Fostering exploitative and exploratory innovation through HRM practices and knowledge management capability: the moderating effect of knowledge-centered culture

Purpose Given the important role of knowledge resource for organizational innovation, the purpose of this study is to examine the mediating mechanism of knowledge management capability (KMC) and the moderating role of knowledge-centered culture (KCC) in the relationship between human resource management (HRM) and firms’ innovation capabilities. Design/methodology/approach Analysis of moment structures and structural equation modeling are applied to examine the correlation among the constructs based on the survey data collected from 135 manufacturing firms. Findings The empirical findings reveal that KMC positively mediates the relationship between HRM practices and innovation capability. Especially, KCC of organization significantly fosters the impacts of HRM practices on KMC and aspects of innovation capability, namely, exploitative and exploratory innovation. Practical implications Chinese firms should invest in HRM practices and KMC to improve their innovation capabilities. In addition, developing KCC is suitable for Chinese firms to foster the effects of HRM practice on innovation capability. Originality/value By investigating the different moderated-mediation mechanisms, the paper has significantly contributed to advancing the body of knowledge of innovation theory and providing deeper insights on the correlation between HRM practices and firm’s capability for ambidextrous innovations.

[1]  Terry Anthony Byrd,et al.  Business analytics-enabled decision-making effectiveness through knowledge absorptive capacity in health care , 2017, J. Knowl. Manag..

[2]  John E. Delery,et al.  Modes of theorizing in strategic human resource management: Tests of universalistic, contingency, and configurational performance predictions , 1996 .

[3]  Sarra Berraies,et al.  Do leadership styles promote ambidextrous innovation? Case of knowledge-intensive firms , 2019, J. Knowl. Manag..

[4]  L. Sels,et al.  Interrelationships between human capital, HRM and innovation in Belgian start-ups aiming at an innovation strategy , 2010 .

[5]  G. Frankwick.  A new scale for measuring Frugal Innovation: The first stage of development of a measurement tool , 2022 .

[6]  Xiaoyun Wang,et al.  The quasi-moderating role of organizational culture in the relationship between rewards and knowledge shared and gained , 2014, J. Knowl. Manag..

[7]  Jing-Wen Huang,et al.  Strategic human resource practices and innovation performance — The mediating role of knowledge management capacity , 2009 .

[8]  C. Fornell,et al.  Evaluating Structural Equation Models with Unobservable Variables and Measurement Error , 1981 .

[9]  Nijaz Bajgoric,et al.  Information technology, knowledge management and human resource management , 2018 .

[10]  Zhi Yang,et al.  Knowledge sharing serves as a mediator between collaborative culture and innovation capability: an empirical research , 2018, Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing.

[11]  P. M. Podsakoff,et al.  Self-Reports in Organizational Research: Problems and Prospects , 1986 .

[12]  Ellen Enkel,et al.  Exploratory and exploitative innovation: To what extent do the dimensions of individual level absorptive capacity contribute? , 2017 .

[13]  Hui Lei,et al.  Determinants of innovation capability: the roles of transformational leadership, knowledge sharing and perceived organizational support , 2019, J. Knowl. Manag..

[14]  Marina du Plessis,et al.  The role of knowledge management in innovation , 2007, J. Knowl. Manag..

[15]  José Luis Coca-Pérez,et al.  Analyzing the relationship between exploration, exploitation and organizational innovation , 2017, J. Knowl. Manag..

[16]  K. Schermelleh-Engel,et al.  Evaluating the Fit of Structural Equation Models: Tests of Significance and Descriptive Goodness-of-Fit Measures. , 2003 .

[17]  Debdeep Chatterjee,et al.  Evaluating the role of social capital, tacit knowledge sharing, knowledge quality and reciprocity in determining innovation capability of an organization , 2019, J. Knowl. Manag..

