Knowledge sharing for innovation performance improvement in micro/SMEs: an insight from the creative sector

Abstract

As economies become more reliant on innovative, knowledge-intensive firms, understanding the interaction between knowledge and improving innovation performance is increasingly important. Although most UK businesses are micro, small or medium-sized enterprises (micro/SMEs), knowledge management research has tended to focus on large companies Knowledge sharing can be critical for innovation performance, especially for smaller players with limited resources. Our study presents an insight from micro/SMEs operating in the highly knowledge-intensive and innovative games/entertainment software development sector. Using a mixed method approach, we investigate knowledge sharing and its contribution to firm innovation performance improvements. Our findings suggest that micro/SMEs are at the forefront of the creative sector precisely because of their smaller size. Our study reveals evidence of knowledge donation but limited evidence of knowledge collection in the knowledge sharing process. We develop a model highlighting the importance of industry context, individual knowledge and organizational size in knowledge sharing for innovation performance.     

The role of absorptive capacity and innovation strategy in the design of industry 4.0 business Models - A comparison between SMEs and large enterprises

Technological innovations often lead to redesigns in the business models of established companies, requiring them to incorporate new external knowledge into internal activities. Against this background, this study integrates the concepts of business model design, absorptive capacity, and innovation strategy into a novel research model, which analyzes the redesign of established business models in response to the emergence of Industry 4.0. Industry 4.0, also known as the Industrial Internet of Things, constitutes a contemporary research context that is highly relevant for corporate practice but scarcely regarded in management literature until now. The article contains an analysis of data from 221 German industrial enterprises, conducted through structural equation modeling, with separate data for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and large enterprises. First, the results indicate that the acquisition, assimilation, transformation, and exploitation of knowledge from the environment enable companies to engage in both exploratory and exploitative innovation strategies. Furthermore, the paper includes an evaluation of the role of exploratory and exploitative innovation strategies that reflects in efficiency-centered and novelty-centered business model designs. The distinct characteristics differentiating SMEs from large enterprises are also explained. The implications of absorptive capacity on innovation strategies, which influence the redesign of extant business models, are discussed from a research and managerial perspective.     

基于信号传递博弈的产业集群中小企业融资分析

产业集群内中小企业多采用互助担保模式进行融资。他们的融资成功,不仅可以为中小企业的创新发展提供可能,同时也促进了产业集群的转型升级。本文为解决集群内中小企业融资过程中存在的逆向选择问题,提出了一个信号传递博弈模型,并对其分离均衡进行了分析。结果表明:担保公司应设置有效的担保机制,减小高收益能力企业加入共同担保基金时的出资额F₁,增大低收益能力企业的出资额F₂,同时提高可为高收益能力企业的担保比例n₁;而集群内中小企业则应努力提高自身的收益能力θ,使之与低收益能力企业的θ₂差距尽可能大。     

Business Characteristics of Male and Female Small and Medium Enterprises in the UK: Implications for Gender-based Entrepreneurialism and Business Competence Development

The aim of this paper is to identify differences, if any, between the characteristics of male and female businesses and to establish whether female businesses do constitute a distinct entrepreneurial group. The paper presents the results of an ongoing study based on a national survey of nearly 6000 small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the UK. Given that existing research tends to focus, in the main, on the pre-start up and start-up differences, this study aims to identify gender-based differences between male and female owned/managed businesses in their post-formation stage. A gender-based business competence development model is developed and a case is made for what is termed 'gender-based entrepreneurialism'. It is argued given that established male and female businesses exhibit different characteristics, gender-based entrepreneurialism should be acknowledged and considered by policy makers within the SME sector. Female owned/managed businesses may require differentiated policies beyond the pre-start up and start-up stages for developing business competencies and to nurture their growth and development.     

Entrepreneurship,globalization, and public policy

This paper examines the impact of governmental policies in influencing the path of internationalization of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It focuses on the role of institutions mandated to assist internationalization, as exemplified by Canada's Export Development Corporation (EDC). We illustrate and examine critically the role that governments typically play in assisting and influencing the international expansion of domestic firms. We argue that the activities of agencies such as EDC — mainly in financing and in insuring against the risks inherent in export activities — may actually be counterproductive to the long-term interests of many SMEs by skewing managers' decisions toward direct exporting, rather than toward indirect exporting by entering the value chain of already-established multinational enterprises (MNEs). A consequence may be to divert the constrained resources of entrepreneurial firms away from their greatest comparative advantage — innovation — toward managing direct entry into international markets in which they are at a comparative disadvantage relative to larger established MNEs. Highly innovative SMEs might be better off by leaving the internationalization of their innovations to MNEs and sharing some of the international direct exporting profits with them instead. The implications are relevant for governmental policies toward internationalizing SMEs not just in Canada but in open, market-oriented economies everywhere.     

