Fei Li, Jin Chen and Yu-Shan Su
Collaboration with universities is an important innovation strategy for enterprises. However, currently very little research has focused on how such university-industry…
Abstract
Purpose
Collaboration with universities is an important innovation strategy for enterprises. However, currently very little research has focused on how such university-industry collaborative innovation activities should be managed. The paper aims to discuss this issue.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper introduces the university-industry collaborative innovation practices of Zhejiang NHU Company in China. By using a case study as the method, this paper aims to illustrate the mechanism of university-industry collaborative innovation and how to manage the collaborative innovation activities efficiently.
Findings
Zhejiang NHU Company established a university-industry collaborative innovation link through three innovation platforms: the technology R&D center, the ZJU-NHU joint-research center, and the national engineer center. Zhejiang NHU Company manages its collaborative relationships with universities through this innovation network.
Originality/value
NHU Company managed the collaborative relationship efficiently with the institutions, representing an effective degree of university-industry collaborative innovation management.
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Roulin Chen and Ling Cao
Drawing on the “Resource- Capability – Competitive advantage” framework within Natural Resource-Based View, this study is purposed to address problems of manufacturing companies…
Abstract
Purpose
Drawing on the “Resource- Capability – Competitive advantage” framework within Natural Resource-Based View, this study is purposed to address problems of manufacturing companies “turning into the green” issues, providing references for manufacturing companies to achieve green competitive advantage via internal motivation and identity perspectives.
Design/methodology/approach
This study collected survey data from 112 Chinese manufacturing listed enterprises from the Shanghai Stock Exchange, and obtained 418 questionnaires. Following an empirical design, hierarchical regression analysis and Bootstrapping analysis were applied to examine these hypotheses.
Findings
Results show that green innovation behaviors positively mediate the positive relationship between organizational environmental identity and green competitive advantage. Furthermore, slack resource not only positively moderates the interaction effect between organizational environmental identity and green product innovation behaviors, but also moderates the mediation role of green product innovation behavior in the main effect.
Research limitations/implications
The study is limited to the data samples and dynamic evolution between variables. More longitudinal designs and diverse enterprise fields will be considered in future.
Practical implications
The findings provide guidance for manufacturing enterprises to gain green competitive advantage in green manufacturing era from identity value origins. Moreover, the results provide practical suggestions for manufacturing enterprises to enhance green innovation behaviors and integrate useful but slack resources.
Social implications
The findings provide implications for manufacturing industry to increase both the awareness of organizational environmental identity and green innovation behaviors, all of which helps promote the corporate environmental responsibility.
Originality/value
The study breaks the limitation of the existing literature which focuses on the influence of external push factors (e.g. environmental regulation), and bring new visions in constructing green competitive advantage in green manufacturing era, not only extending the identity theory and upper echelon theory, but also enriching the current studies on green management. Also, these findings provide deeper and new insights into risks and uncertain features of green manufacturing era, analyzing how polluted manufacturing enterprises obtain green competitive advantages through the mediating role of green innovation behaviors and the moderating role of slack resource.
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Shaopeng Zhang, Xiaohong Wang and Ben Zhang
The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of the innovation ability of universities (IAU) on the efficiency of University–Industry knowledge flow and investigate…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of the innovation ability of universities (IAU) on the efficiency of University–Industry knowledge flow and investigate whether the level of provincial innovative agglomeration (PIA) moderates the relationship between IAU and the efficiency of the University–Industry knowledge flow.
Design/methodology/approach
This study uses the super-efficiency data envelopment analysis model to measure knowledge research efficiency (KRE) and knowledge transformation efficiency (KTE) and then studies the influencing mechanism of the two kinds of efficiency using the spatial Tobit model with panel data from 2008 to 2017.
Findings
The results show that the overall KRE in Chinese universities is higher than the KTE. IAU has a significantly positive impact on KRE and KTE. PIA has a significantly inverted U-shaped influence on KRE and KTE and positively moderates the promoting effect of IAU on KRE and KTE.
Research limitations/implications
Due to the limitations of the data, this paper only selects several secondary indicators to measure KRE and KTE with reference to previous studies.
Practical implications
This study enriches the future research of University–Industry cooperation and knowledge flow and it is conducive to promoting the efficiency of University–Industry knowledge research and transformation from the perspective of universities, enterprises and local governments.
Originality/value
This study proposes the concept of University–Industry knowledge flow and divides the knowledge flow into the knowledge research stage and the knowledge transformation stage based on the knowledge supply chain theory. Moreover, the paper expands the theoretical framework of the impact of IAU on the efficiency of University–Industry knowledge flow and provides findings on the moderating effect of PIA.
