SEARCH FAR AND DEEP: FOCUS OF OPEN SEARCH STRATEGY AS DRIVER OF FIRM'S INNOVATION PERFORMANCE

2013 ◽  
Vol 17 (03) ◽  
pp. 1340007 ◽  
Author(s):  
KAISA HENTTONEN ◽  
PAAVO RITALA
Keyword(s):  
Search Strategy ◽  
Search Strategies ◽  
Moderating Effect ◽  
Innovation Performance ◽  
Technological Capabilities ◽  
Knowledge Sources ◽  
Firm Level ◽  
External Knowledge ◽  
Deep Focus

The effects of open search strategies (i. e., search for firm-external knowledge) on firm-level innovation performance are still ambiguous in the existing literature. We introduce the concepts of focused search strategy and multi-focus search strategy as differentiating factors for a firm. The results of a cross-industrial survey from Finnish markets suggest that applying one focused search strategy intensively generally enhances the firm-level innovation performance. It also seems that emphasizing multiple search strategies intensively improves performance even more, and that the effect becomes stronger, the greater the number of knowledge sources used. Furthermore, the results show that firm-specific technological capabilities have a negative moderating effect in terms of highly focused search strategies, but this diminishes when the focus gets more diverse.

Developing process and product innovation through internal and external knowledge sources in manufacturing Malaysian firms: the role of absorptive capacity

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (5) ◽  
pp. 1021-1039 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Ramayah ◽  
Pedro Soto-Acosta ◽  
Khoo Kah Kheng ◽  
Imran Mahmud
Keyword(s):  
Absorptive Capacity ◽  
Product Innovation ◽  
Manufacturing Firms ◽  
Innovation Performance ◽  
Knowledge Sources ◽  
Manufacturing Companies ◽  
Organizational Capability ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
External Knowledge

PurposeFirms' knowledge-processing capabilities have a central role in achieving innovation performance and competitive advantage. Absorptive capacity capabilities and innovation are viewed as essential for enterprise success. Absorptive capacity is deemed as a highly important organizational capability to recognize value and assimilate both external and internal knowledge in order to enhance firm innovation. The aim of this study is to determine if innovation performance can be improved through absorptive capacity (knowledge acquisition, dissemination and utilization), when it is supported by internal (firm experience) and external knowledge sources (R&D cooperation and contracted R&D).Design/methodology/approachA quantitative methodology based on employing a structured questionnaire was used for data collection. The proposed research model and its associated hypotheses are tested by using Partial Least Squares (PLS) structural equation modelling (SEM) on a data set of 248 manufacturing companies located in the Northern Region of Malaysia.FindingsResults showed that firms' experience is significantly related to absorptive capacity, while for R&D cooperation and contracted R&D findings were mixed. In addition, absorptive capacity was found as a strong predictor of innovation performance.Originality/valueOne of the defining features of competition in many industries has been the extremely rapid pace of technological change, marked by a continuous stream of innovations. Manufacturing firms, therefore, face the challenge of nurturing existing knowledge and developing novel knowledge in order to create new business opportunities. This study makes valuable contributions with regard to understanding the behavioural of manufacturing firms towards process and product innovation.

Unpacking the relationship between external IT capability and open innovation performance: evidence from China

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (7) ◽  
pp. 1789-1805 ◽  
Author(s):  
Su-Ming Wu ◽  
Xiu-Hao Ding
Keyword(s):  
Information Technology ◽  
Open Innovation ◽  
Knowledge Integration ◽  
Search Strategy ◽  
Innovation Performance ◽  
External Information ◽  
Content Type ◽  
External Knowledge ◽  
It Capability ◽  
The Relationship

