The impact of service innovation on firm performance: a meta-analysis

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Changli Feng ◽  
Ruize Ma ◽  
Lin Jiang

PurposeWith the rise of service economy, many companies are attempting to gain a competitive advantage through service innovation. However, the existing research has not drawn consistent conclusions about the relationship between service innovation and firm performance. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to provide a quantitative review on the service innovation-performance relationship based on research findings reported in the extant literature.Design/methodology/approachStudies from 46 peer-reviewed articles were sampled and analyzed. A meta-analytic approach was adopted to conduct a quantitative review on the relationship between service innovation and firm performance, and the effects of any potential moderators were further explored.FindingsThe results found that service innovation has a significant positive impact on firm performance. Additionally, the relationship between service innovation and firm performance is influenced by measurement moderators (economic region and performance measurement), and contextual moderators (firm type, innovation type, customer factors and attitudes toward risk).Originality/valueThe meta-analysis has been used to explore the relationship between service innovation and firm performance, and the findings have contributed to the literature on service innovation, as well as providing future research directions.

2018 ◽  
Vol 38 (7) ◽  
pp. 1562-1588 ◽  
Author(s):  
Weijiao Wang ◽  
Kee-Hung Lai ◽  
Yongyi Shou

Purpose Servitization has been recognized as an effective means for manufacturers to achieve superior performance. However, the servitization-performance relationship is controversial since prior empirical studies have provided inconsistent and even contradictory results. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to provide a quantitative review on the servitization-performance relationship based on research findings reported in the extant literature. Design/methodology/approach Studies from 41 peer-reviewed journal articles were sampled and analyzed. A meta-analytic approach was adopted to conduct a quantitative review on the relationship between servitization and firm performance. Findings The results confirm a positive servitization-performance relationship. In addition, the results reveal that the observed servitization-performance relationship is influenced by the operationalization of constructs (servitization and performance) and control variables (industry and region). Originality/value As the first meta-analysis on the servitization-performance relationship, this study contributes to the servitization literature and provides future research directions.


2019 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Thi Thuc Anh Phan

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between organizational innovation and performance of firms in Vietnam. Design/methodology/approach Based on the literature review, the author proposed five hypotheses covering the relationships between different aspects of organizational innovation and firm performance. Data collected from a survey of 266 firms in Vietnam were analyzed to test the proposed hypotheses. Findings Two out of three aspects of organizational innovation, including “innovation in business practices” and “innovation in workplace organization,” are significantly positively associated with firm performance. However, there was no evidence to support the relationship between firm performance and the third organizational innovation aspect, “organizational innovation in external relations.” The results also show that the interaction terms among three aspects of organizational innovation do not have significant impacts on firm performance. Practical implications Firms in Vietnam should pay more attention to innovation in business practices and innovation in workplace organization since two aspects have clear positive influences on performance. Moreover, firms can perform each of the organizational innovation aspects independently or in parallel, as the implementation of organizational innovation in one aspect does not influence the impact on the firm performance of organizational innovation in other aspects. Originality/value This study provides important insights into the widely recognized yet little-researched relationship between organizational innovation and firm performance and concludes that organizational innovation has a positive impact on firm performance.


2018 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 315-333 ◽  
Author(s):  
Blendi Gerdoçi ◽  
Guido Bortoluzzi ◽  
Sidita Dibra

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the literature on business model (BM) design by deepening the relationship between BM design themes and performance in a sample of firms based in a developing country. In particular, the authors deepen the relationship between business model novelty (BMN), business model efficiency (BME), the trade-off between novelty and efficiency – that the authors call BM ambidexterity – and performance. Design/methodology/approach Data are drawn from a sample of 107 manufacturing and service firms based in a developing country (Albania). Hierarchical regression is used to assess the impact on firm performance from the two BM design themes and their interaction. Findings The authors find novelty-centred BM design is significantly related to firm performance while efficiency-centred design has no direct effect on performance. However, the authors also find that BME positively moderates the relationship between BMN and firm performance. Research limitations/implications The relationship between BM design and firm performance can be better understood if contextualised. In the paper, the authors find that different types of BM designs have different impacts on the performance of firms based in a developing economy. While novelty matters, quite surprisingly the authors find no support for efficiency. Additionally, the authors find the interaction between the two design themes (BM ambidexterity) to have a positive impact on firm performance. Practical implications The surveyed firms based in a developing economy appear to benefit from novelty-centred BM designs. Efficiency-centred designs have a more ambiguous role: while efficiency alone seems not to pay off, an efficient BM design may facilitate the market exploitation of a novel design. Originality/value This study responds to a precise call for additional quantitative empirical studies on the relationship between BM and performance. The study also contributes to an emerging stream of research focused on BM ambidexterity.