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Su-Jung Hwang and Jae-Hyeok Choi
Technological innovation is crucial for businesses to achieve development and profitability through enhancing core capabilities and differentiating competitive advantages. The key…
Abstract
Technological innovation is crucial for businesses to achieve development and profitability through enhancing core capabilities and differentiating competitive advantages. The key to organisational survival is boosting innovation performance focused on technological innovation, as SMEs lack resources and competencies compared to large companies. Entrepreneurship is a topic of active research to overcome SMEs’ resource and size limits. This is because entrepreneurs’ capabilities are considered more important in small and medium-sized enterprises closely related to corporate success than in large enterprises that can receive organisational support. In addition, a company’s holding capacity is a direct driver of creating differentiated competitiveness because it can pursue product differentiation through high levels of market capabilities and technology capabilities. Therefore, this study attempts to demonstrate entrepreneurship and technological innovation for SMEs. Reviewing previous studies, the authors derive the organisational capabilities needed by the organisation for innovation and examine how these organisational capabilities (technological, market, and operational capabilities) relate to entrepreneurship and technological innovation.
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Shuwei Zang, Mengyuan Sun, Qimeng Wang, Haofu Wang and Shanwu Tian
The purpose of this paper is to discuss how enterprises can effectively perceive and use the digital opportunities brought about by digital technologies and dynamic environments…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to discuss how enterprises can effectively perceive and use the digital opportunities brought about by digital technologies and dynamic environments and how they can enhance their capabilities to realize digital transformation and adapt to the development of the digital economy era.
Design/methodology/approach
Based on the windows of opportunity theory and strategic cognition theory, this paper conducts an empirical analysis of the questionnaire data of 268 enterprises and discusses the influence of external windows of opportunity and internal windows of opportunity on the digital transformation of enterprises, as well as the action mechanism of strategic cognition and entrepreneurship.
Findings
The results show that both the external windows of opportunity and the internal windows of opportunity have significant positive effects on the digital transformation of enterprises. Strategic cognition plays a partial mediating role in the external windows of opportunity and the internal windows of opportunity influencing the enterprise digital transformation process. Entrepreneurship plays a positive regulatory role in the process of external windows of opportunity and internal windows of opportunity influencing strategic cognition.
Originality/value
This paper deepens the relationship between internal and external windows of opportunity and enterprise digital transformation and contributes a new theoretical cognition. This paper integrates the strategic cognition theory to clarify the complex process mechanism of digital transformation using external situational opportunities and internal capabilities. This paper introduces entrepreneurship into the path mechanism of digital transformation and expands the characteristics of the study of digital transformation antecedents to the individual level within the enterprise.
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Navitha Singh Sewpersadh and Tamanna Dalwai
The interplay between individual and collective creativity and its translation into innovation is a critical yet complex challenge in the ever-evolving innovation landscape. This…
Abstract
Purpose
The interplay between individual and collective creativity and its translation into innovation is a critical yet complex challenge in the ever-evolving innovation landscape. This study delves into the intricate relationship between managerial ability, intellectual property rights (IPRs) and research and development (R&D) investments contextualized within the dynamics of leverage, firm life stages and tangibility for pharmaceutical firms in the Asia-Pacific region. By exploring how micro-level factors influence macro-level innovation processes, this study aims to contribute to the broader understanding of creativity and innovation, a theme at the heart of addressing contemporary global challenges.
Design/methodology/approach
Econometric methodologies were used to analyse a data set comprising 2,660 firm-year observations spanning the decade from 2011 to 2020.
Findings
A key finding was that companies with lower managerial prowess strategically leverage R&D intensity to signal their value to the market and accrue reputational currency. The research unearths a significant positive relationship between managerial ability, IPRs and R&D investment. In environments characterized by strong managerial acumen and robust IPR safeguards, firms exhibit a heightened propensity to allocate resources to R&D endeavours. This underscores the role of intellectual leadership and legal protections in shaping R&D strategies within the pharmaceutical domain. Incorporating firm life stages as a moderating factor reveals that firm maturity fundamentally influences the interplay between managerial ability, IPRs and R&D expenditure.
Originality/value
These findings’ implications resonate profoundly within policy-making circles and pharmaceutical firms’ day-to-day operational strategies, underscoring the pivotal role of intellectual capital and legal safeguards in shaping the future of innovation in the Asia-Pacific pharmaceutical sector.
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Giustina Secundo, Gianluca Elia, Alessandro Margherita and Karl-Heinz Leitner
Managing a project involves taking a number of critical decisions that can have a crucial impact on the success or failure of the initiative. The analytical definition and…
Abstract
Purpose
Managing a project involves taking a number of critical decisions that can have a crucial impact on the success or failure of the initiative. The analytical definition and visualization of the main components of a project can support project managers engaged to address the right issues at the right time. This article aims to identify crucial crossroads in the management of a project and to provide a visual representation of knowledge involved into a system of project components and decisions.