Effects of intellectual capital and university knowledge in indigenous innovation: evidence from Indian SMEs

Abstract

Intellectual capital and collaboration with universities are vital knowledge management practices for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to innovate and improve the effectiveness of their operations. This study investigates empirically the impacts of intellectual capital and university knowledge on indigenous innovation and how business and institutional environments affect the relationships. The research model is tested using moderated regression analysis and data collected from 150 SMEs in India. The results show that intellectual capital and university knowledge improve indigenous innovation, both individually and interactively. The effect of intellectual capital in indigenous innovation is amplified by dysfunctional competition whereas the effect of university knowledge in indigenous innovation is attenuated by environmental uncertainty. In addition, we find that indigenous innovation is positively associated with business performance. The impact of indigenous innovation on business performance is enhanced by dysfunctional competition but reduced by environmental uncertainty.     

Entrepreneurial orientation and the business performance of SMEs: a quantitative study from the Netherlands

Entrepreneurial Orientation (EO) is often mentioned as an antecedent of growth, competitive advantage and superior performance, and prior empirical research has often shown a positive relationship between EO and performance appears to exist. However, an important question that remains unanswered is what effect EO might have on firm performance during periods of economic crisis, and the severe environmental turbulence that accompany such crises. This research is a first investigation towards the effects of EO on the performance of small and medium sized firms during the current global economic crisis. In this study we use the multidimensional model of EO and test a series of hypotheses pertaining to its performance effects using survey data gathered from 164 Dutch SMEs. The present research shows that proactive firm behavior positively contributes to SME performance during the economic crisis. We further show that innovative SMEs do perform better in turbulent environments, but those innovative SMEs should minimize the level of risk and should take action to avoid projects that are too risky.     

Overcoming pandemic challenges through product innovation: The role of digital technologies and servitization

The fast-changing scenario related to the COVID-19 pandemic calls for firms to rapidly redefine and innovate their strategies to sustain their businesses, with research emphasizing the key roles of digital technologies and servitization. We aim to enrich the theoretical debate on this matter by assessing how small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) achieve product innovation under time constraints by leveraging two specific technology groups (information and communication technologies [ICT] and Industry 4.0 data-processing technologies) and servitization. The research is based on a mixed-method approach consisting of an original survey completed by 257 Italian SMEs (grounded on a previous qualitative study about such SMEs' behaviors during the first Italian lockdown), followed by in-depth interviews with the owners and/or managers of the eight SMEs that participated in the survey. The results show a positive relationship between the increased use of digital technologies (ICT and Industry 4.0 data-processing technologies) during the pandemic with servitization and, in turn, with product innovation. Specifically, the increased use of ICT during the pandemic had a direct positive effect on product innovation, while Industry 4.0 data-processing technologies affected product innovation only through the full mediation of servitization. The qualitative study allowed us to highlight how the different kinds of digital technologies supported SMEs’ innovation (servitization and product innovation) during the pandemic. The theoretical and practical contributions of this study are discussed.     

ICT-based solution approach for collaborative delivery of customised products

Growing interest on business collaboration motivates today’s industries, especially small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to establish and manage dynamic and non-hierarchical business networks to respond to market opportunities with added business benefits. This business environment requires concurrent work and real-time information sharing between key business partners in order to design and develop customised products. The use of traditional communication media such as e-mail, phone and fax is not satisfactory to get real-time information and is time-consuming and most often ineffective. In such environments, an Information and Communication Technology (ICT)/Web-based technology supports real-time information sharing among networked SMEs for the collaborative design and manufacturing of customised products. This study proposes an innovative ICT platform supporting SMEs collaboration, through Web and the Internet of Things technologies, which follows the Net-Challenge conceptual approach and methodological guidelines for SMEs to form and operate virtual organisations for the collaborative development and delivery of customised products. The ICT Platform was assessed in three different industry domains, namely the textile and apparel, the footwear and the machine tools, respectively. This ICT solution promotes collaboration, with substantial advantages for SMEs including the reduction of costs and delivery time and improvement of the innovation potential.     

