While prior studies recognize the importance of knowledge accumulation capabilities in innovation performance, current research has still failed to empirically identify its role with regard to ...different types of innovation performance. The objective of this paper is to address this knowledge gap and to explore the relationships between internal knowledge creation and absorptive capabilities, and incremental and radical innovation performance. The study also contributes to analyzing the complex effect that organizational size has in the whole innovation process, influencing its antecedents (internal knowledge creation capability and absorptive capability) as well as its outputs (incremental and radical innovation performance), as the literature has produced inconsistent results and the issue is subject to continuing debate. This study demonstrates that incremental innovation performance is positively affected by both knowledge accumulation capabilities and size. However, results show that only absorptive capability has a positive direct effect on radical innovation performance, whereas size has a negative non-significant effect on it. The effect of size on knowledge accumulation capabilities also turns out to be mixed. It appears to increase internal knowledge creation capability, but it does not affect the absorption of new external knowledge.
•Incremental innovation performance is positively affected by internal knowledge creation and absorptive capabilities.•Absorptive capability affects radical innovation performance positively.•Size has a direct positive effect on incremental innovation performance.•Size has a direct positive effect on internal knowledge creation capability.
This paper offers a diagnosis of the “state of the issue” regarding the measurement of innovation in the tourism industry at the company level, and some recommendations for overcoming identified ...problems. The study addresses two central issues: how existing secondary databases of innovative activity define the boundaries of the tourism industry, and the degree to which these databases reflect the particular characteristics of this economic activity. It is concluded that these analyses present serious biases and anomalies hindering the understanding of the situation at the micro level and complicating the issue of international comparability, and the analyses do not capture the internal heterogeneity of innovative behavior of tourism companies from specific, intra-sectoral activities. The problems concern inappropriate indicators and the need for survey methods to complement the development of innovation scoreboards in secondary sources. The study concludes by detailing a set of proposals that should be considered in the context of a scoreboard to provide a comprehensive view of a tourism firm’s technological and organizational innovations, as well as its innovative capabilities, combining Schumpeterian theory and the dynamic-capabilities-based approach, and also making cross-national comparisons feasible.
► We review the issues in measurement of innovation in tourism at a firm level. ► The theoretical and methodological problems in secondary databases are analyzed. ► We justify the need of combining Schumpeterian and dynamic-capabilities approaches. ► We also postulate the need of capturing data from primary surveys. ► We offer a proposal for measuring innovative capabilities and performance in tourism.
The processes for absorbing external knowledge become an essential element for innovation in firms and in adapting to changes in the competitive environment. Despite the huge growth in the absorptive ...capacity literature, a methodological gap still remains about a certain ambiguity in the definition of the construct specifying its theoretical domain and dimensionalization, and a lack of validation of the construct in most studies. The aim of this paper is to contribute to the literature on absorptive capacity through the creation and validation of two scales, justified with a thorough analysis of the literature, to measure the key components of the absorptive capacity construct: potential and realized absorptive capacities. The study includes confirmatory factor analysis on a sample of 952 Spanish firms to verify that the scales meet the psychometric properties the literature requires. The study results confirm the validity of the proposed scales and support their consolidation as a commonly used instrument with which to measure absorptive capacity.
This study assesses the relationship between organizational innovation and technological innovation capabilities, and analyzes their effect on firm performance using a resource-based view theoretical ...framework. The article presents empirical evidence from a survey of 144 Spanish industrial firms and modeling of a system of structural equations using partial least squares. The results confirm that organizational innovation favors the development of technological innovation capabilities and that both organizational innovation and technological capabilities for products and processes can lead to superior firm performance.
Tourism is a major activity in the global economy, not only in terms of its economic impact but also its social and environmental implications. The management practices and processes adopted by ...tourist companies and destinations are very heterogeneous and have variable impacts on the triple-bottom-line sustainability (people, profit, planet) of the ecosystem. However, there is still only limited available knowledge about the value of different practices for promoting both sustainable development and greater competitiveness. This Special Issue includes papers that present new ideas, theories, advancements, experiences, evidence or methodologies that support the convergence of economic, social and environmental competitiveness, the factors that help ensure their alignment, and the obstacles to complementarity between sustainability, responsibility and competitiveness in the tourism industry.