[18]  Sajjad M. Jasimuddin,et al.  Knowledge-oriented leadership and open innovation: Role of knowledge management capability in France-based multinationals , 2018, International Business Review.

[19]  Mark A. Bonn,et al.  Innovation ambidexterity: balancing exploitation and exploration for startup and established restaurants and impacts upon performance , 2019, Industry and Innovation.

[20]  C. K. Sahoo,et al.  Enhancing organizational innovation in Indian automobile industry , 2019, International Journal of Innovation Science.

[21]  Nadine Tournois,et al.  Toward A Trustful B To B Relationship , 2009 .

[22]  Keld Laursen,et al.  Human Resource Management Practices and Innovation , 2012 .

[23]  Wael Hassan El-Garaihy,et al.  The Impact of Human Resource Management Practices, Organisational Culture, Organisational Innovation and Knowledge Management on Organisational Performance in Large Saudi Organisations: Structural Equation Modeling With Conceptual Framework , 2013 .

[24]  A. Mardani,et al.  The Relationship Between Knowledge Management and Innovation Performance , 2018 .

[25]  Hui Lei,et al.  Arousing a positive climate for knowledge sharing through moral lens: the mediating roles of knowledge-centered and collaborative culture , 2019, J. Knowl. Manag..

[26]  P. Le,et al.  The effects of innovation speed and quality on differentiation and low-cost competitive advantage: The case of Chinese firms , 2018 .

[27]  Zhaohua Deng,et al.  Information technology resource, knowledge management capability, and competitive advantage: The moderating role of resource commitment , 2016, Int. J. Inf. Manag..

[28]  Elias G. Carayannis,et al.  Assessing the role of knowledge management capability and environmental dynamism in SMEs , 2017 .

[29]  N. Herndon,et al.  SHRM and product innovation: testing the moderating effects of organizational culture and structure in Chinese firms , 2011 .

[30]  Jerman Rose,et al.  Building trust—Evidence from Vietnamese entrepreneurs , 2009 .

[31]  Mary J. Benner,et al.  Exploitation, Exploration, and Process Management: The Productivity Dilemma Revisited , 2003 .

[32]  Jeremy Dawson,et al.  HRM as a predictor of innovation , 2006 .

[33]  R. Noe,et al.  Knowledge sharing: A review and directions for future research , 2010 .

[34]  A. Iqbal.  The strategic human resource management approaches and organisational performance , 2019, Journal of Advances in Management Research.

[35]  Carlos Ferreira Peralta,et al.  Knowledge-centered culture and knowledge sharing: the moderator role of trust propensity , 2014, J. Knowl. Manag..

[36]  Arjen van Witteloostuijn,et al.  From the Editors: Common method variance in international business research , 2010 .

[37]  P. Le,et al.  Developing a collaborative culture for radical and incremental innovation: the mediating roles of tacit and explicit knowledge sharing , 2020 .

[38]  Solikin M. Juhro,et al.  NEW SOURCES OF GROWTH: THE ROLE OF FRUGAL INNOVATION AND TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERSHIP , 2019, Buletin Ekonomi Moneter dan Perbankan.

[39]  Ferran Vendrell-Herrero,et al.  Knowledge management competences, exporting and productivity: uncovering African paradoxes , 2019, J. Knowl. Manag..

[40]  C. Smallman,et al.  The effects of cultural factors on innovation in a Thai SME , 2011 .

[41]  Hui Lei,et al.  The mediating role of trust in stimulating the relationship between transformational leadership and knowledge sharing processes , 2018, J. Knowl. Manag..

[42]  S. Jackson,et al.  An Aspirational Framework for Strategic Human Resource Management , 2014 .

[43]  Nianxin Wang,et al.  Knowledge sharing, innovation and firm performance , 2012, Expert Syst. Appl..

[44]  Keng-Boon Ooi,et al.  Can competitive advantage be achieved through knowledge management? A case study on SMEs , 2016, Expert Syst. Appl..