Government policies towards innovation: A review of empirical findings

Since the Second World War, governments in Western mixed economies have become increasingly involved in promoting technical innovation in industry. The analytical basis for this involvement is deficient, as is empirical information and analysis on its effects. But it is probable that, from an economic viewpoint, governments have been mistaken in supplementing normal industrial activity by financing large-scale development projects in technically sophisticated industry. They should instead be financing longer-term basic and applied research, as well as increasing technical awareness in more traditional industries. More needs to be known about the factors affecting innovative decisions in industrial firms, including the effects of industry-specific characteristics and of government policies.     

Inclusive innovation and the role of technological capability-building: The social business Grameen Danone Foods Limited in Bangladesh

This article examines how a least developed country-based social business first creates operational capabilities (OCs) and then, over time, builds innovative capabilities (ICs) to fulfil a social need, be self-sustainable and achieve inclusive innovation. This relationship is examined in Bangladesh's Grameen Danone Foods Limited (GDFL) by integrating the technological capability and inclusive innovation theoretical frameworks and by using data gathered through extensive fieldwork. Broadly, our findings show how GDFL built and accumulated basic and intermediate ICs to undertake innovative activities in all areas of operation. Specifically, our findings scrutinize the process in which a social business develops and organizes its resources to initially build OCs and engage in the creation of ICs through various learning mechanisms to deliver inclusive innovation. From this process, we also observe a set of unpredicted positive spillovers to the community, which expands the inclusiveness effect. The findings also suggest that having a social orientation, triggers the use of different resources from within and outside the firm to achieve inclusive innovation. We conclude by discussing the study's implications for scholars, policy-makers and managers of multinational's social businesses. We also highlight future research areas, and crucially those related to key emerging conceptual limitations of inclusive innovation and development.     

政府刺激性投资政策下中小微企业银税互动设计及其投融资决策

银税互动是中国解决中小微企业融资问题的金融创新。文章在政府刺激投资政策(财政补贴和税收减免)下研究银税互动设计与中小微企业投融资问题，采用实物期权方法，并运用资产定价理论和动态规划理论解析地得到了企业各未定权益价值以及企业决策结果。通过静态比较分析，文章发现与税收减免政策相比较，财政补贴的企业投资加速，破产风险较低，企业价值较高，对应银行紧缩的信贷政策。在债务融资结构方面，企业一般选择银税互动融资。但是，对于财政补贴政策而言，在较稳定的金融环境下，企业会选择银税互动和民间借贷混合的融资方式。此外，文章从企业基本面角度发现，对于波动率较低的企业，银行应采取宽松的信贷政策；对于波动率较高的企业，银行应采取紧缩的信贷政策。最后，从企业和政府角度均发现，在政府政策中财政补贴可能占优。     

Innovationsverhalten in Familienunternehmen

Family businesses are publicly believed to be highly innovative and to be the “Hidden Champions” of the German industry. In recent times scholars have begun to examine this thesis and have come to starkly opposing results. On the one hand family businesses are attested to have a special ?entrepreneurial “spirit” which makes them highly innovative. On the other hand the lack of separation of ownership and control and insufficient diversification of family-investors are said to lead to less innovation activity. In this study we investigate the innovation activity of 384 German manufacturing firms differing in legal structure, size, age, industry, and—most importantly—in the degree of family ownership, family management and family control. The results of our analysis reveals differentiated results. Fundamentally, family ownership and family management are detrimental to firm innovation, at the same time family control has a positive impact on innovation activities. Our Results point to the fact that owner-managed businesses tend to innovate less due to risk aversion while a focus on controlling instead of managing a corporation by the owning family lead to an increase in innovations.     

论金融创新与科技型中小企业融资发展

本文通过分析科技型中小企业融资存在的问题,找寻造成融资障碍的原因,最后从金融创新角度探求冲破科技型中小企业融资障碍的新路径,从而推动科技型中小企业的进一步发展。     

Framing the multifaceted nature of design thinking in addressing different innovation purposes

Scholars and practitioners acknowledge the role of design, and specifically design thinking, as a driver of innovation and change. Design thinking is gaining attention in the business community beyond the traditional product innovation realm and is increasingly promoted as an engine for the creation of novel user experiences, new businesses, strategic transformation, organizational and cultural change. Is it reasonable to assume that the same set of practices fits such a broad range of applications equally well? This study addresses how design thinking applications are differently framed when addressing diverse innovation purposes. Specifically, we compare two purposes: innovation of solutions, encompassing traditional product and service development projects, and innovation of direction, encompassing strategic and organizational renewal projects. Based on data collected from 146 design thinking projects conducted by European consulting firms we investigate the relationships between the design thinking practices adopted and the value generated by the projects. We then analyze how these relationships vary depending on the purpose of the innovation project, namely whether focused on innovating solutions or direction. The results show that different purposes indeed call for different practices. In projects aimed at innovating solutions, market value is positively related to capturing current user needs and envisioning future society. Conversely, in projects aimed at innovating direction, market value is positively related to challenging current assumptions.     