2017 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 178-202 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patricia Bachiller

Purpose Despite the vast literature on privatization, the relationship between change of ownership and performance is not clear. The purpose of this paper is to understand why divergences are found between the empirical results of papers analyzed. Design/methodology/approach The author applies a meta-analysis to a sample of 60 empirical studies that analyze the performance of privatized companies. The author checks whether different results on performance can be explained by the method of privatization and the level of development of the country of privatized companies. Findings The findings indicate that companies privatized by public offerings obtain a better performance than companies privatized using other methods, such as private sale or voucher privatization, and do not support the common-place assumption that privatization in developing countries does not improve financial performance. Originality/value The study contributes to the literature on privatization because it adds new empirical evidence about the privatization programs and it first applies a meta-analysis to a sample about privatization on state-owned companies. The author discusses theoretical and managerial implications and offers suggestions for future research on privatization.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Zaynab Dadzie ◽  
Ahmed Agyapong ◽  
Abdulai Suglo

Purpose This study aims to examine the mediating role of internationalization in the relationship between the dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and performance, empirical study of small and medium scale enterprises (SMEs) in a developing nation. Design/methodology/approach The study uses a sample of 158 exporting SMEs based in the sub-Saharan developing economy, Ghana. The use of hierarchical regression (ordinary least square analysis) was used by the researcher to assess the suggested model of the study. Findings Largely supporting the conjectural predictions, the study indicates that EO positively and significantly influences performance; internationalization fully mediates the relationship between innovativeness and performance of export firms; internationalization fully mediates the relationship between risk-taking and performance of export firms; and finally, internationalization partially mediates the relationship between competitive aggressiveness and performance of export firms. Managers are, therefore, encouraged to strategically develop both their EO and internationalization, as the study has confirmed that EO has both a direct and indirect relationship with performance. Originality/value This study integrated a resource-based view of the firm and international entrepreneurship theory as a theoretical foundation. Theoretically, internationalization’s mediating role reveals the relevance of this construct in the linkage between entrepreneurial orientation and firm performance. Furthermore, the study extends the entrepreneurial orientation concept to the international business literature by estimating and testing models of the mediating link between entrepreneurial orientation and performance. Moreover, the study seeks to broaden the knowledge of entrepreneurial orientation and its relationship with performance in small and medium businesses. The study further extends the limited studies on performance, driven by entrepreneurial orientation and internationalization in a developing nation (Ghanaian) context. This paper besides seeks to highlight the impact of entrepreneurial orientation on performance when channeled through internationalization. The study also reveals the dimensions of entrepreneurial orientation to be important antecedents of internationalization, in attempts at unearthing the critical predictors of firm performance, especially those of international characteristics.


2020 ◽  
Vol 43 (8) ◽  
pp. 971-987
Author(s):  
Vasiliki Kosmidou

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between family firm generational involvement and performance. Although researchers have studied this relationship extensively, a complete understanding of its true magnitude and sign is still lacking. Design/methodology/approach This meta-analysis sheds new light on this relationship, integrating the findings of 43 studies with 51 independent samples and 18,802 family firms. Findings The results reveal a small and negative relationship indicating that later-generation family firms perform worse compared to first-generation ones. The authors also show that the relationship is stronger for younger than older and for private than public firms. Finally, the measurements of both variables influence the relationship yielding critical research implications. Research limitations/implications This study suggests that future researchers examining the effects of generational involvement on family firm performance should conduct their analysis using multiple measures of both variables to ensure the accuracy of their results. It also highlights the need of family business scholars to converge to the use of a universal family firm definition, as findings differ significantly in strength and direction depending on which definition is used. Practical implications From a practitioners’ perspective, the findings imply that owners of young and private family firms should consider professionalizing and adopting a balanced top management team composition consisting of both family and non-family members as a way to mitigate the negative effects of “familiness” on performance. Originality/value This study empirically demonstrates the importance of adopting a generational perspective when examining differences in family firm performance.


