The Effect of Intrapreneurship and Supervisor Trust on Management Performance

Abstract

Intrapreneurship has recently attracted considerable attention. This study aims to explore how intrapreneurship and trust in a supervisor (also referred throughout as “supervisor trust”) promote management performance so as to expand research on intrapreneurship. The study’s sample set is taken from 288 employees of 38 different companies to statistically verify the hypotheses. Through the SPSS 24 statistical method, the study’s main results were uncovered as follows. First, entrepreneurial education has a positive effect on intrapreneurship. Second, intrapreneurship has a positive effect on management performance. Third, trust in a supervisor has a positive impact on management performance, and the moderating effects of trust in a supervisor are found between intrapreneurship and management performance. The following implications are recognized. Firstly, although research on intrapreneurship has been carried out for more than 30 years, it is still in the stage of systematic theory, and there is room for further research, especially when the cultural background is different, the results may come out differently. Secondly, if the degree of intrapreneurship increases, the management performance will be high. Trust in the supervisor is consistent with this viewpoint, because if subordinates trust in their supervisors, there will be positive business performance and management performance. Therefore, intrapreneurship and trust are very important in the process of achieving performance and play an important role in the actual business. Thirdly, trust in the supervisor plays a moderating role between intrapreneurship and performance, which means that a structural mechanism exists between them. The study’s results indicate that it is necessary to emphasize entrepreneurship at the appropriate level in SMEs, and that it is important to ensure that intrapreneurs receive education and develop trust in their supervisors. In addition, it is obvious that entrepreneurial education leads employees to focus on management performance through intrapreneurship and that a high degree of supervisor trust will have a positive effect on performance. These findings can help companies strengthen their competitiveness and achieve their business targets.