PurposeInformation technology plays a critical role in the open innovation process. The purpose of this study is to explore the inner mechanism of external information technology (IT) capability that affects open innovation performance.Design/methodology/approachIn this paper, responses to 232 questionnaires from different firms were collected in China. Then, the proposed hypotheses were tested using regression analysis by statistical product and service solutions (SPSS).FindingsThe results indicate that external knowledge integration plays a mediating role in the relationship between external IT capability and open innovation performance, openness breadth positively moderates the influence of external IT capability on external knowledge integration and openness depth negatively moderates the relationship between external IT capability and external knowledge integration.Practical implicationsThe results, which are based on Chinese responses, provide useful suggestions for firms in China. To use external IT capability to improve open innovation performance, firms should not only stress the role of external knowledge integration but also consider their search strategy.Originality/valueBoth researchers and practitioners are interested in the relationship between information technology and open innovation. However, the way in which the inner mechanism of external IT capability affects open innovation performance has not been thoroughly researched. Based on knowledge integration theory, the authors construct a model that includes external IT capability, external knowledge integration, search strategy and open innovation performance. The results of this paper confirm the mediating and moderating roles of external knowledge integration and search strategy, respectively.

Openness and firm innovation performance: the moderating effect of ambidextrous knowledge search strategy

2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 301-323 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chunhsien Wang ◽  
Tachia Chin ◽  
Jie-Heng Lin
Keyword(s):  
Search Strategy ◽  
High Technology ◽  
Innovation Performance ◽  
Innovation Activity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
External Knowledge ◽  
Technology Firms ◽  
Knowledge Strategy ◽  
High Technology Firms ◽  
Knowledge Search

Purpose Openness to external knowledge has recently gained popularity as a means for firms to complement and leverage internal knowledge in the pursuit of innovation outcomes. However, conflicting evidence exists regarding the role of openness in external knowledge acquisition. This paper aims to propose that openness to external knowledge has a nonlinear effect on innovation performance and that this nonlinear relationship is contingent on an ambidextrous knowledge search strategy. Design/methodology/approach Based on original large-scale survey of 246 interfirm collaborations in the high-technology industry, it is found that the impact of openness to external knowledge on innovation performance exhibits an inverted-U shape and that this relationship is affected by an ambidextrous knowledge search strategy. Findings The results indicate that an ambidextrous knowledge strategy that addresses the depth and breadth of external knowledge significantly influences a firm’s ability to derive benefits from increased openness to external knowledge. Empirically, the authors provide an original contribution to high-technology firms by exploring how and why an ambidextrous knowledge strategy can be a critical catalyst spurring innovation performance. Research limitations/implications The research scope is limited to a single industry. Further research could extend the theoretical framework to multiple industries, which may increase the likelihood of innovation theory development. Practical implications The results suggest that firms opening up the boundaries of their innovation activity to engage in external knowledge are able to leverage their in-house innovation to enhance their innovation performance. The authors advocate that in innovation management domains, greater emphasis is needed on how openness to external knowledge has more positive impacts not only on innovation performance but also on innovation implemented management. Originality/value This study is among the first to investigate the ambidextrous knowledge search effect on the external knowledge of high-technology firms. This paper contributes to the theoretical and practical literature concerning openness innovation and knowledge management by reflecting on the ambidextrous knowledge search strategy.

EXPLORING OPEN SEARCH STRATEGIES AND THEIR PERCEIVED IMPACT ON INNOVATION PERFORMANCE—EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE

2011 ◽  
Vol 15 (03) ◽  
pp. 525-541 ◽  
Author(s):  
KAISA HENTTONEN ◽  
PAAVO RITALA ◽  
TIINA JAUHIAINEN
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Evidence ◽  
Open Innovation ◽  
Search Strategies ◽  
Innovation Performance ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Innovative Performance ◽  
External Knowledge ◽  
Market Driven ◽  
Perceived Impact ◽  
The Relationship

Given Chesbrough's idea of open innovation, it could be said that external knowledge is an important element in the optimisation of in-house innovation. External knowledge is distributed among various actors and is accessible through many channels. However, we still do not know much about the search strategies that affect innovation performance. Our study therefore explores the relationship between open knowledge search strategies and company-level innovative performance. This study examines the open search strategies of 193 firms on the basis of cross-sectional data from Finnish markets. We identified four specific strategies, namely (1) market-driven, (2) science-driven, (3) intermediary-driven and (4) generic-knowledge-driven. According to the results, all except intermediary-driven strategies positively affect innovation performance.

