The impact of international experience on firm economic performance. The double mediating effect of green knowledge acquisition & eco-innovation

Abstract

This study analyses the impact of international experience on firm economic performance from the organisational learning approach. Moreover, the study explores the double mediating effect of green knowledge and eco-innovation in the relationship between international experience and economic performance. Using data from 120 Spanish internationalised agri-food companies, a structural equation model is proposed. Findings reveal that international experience does not have a direct and immediate effect on global economic performance. However, international experience positively influences eco-innovation in internationalised firms, which are exposed to more demanding environmental pressures and are able to assume this risker type of innovation with greater guarantees. Eco-innovation is more likely when the company increases its green knowledge stock, considering that the acquisition of green knowledge is also favoured by international experience. According to these results, it can be concluded that companies which do not use their international experience to acquire new knowledge and to introduce innovations, have more difficulty in improving their overall performance.