Ownership concentration and product innovation in Chinese private SMEs
Version 2 2024-06-13, 09:36Version 2 2024-06-13, 09:36
Version 1 2016-01-04, 13:27Version 1 2016-01-04, 13:27
journal contribution
posted on 2024-06-13, 09:36authored byZ Deng, PS Hofman, A Newman
Product innovation is extremely important to the growth, success, and ultimate survival of firms. Although its unique features in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have gained growing attention in the literature, there is limited knowledge as to how ownership concentration moderates the relationship between product innovation and its determinants. Based upon insights from agency and institutional theories, we examine the moderating effects of ownership concentration on the relationship between product innovation and its key determinants in Chinese SMEs, utilizing a large dataset of 43,728 Chinese firms over the period 2005-2006. We focus on examining the differences between single-owner SMEs, where there is dominant control of one family member, and multiple-owner SMEs, where principal-agent conflicts and principal-principal conflicts are more likely to occur. Our findings indicate that single-owned firms tend to convert research and development into product innovation more efficiently than firms with multiple owners, who are typically better at utilizing external sources of knowledge and human capital.
History
Journal
Asia Pacific journal of management
Volume
30
Pagination
717-734
Location
Ann Arbor, Mich
ISSN
0217-4561
eISSN
1572-9958
Language
eng
Publication classification
C1.1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal, C Journal article