Design/methodology/approach
A design science process is adopted to define the initial goals and requirements and to develop the knowledge visualization framework. Expert feedback is also gathered to obtain a preliminary validation of the framework.
Findings
Moving from a system view of project dimensions, we identify eight types of strategic decisions, i.e. growth, problem shifting, goals balancing, escalation, rewarding, resource allocation, problem fixing and cooperation. We then present a visualization map of project decision making addressing six categories of knowledge (i.e. “what-knowledge”, “how-knowledge”, “who-knowledge”, “why-knowledge”, “what for-knowledge”, “when-knowledge”).
Research limitations/implications
The framework needs further theoretical refinement in terms of more fine-grained decision types, other determinants and the reciprocal influence in the management of project activities.
Practical implications
The article can support project managers attempting to build a comprehensive view of project decisions, and it can be a basis to develop novel types of knowledge management systems for project-related applications.
Originality/value
The article proposes a new approach to sustain strategic decision making in project management by adopting a knowledge visualization view. Moreover, it provides an operational tool for managers and analysts at different levels engaged into the management of a project.
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Tingting Liu, Yehui Li, Xing Li and Lanfen Wu
High-tech enterprises, as the national innovation powerhouses, have garnered considerable interest, particularly regarding their technological innovation capabilities…
Abstract
Purpose
High-tech enterprises, as the national innovation powerhouses, have garnered considerable interest, particularly regarding their technological innovation capabilities. Nevertheless, prevalent research tends to spotlight the impact of individual factors on innovative behavior, with only a fraction adopting a comprehensive viewpoint, scrutinizing the causal amalgamations of precursor conditions influencing the overall innovation proficiency of high-tech enterprises.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper employs a hybrid approach integrating necessary condition analysis (NCA) and fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) to examine the combinatorial effects of antecedent factors on high-tech enterprises' innovation output. Our analysis draws upon data from 46 listed Chinese high-tech enterprises. To promote technological innovation within high-tech enterprises, we introduce a novel perspective that emphasizes technological innovation networks, grounded in a network agents-structure-environment framework. These antecedents are government subsidy, tax benefits, customer concentration, purchase concentration rate, market-oriented index and innovation environment.
Findings
The findings delineate four configurational pathways leading to high innovative output and three pathways resulting in low production.
Originality/value
This study thereby enriches the body of knowledge around technological innovation and provides actionable policy recommendations.
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Malin Song, Weiliang Tao and Zhiyang Shen
This paper aims to examine the impact and mechanism of digital development on enterprise labor productivity. In addition, this study empirically analyzes the nonlinear impact of…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to examine the impact and mechanism of digital development on enterprise labor productivity. In addition, this study empirically analyzes the nonlinear impact of digitalization on labor productivity.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper uses a fixed effect model, a mediation effect model and a panel threshold model to test the theoretical hypothesis of this study.
Findings
The results demonstrated that digitalization had a promotional effect on labor productivity, with approximately 18% of this effect achieved through transmission and influence on human capital. In addition, the novelty of this study lies in the discovery that digitization has an obvious nonlinear positive effect on corporate labor productivity. The results suggest that companies should increase investment in data-driven innovation capabilities, improve the implementation of digital talent training plans, improve their financing capacity and strengthen corporate internal management, while the government should provide appropriate policy support differently for various enterprises.
Originality/value
This study takes China’s Shanghai and Shenzhen A-share listed companies as the research object, systematically examines the impact and mechanism of digital development on enterprise labor productivity and explores the nonlinear relationship between digitalization and enterprise labor productivity, which is a new angle.
研究目的
本文旨在探讨数字化发展对企业劳动生产率的影响及其机制。此外, 本研究实证分析了数字化对劳动生产率的非线性影响。
研究设计/方法/途径
本文采用固定效应模型、中介效应模型和面板门槛模型来检验本研究的理论假设。
研究发现
结果表明, 数字化对劳动生产率有促进作用, 其中约 18% 是通过对人力资本的传导和影响来实现的。此外, 本文的新颖之处在于发现了数字化对企业劳动生产率具有显著的非线性正效应。结果表明, 企业应加大对数据驱动创新能力的投入, 完善数字化人才培养计划的实施, 提高融资能力, 加强企业内部管理, 政府应针对各类企业提供差异化的政策支持。
研究原创性
本研究以中国沪深A股上市公司为研究对象, 系统考察了数字化发展对企业劳动生产率的影响和机制, 探讨了数字化与企业劳动生产率之间的非线性关系, 这是一个新的研究角度。