci. Thus, we conducted a systematic literature review of 90 academic articles using a three-stage approach (planning, conducting, and reporting and dissemination) to investigate the relationship between knowledge and innovation, categorise knowledge (into sources, mechanisms, and types), and identify antecedents of knowledge, innovation measures, descendants of innovation, moderators, and mediators. This study contributes to the existing literature by developing an integrated framework for knowledge and innovation research in the start-up context, thereby enabling researchers and practitioners to gain insights into areas researched previously and identify existing literature gaps. This paper's findings suggest that most research focuses on one level of analysis, collects data at one point in time, and concentrates on for-profit start-ups. At the same time, the interplay between knowledge sources, mechanisms, and types receives little attention. Furthermore, actual financial performance measures have seldom been included, and a better connection between qualitative, quantitative, and theoretical research findings would be beneficial.