中国中小企业集合债券研究——“聚沙成塔”型融资创新与牵头人“双能力”机制

中小企业集合债券是中国实践中具有特色的“聚沙成塔”型融资创新。对这一创新，文献还没有系统的理论总结与实证分析。本文首次提出集合债的核心机制，即牵头人“双能力”理论——资源动员能力和监督能力。利用2006—2017年期间发行的集合债样本及手工收集的集合债发行主体样本进行实证研究，结果表明(1)集合债主体评级平均为BBB，而匹配样本中单独发债企业评级平均为A。这检验了牵头人的资源动员能力理论，集合债券能使单独发债困难的中小企业也能获得直接融资，打破了债券市场融资的天花板，实现了“从0到1”的跨越。(2)双重差分估计结果表明，中小企业集合债券的发行能促进发行企业的经营效率的提高。这检验了牵头人的监督能力理论。进一步发现，地方中小企业专门管理部门作为牵头人比地方政府作为牵头人更能促进经营效率提高。建议在更大范围内推行地方专门管理部门作为牵头人的中小企业集合债券的创新融资模式。     

战略和愿景提升中小企业创新能力机制研究

本文首先根据企业调研和问卷分析的结果,对阻碍中小企业创新能力提升的内在原因进行了分析,发现创新过程中的战略不协调是阻碍中小企业创新的重要内因.接着,本文对创新能力内涵和影响创新能力的战略因素方面进行了文献综述.然后采用文献研究和案例研究结合的方法,对前人的理论进行了分析总结,将昆药、海尔等案例进行了分析,提出通过战略和愿景提升中小企业创新能力的三条机制:一,清晰的在组织层面上共享的愿景通过指引创新资源配置方向来实现创新能力的提升;二,战略和组织结构的协调通过影响创新资源的配置和组织学习的方式来影响核,心能力的构建;三,战略和文化的协调通过影响组织学习的方式来影响核心能力的形成和积累.最后,本文针对中小企业创新中普遍存在的问题,提出了一些建议.     

市场导向提升中小企业创新能力的机制探讨

创新能力是企业持续与高速发展的关键,尤其对中小企业显得更为重要.影响中小企业创新能力的因素很多,本文从市场导向的视角出发,基于市场导向提升创新能力机制研究缺乏的现状,结合企业实际情况,探讨市场导向如何促进中小企业创新能力提升.研究发现,基于文化现的市场导向,提升创新能力的主要机制:核心技术攻关、构建经营模式、差异化战略以及有效利用用户创新.然后探讨了市场导向的执行需要其他要素的匹配,对影响市场导向作用的相关因素进行简要分析.结尾部分指出本研究的不足之处与将来研究方向.     

高新技术企业创业能力、创新类型与融资方式关系研究

创新是企业实现竞争优势的主要方式,而企业创业能力和资本来源是实现创新的保障。本文利用我国164例中小型高新技术企业,检验创业能力、创新类型和融资方式之间的关系。结果表明,机会能力与突破性创新、风险资本融资程度呈正向关系,而运作能力与渐进性创新、债务融资程度呈正向关系,突破性创新方式与风险资本融资程度呈正向关系,与债务融资程度呈负向关系,而渐进性创新与债务融资程度呈正向关系,与风险资本融资呈负向影响关系。     

考虑投入产出效率的中小企业财务困境预测方法

中小企业在国家和区域经济发展中具有非常重要的作用.本文首先根据中小企业的经营特点,提出了一套财务困境预测的指标体系,然后提出了一种基于数据包络分析和支持向量机的中小企业财务困境集成预测方法.所提出指标体系的主要特点是,在一般企业财务困境预测指标体系的基础上,增加了企业的效率指标.应用安徽省某融资服务机构的70家中小企业历史样本数据,实证分析了本文提出方法的合理性和优越性.