Abstract
Recent research questions our understanding of the processes at play regarding information technology (IT) capabilities’ contribution to innovation performance, particularly under environmental uncertainty. Strategic entrepreneurship (SE) or the interface of entrepreneurship and strategic management, which aims to answer the very question of how firms create value or wealth and sustain success in increasingly competitive and dynamic environments, is deemed the appropriate catalyst to further explore this link. Thus, this study attempts to examine the driving effects of IT capabilities on product innovation performance (PIP) by exploring the mediating role of SE. Data were collected from 164 small- and medium-sized enterprises (SME) information communication technology (ICT) firms in Canada. Partial least squares (PLS) regression tested the hypotheses derived from the research model, and data exploration and analysis including visual analytics were performed in R. Results confirm that IT capabilities drive PIP and thereby create firm level value. Secondly, SE had a direct impact on PIP, and SE partially mediates IT capabilities effect on PIP. To date, SE research has mostly been conceptual in nature making this study one of the few to empirically capture the phenomena and highlight its link to sustainable innovation performance.
Highlights
Despite claims that information technology (IT) and its perceived performance link is both imperative to managers and policy makers [1], and necessary for firm growth and survival [2], previous research has returned mixed results [3,4] thereby leaving a gap in the literature
The current research is motivated by our agreement with [5,6] who state that little is known about the relationship between IT capabilities and such performance measures, and with [1] who called for greater investigation into the improved IT business value (ITBV) of emerging forms of IT, the role of other intermediary firm resources
We aim to contribute to the ITBV and strategic entrepreneurship (SE) literatures as well as inform managerial practice by exploring two primary research questions: (1) what role does IT capability play in firm wealth/value creation? (2) what role does SE play in mediating the IT capability effect on product innovation performance (PIP) (Product Innovation Performance)?
Summary
Despite claims that IT and its perceived performance link is both imperative to managers and policy makers [1], and necessary for firm growth and survival [2], previous research has returned mixed results [3,4] thereby leaving a gap in the literature. We aim to contribute to the ITBV and SE literatures as well as inform managerial practice by exploring two primary research questions: (1) what role does IT capability play in firm wealth/value creation? (2) what role does SE play in mediating the IT capability effect on PIP (Product Innovation Performance)? Innovation is widely regarded by academics and practitioners as important to the function of the firm but imperative for its continued operation and an especially critical component of the firm’s strategy [17]
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