[45]  D. Jiménez-Jiménez,et al.  Innovation, organizational learning, and performance , 2011 .

[46]  S. Liao,et al.  The Relationship among Knowledge Management, Organizational Learning, and Organizational Performance , 2009 .

[47]  Mert Gürlek,et al.  Understanding the relationships among knowledge-oriented leadership, knowledge management capacity, innovation performance and organizational performance: A serial mediation analysis , 2020, Kybernetes.

[48]  Edward W. N. Bernroider,et al.  The roles of absorptive capacity and cultural balance for exploratory and exploitative innovation in SMEs , 2017, Journal of Business Research.

[49]  Constantine Andriopoulos,et al.  Exploitation-Exploration Tensions and Organizational Ambidexterity: Managing Paradoxes of Innovation , 2009, Organ. Sci..

[50]  Yixin Ding,et al.  Analysis of the relationship between open innovation, knowledge management capability and dual innovation , 2019, Technol. Anal. Strateg. Manag..

[51]  G. Giannopoulos,et al.  The use of the balanced scorecard in small companies , 2013 .

[52]  Maaja Vadi,et al.  How does culture contribute to innovation? Evidence from European countries , 2010 .

[53]  Yuqiang Feng,et al.  Impact of organizational culture and computer self-efficacy on knowledge sharing , 2015, Ind. Manag. Data Syst..

[54]  O. Adewale,et al.  Impact of Organizational Culture on Human Resource Practices: A Study of Selected Nigerian Private Universities , 2013 .

[55]  Imran Khan,et al.  The Impact of Human Resource Management Practices on Innovative Ability of Employees Moderated by Organizational Culture , 2018, International Journal of Organizational Leadership.

[56]  Andrew C. Ologbo,et al.  Strategic Management Theories and the Linkage with Firm Competitive Advantage from the Human Resource-Based View , 2012 .

[57]  Hannele Seeck,et al.  A literature review on HRM and innovation – taking stock and future directions , 2017 .

[58]  A. Ghobadian,et al.  In search of the drivers of high growth in manufacturing SMEs , 2006 .

[59]  Vítor Costa,et al.  Key knowledge management processes for innovation: a systematic literature review , 2016 .

[60]  N. Ahmad,et al.  How New HRM Practices, Organizational Innovation, and Innovative Climate Affect the Innovation Performance in the IT Industry: A Moderated-Mediation Analysis , 2019, Sustainability.

[61]  M. P. Salmador,et al.  How does culture influence innovation? A systematic literature review , 2018 .

[62]  Mar Bornay-Barrachina,et al.  HRM practices and innovation performance: a panel-data approach , 2017 .

[63]  Owwon Park,et al.  High-commitment HRM system, HR capability, and ambidextrous technological innovation , 2019 .

[64]  P. Le,et al.  How ethical leadership cultivates radical and incremental innovation: the mediating role of tacit and explicit knowledge sharing , 2019 .

[65]  José Emilio Navas-López,et al.  The moderating role of innovation culture in the relationship between knowledge assets and product innovation , 2013 .

[66]  Giuseppina Passiante,et al.  The effect of HRM practices on knowledge management capacity: a comparative study in Indian IT industry , 2018, J. Knowl. Manag..

[67]  Jiancheng Guan,et al.  Exploitative and exploratory innovations in knowledge network and collaboration network: A patent analysis in the technological field of nano-energy , 2016 .

[68]  Pedro Soto-Acosta,et al.  Information technology, knowledge management and environmental dynamism as drivers of innovation ambidexterity: a study in SMEs , 2018, J. Knowl. Manag..

[69]  N. Anderson,et al.  Innovation and Creativity in Organizations , 2014 .

[71]  Fátima Guadamillas,et al.  Organizational Factors to Support Knowledge Management and Innovation , 2011, J. Knowl. Manag..

