Structural Relationship and Influence between Open Innovation Capacities and Performances

Kwangsoo Shin,Eungdo Kim,EuiSeob Jeong

doi:10.3390/su10082787

Abstract

Previous studies related to open innovation have presented piecewise implications in relation to various knowledge management capacities. The study published by Lichtenthaler and Lichtenthaler in 2009 presented a model that combines the various open innovation capacities of firms in view of a mix of knowledge management, dynamic capability and absorptive capacity. Despite these efforts, there have been few empirical studies on the relationships among capacities, or between capacities and performance from an integrated perspective. Therefore, this study seeks to clarify the relationships among knowledge capacities and between knowledge capacities, technological innovation and financial performance at the firm level. Our findings are that the transformative, connective, inventive and absorptive capacities both directly and indirectly affects technological innovation performance; and innovative and desorptive capacities are the key factors connecting technological innovation to financial performance. This study provides managerial implications for the balanced development of the various knowledge capacities and the improvement of technological innovation and financial performance for firm knowledge managers.

Highlights

Since Chesbrough [1], the open innovation approach has become an important strategy that links a firm’s knowledge capacities and performance
The findings show that inventive capacity improves transformative capacity, which is the ability to transform knowledge held within the firm
This study showed that absorptive capacity plays a role in improving transformative capacity and connective capacity, which is the ability to maintain the linkage of external knowledge

Summary

Introduction

Since Chesbrough [1], the open innovation approach has become an important strategy that links a firm’s knowledge capacities and performance. The firm’s knowledge capacities are closely related to intellectual property (or the knowledge base) and to the capability to implement the innovation process [7] In this view, scholars have clearly distinguished these approaches as knowledge implementation strategies for knowledge exploration and exploitation, sometimes explicitly mentioning the need to retain internal and external knowledge as strategic resource [8,9,10]. Lichtenthaler and Lichtenthaler [11] introduced the concept of integrating six firm’s knowledge capacities by combining these retention, exploration, exploitation and internal and external firm activities in open innovation systems by applying the laws of biological evolution. These discussions have been conceptually presented and have not been studied empirically.

Theories and Hypotheses

Variables and Analytical Method

Results and Discussion

Conclusions