2016 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 722-738 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ajay K. Jain

Purpose This study aims at investigating the effect of vertical trust on distributed leadership (DL) and performance as mediated by job satisfaction, and further to observe the role of DL in carrying out the effect of satisfaction on employees’ performance. Design/methodology/approach As grounded in the organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) literature, the author proposes that employees’ participation in DL should be viewed as an extra role behavior, as leadership functions are not directly related to their job description. The study uses large-scale survey data from a study in one of Denmark’s largest public hospitals (N = 1,439). Findings The results of structural equation modelling (SEM) analysis showed that job satisfaction mediates the relationship between vertical trust and DL, and DL had a positive impact on job performance. Furthermore, the results showed that job satisfaction had a positive impact on DL and employees’ performance. Moreover, DL has positively affected employees’ performance, and it carries the impact of job satisfaction on performance. Research limitations/implications The study showed that trust and job satisfaction are important triggers of DL. Furthermore, results are interesting because literature so far has shown an insignificant relationship between satisfaction and performance. Here, the author establishes that the satisfaction–performance relationship is mediated by DL. The findings should motivate health care organizations to introduce structures and educate formal leaders so that DL can be enabled. Originality/value This should be the first study that relates trust and DL in an empirical manner. As grounded in the OCB literature, results also showed the significance of job satisfaction as a mediator variable.


2018 ◽  
Vol 42 (5) ◽  
pp. 734-768 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christian Schwens ◽  
Florian B. Zapkau ◽  
Michael Bierwerth ◽  
Rodrigo Isidor ◽  
Gary Knight ◽  
...  

The article conducts a meta–analysis on the relationship between internationalization and firm performance in international entrepreneurship. Empirical evidence from 15,648 internationalizing entrepreneurial firms nested in 43 independent samples reveals a positive relationship between degree and scope of internationalization and performance. Knowledge intensity positively moderates the relationship between speed of internationalization and performance and negatively moderates the scope of internationalization and performance association. In contrast, we neither find a relationship between speed of internationalization and performance nor for knowledge intensity's moderation on the degree of internationalization–performance association. Based on the findings, the article systematically points at future research opportunities.


2014 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 210-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yi-Chun Huang ◽  
Ying-Jiuan Wong ◽  
Min-Li Yang

Purpose – This study examined how proactive environmental management affects firm performance and whether a controlling family moderates this effect. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – The study adopted content analysis to collect data on listed Taiwanese firms and used cross-sectional regression analysis to examine the relationship between proactive environmental management and firm performance as well as the moderating role of a controlling family. Findings – The results indicated that not all types of proactive environmental management are positively associated with firm performance and that a controlling family might be more effective in low-risk proactive environmental management practices. Research limitations/implications – The focus was on the impact of proactive environmental management from the perspective of stockholders. Future research could investigate its impact on other stakeholders as well. Practical implications – The findings might convince managers that the stereotype of an environment-friendly firm – that the more its green initiatives, the less competitive it becomes – may not necessarily be true. Investing in product-focused pollution prevention could increase revenues and improve performance. Even though process-focused pollution prevention is negatively associated with firm performance, companies are not expected to reduce investment in green processes since they are required for the production of environment-friendly products. Originality/value – This study adopted a multi-dimensional approach to reveal how different types of proactive environmental management affect firm performance. The authors used the controlling family as a moderating variable to determine whether it moderates the relationship between proactive environmental management and firm performance.


2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (3) ◽  
pp. 352-370
Author(s):  
Michelle Li ◽  
Helen Roberts

Purpose This paper aims to examine the relation between CEO board membership and firm performance. Design/methodology/approach This paper investigates the relationship between firm performance and CEO board membership, applying two-stage least squares, propensity score matching and correcting for self-selection bias across a unique sample of publicly listed New Zealand firms that demonstrate a definitive variation in CEO board membership. Findings This study finds that CEO board membership has a positive impact on firm performance, and these benefits are greater for more complex firms. Research limitations/implications Firms with CEOs independent of the board are associated with lower firm performance. The results are consistent with CEO board members providing an important information transfer mechanism to the board, resulting in an increase in average firm performance. This benefit is greater for larger firms with more business segments. Originality/value The paper tests for the impact of CEO board membership using a data set that demonstrates a definitive variation in CEO board membership.


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