By combining the resource-and capabilities-based view and agency theory, this paper offers a framework within which to examine the nature of dynamic capabilities in family firms, and how they are ...affected by the ownership, governance and management structures. We focus on technology-based innovation capabilities, differentiating between sensing, seizing and transforming capabilities. We expand the analysis of family involvement, defined as the family firm owner's ability to influence firm behavior, identifying three distinct structures that underpin decision-making power and control capacity in family firms: the capital structure, the governance and management structure of the business; and the governance structure of the family itself. The empirical research was carried out on a sample of 748 family firms from the Spanish tourism industry. We find that the effects of these dimensions of family involvement on dynamic capabilities are asymmetric. A concentrated ownership structure with a high degree of family control and a substantial share of family wealth committed to the business are shown to have a negative effect. The management structure is shown to be the key body for fostering the accumulation of dynamic capabilities, although a high level of family involvement in the top management team and having a family member as CEO represent major barriers to this process. On the other hand, the board of directors and its composition appear not to be relevant structural elements. The most powerful structural factor in facilitating the development of innovation capabilities is the existence of an effective family board and the implementation of family management instruments. These mechanisms help to mitigate the negative effects of a family-controlled ownership and management structure. The findings represent a significant contribution to the literature on family firms, innovation management and corporate governance.
The popularity of quality management as a system for continuous improvement has not been accompanied by deep theoretical understanding of its effects on process innovation. In this work, the ...resource-based view serves as the basis for the construction of a model designed to explain the effects of quality management practices (QMP) on process innovation performance and the mediating role of dynamic capabilities in this relationship. The empirical data were analysed using the structural equation modelling technique by examining 6 competing models that represent full, partial mediation and non-mediation relationships on a sample of 550 Spanish industrial companies. The findings indicate that the implementation level of QMP is not directly related to process innovation performance, but learning and technological capabilities fully mediate this relationship. Therefore, QMP needs to enhance and develop dynamic capabilities to effectively achieve the improvement and transformation of a firm's processes.
The question of what types of public environmental policies contribute most effectively to environmental innovation in companies remains open. This study evaluated how managerial perception of public ...environmental policy inspired the way in which firms act to adapt to challenges related to the natural environment, and the subsequent advancements in environmental performance of the firms. Our empirical analysis was based on data sets of environmental behaviour and the results from 1151 Spanish firms during the period 2002–2005. Our research concluded that each model of environmental public policy inspired different patterns of environmental adaptation by the firms. Voluntary policies, and within them those based on cooperation, were the most stimulating for the adoption of proactive environmental practices, especially those more innovative practices that may even extend beyond legal regulation. The adoption of more advanced environmental innovations by firms submitted to auto-regulation allowed both a superior improvement and a higher level of environmental performance.
The quest to understand the multilevel antecedents of competitiveness has led to a separation of approaches. On one side of the question are the environment theories that analyze the structural ...characteristics of the general and competitive environment. On the other side are the Resource Based View and its extensions that highlight firm-specific resources and capabilities as the main basis of firms' competitiveness. However, in recent years the nature of competition and shifting economic conditions have given rise to new theoretical approaches that complement the assumptions underlying both environmental and firm theories. Specifically, this study contributes by examining the regional environment effect, the district effect and the strategic group effect. Through a study of 364 Spanish tourism firms, this research explores the relative importance of distinct external forces such as the general environment or country effect, the regional effect, the competitive environment or industry effect, the district effect, and internal factors such as the firm's tangible resources, capabilities and strategy selection. The results demonstrate that firms' capabilities are more important than environment effects and tangible resources.
Display omitted
•This study examines the various theoretical approaches available to explain tourism firm competitiveness.•This research explores the relative importance of distinct external forces and internal factors.•The results demonstrate that firms' capabilities are more important than environment effects and tangible resources.•Of the external factors, the most relevant significant variable is the wealth of shared resources in the tourist destination.
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to enrich the explanation of the interplay between internal and external – or district shared – exploration and exploitation capabilities as antecedents of a ...firm’s radical and incremental innovation. Previous studies do not differentiate between exploration and exploitation in district shared capabilities and how they interact with internal capabilities.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper uses hierarchical regression analysis to test the quadratic and moderating effects in a sample of 1,019 Spanish firms.
Findings
Results show an increasingly positive effect on radical innovation of exploration capabilities, enhanced by shared capabilities in exploration. In the case of incremental innovation, the study finds evidence of an increasingly positive influence of exploitation capabilities and a concave relationship of exploration capabilities. Moreover, shared exploitation capabilities weaken the effect of internal exploitation capabilities and also have a direct effect on incremental innovation. Therefore, the two capabilities are interchangeable in the effect they have on incremental innovation.
Practical implications
Depending on the firm’s innovation strategy, intra-district firms should develop specific capabilities and/or concentrate on adopting the shared capabilities in the destination.
Originality/value
The study furthers the understanding of the relationship between exploration and radical innovation, and between exploitation and incremental innovation, which is more complex than previously depicted. The study also differentiates between exploration and exploitation in shared capabilities, enriching understanding of the competitiveness of district firms.
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