The diversity of knowledge sources and its impact on firm-level innovation

2019 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 681-714 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shoaib Abdul Basit ◽  
Kehinde Medase
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Innovation Performance ◽  
Knowledge Sources ◽  
Sources Of Information ◽  
Firm Level ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Public ◽  
Knowledge Diversity ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
Knowledge Competencies

Purpose The combination of different knowledge sources has been considered conducive for innovation performance. While the literature has advanced regarding the combination of knowledge inputs as in internal and external research and development (R&D), the evolvement of knowledge blend from customers and competitors has also received substantial attention. The purpose of this paper is to delineate the sources of information from the customers into private and public and examine their direct effect on firm-level innovation. While the extant literature is mixed regarding this, no clear-cut results have emerged yet on the effect of knowledge combination from the private and public customers with internal R&D and human capital on innovation activities. This study, however, shed more lights on the inconclusiveness of the effect of knowledge diversity on firm-level innovation. Design/methodology/approach Using the microdata from the German Community Innovation Survey 2013, the authors employ a binary instrumental variable treatment model with Heckman selection, a suitable strategy to estimate binary variables to cope with a possible endogeneity issue. Findings The paper demonstrates that knowledge from customers in the private and public sector, and competitors are positively and significantly associated with innovation. The authors find evidence of a positive and significant effect of the combination of firm internal knowledge competencies with information from the public sector. In contrary, the blend of knowledge competencies with information from customers in the private sector and information from the competitors results in decline to innovation. The results also show that the blend of internal R&D with knowledge source from the customers in the public sector appears to have a stronger influence in the manufacturing sector than services. The results offer strong evidence of the positive link between knowledge diversity and firm-level innovation performance. Practical implications The results have significant managerial implications on the role of the blend of different sources of information in supporting a compelling internal knowledge development to optimise innovation performance. Originality/value This study is foremost to focus on knowledge sources from the customers in the public and private sector and its relationship with R&D and human capital in supporting a successful introduction of innovation.

scholarly journals On external knowledge sources and innovation performance: Family versus non-family firms

Technovation ◽  
2022 ◽  
Vol 114 ◽  
pp. 102448
Author(s):  
Phuong-Anh Nguyen Duong ◽  
Wim Voordeckers ◽  
Jolien Huybrechts ◽  
Frank Lambrechts
Keyword(s):  
Family Firms ◽  
Innovation Performance ◽  
Knowledge Sources ◽  
External Knowledge ◽  
Family Versus

Cognitive proximity and innovation performance: are collaborators equal?

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mari O' Connor ◽  
Justin Doran ◽  
Nóirín McCarthy
Keyword(s):  
Innovation Policy ◽  
Probit Model ◽  
Innovation Performance ◽  
Community Innovation Survey ◽  
Firm Level ◽  
Content Type ◽  
External Knowledge ◽  
Innovation Output ◽  
Backward Linkages ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThis paper combines the concepts of search depth and cognitive proximity to investigate the impact of intense collaboration with different external agents on firms' innovation performance. It empirically tests whether firms that draw deeply on cognitively proximate collaborative partners are more innovative than those collaborating intensively with cognitively distant partners. It explores whether the impact of each external agent is equally important in determining the innovation output of firms.Design/methodology/approachUsing data from the Irish Community Innovation Survey 2012–2014, this paper employs a probit model to empirically test the impact of collaboration with cognitively proximate and distant sources of external knowledge to establish whether their impact on innovation performance is uniform.FindingsThe results show that not all collaborators equally impact firm innovation performance. Firms who indicate that knowledge sourced from backward linkages with suppliers is highly important are more likely to engage in both product and process innovation, with the effect more pronounced for the former. The extent of this is greatest for backward linkages compared to forward, horizontal and public linkages. Public linkages have the weakest impact on innovation output which raises questions from a policy perspective given the focus on university–industry collaboration for innovation. The findings indicate that collaboration with cognitively proximate sources of knowledge benefits firms' innovation output.Originality/valueThe study provides empirical evidence on the role of intense collaboration with cognitively proximate and distant external knowledge sources to explore their impact on the subsequent innovation performance of firms. The results can be used to help shape firm-level innovation policy, and indeed national policy, to promote innovation performance.

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