[72]  Fawzy Soliman,et al.  Strategies for implementing knowledge management: role of human resources management , 2000, J. Knowl. Manag..

[73]  Philippe Jacquart,et al.  On making causal claims: A review and recommendations , 2010 .

[74]  A. Nasurdin,et al.  Human Resource Management Practices and Organizational Innovation : Assessing the Mediating Role of Knowledge Management Effectiveness , 2011 .

[75]  Tan Cheng Ling.  THE INFLUENCE OF KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT EFFECTIVENESS ON ADMINISTRATIVE INNOVATION AMONG MALAYSIAN MANUFACTURING FIRMS , 2010 .

[76]  Hun Whee Lee,et al.  Effects of Human Resource Management Systems on Employee Proactivity and Group Innovation , 2019 .

[77]  Shoko Haneda,et al.  Organizational and human resource management and innovation: Which management practices are linked to product and/or process innovation? , 2018 .

[78]  P. Le.  How transformational leadership facilitates radical and incremental innovation: the mediating role of individual psychological capital , 2020 .

[79]  Y. Gong,et al.  Promoting Innovation in Hospitality Companies through Human Resource Management Practices , 2011 .

[80]  Sarra Berraies.  The effect of enterprise social networks use on exploitative and exploratory innovations , 2019, Journal of Intellectual Capital.

[81]  Zaheer Khan,et al.  Exploitative and exploratory innovations in emerging economies: The role of realized absorptive capacity and learning intent , 2019, International Business Review.

[82]  Deepak Chawla,et al.  Knowledge management initiatives in Indian public and private sector organizations , 2010, J. Knowl. Manag..

[83]  Byung Gon Kim,et al.  An Integrated View of Knowledge Management for Performance , 2012, J. Knowl. Manag..

[84]  Kejia Zhu,et al.  Paternalistic leadership and innovation: the moderating effect of environmental dynamism , 2019, European Journal of Innovation Management.

[85]  Theoretical Profiles for the Evaluation of Insider Trading in a Functional Model of Financial Instruments Market , 2017 .

[86]  Haijun Bao,et al.  High-performance human resource management and firm performance: The mediating role of innovation in China , 2015, Ind. Manag. Data Syst..

[87]  Lei Hui,et al.  Transformational Leadership Facilitates Innovation Capability: The Mediating Roles of Interpersonal Trust , 2018 .

[88]  Conor O'Kane,et al.  The interactive effects of entrepreneurial orientation and capability-based HRM on firm performance: The mediating role of innovation ambidexterity , 2016 .

[89]  S. Liao,et al.  Relationships among organizational culture, knowledge sharing, and innovation capability: a case of the automobile industry in Taiwan , 2017 .

[90]  H. Scarbrough.  Knowledge management, HRM and the innovation process , 2003 .

[91]  Ramón Valle-Cabrera,et al.  The influence of human resource management on knowledge sharing and innovation in Spain: the mediating role of affective commitment , 2011 .

[92]  C. Fornell,et al.  Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. , 1981 .

[93]  R. Mitchell,et al.  Contextual ambidexterity and innovation in healthcare in India: the role of HRM , 2017 .

[94]  Salleh Yahya,et al.  Managing human resources toward achieving knowledge management , 2002, J. Knowl. Manag..

[95]  D. A. Kenny,et al.  The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. , 1986, Journal of personality and social psychology.

[96]  Alper Ertürk,et al.  Comparing Innovation Capability of Small and Medium‐Sized Enterprises: Examining the Effects of Organizational Culture and Empowerment , 2010 .

[97]  Daniel Jiménez-Jiménez,et al.  Could HRM support organizational innovation? , 2008 .

[98]  Guiyao Tang,et al.  Entrepreneurial orientation and innovation performance: roles of strategic HRM and technical turbulence , 2015 .

[99]  Marion Frenz,et al.  Economic Crisis and Innovation: Is Destruction Prevailing Over Accumulation? , 2012 .