Exploring moderating effects of proactivity on the relationship between market information and innovation performance

• Main Authors: Branka Ahlin, Mateja Drnovšek, Robert D. Hisrich
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: University of Ljubljana 2012-04-01
• Series: Economic and Business Review
• Subjects: Proactivity; market information; moderating effect; innovation performance; SMEs
• Online Access: http://www.ebrjournal.net/ojs/index.php/ebr/article/view/162/pdf

Despite its importance, the relationship between market information and innovation performance has seldom been investigated in SMEs, much less in multiple-country settings. Given the limited body of knowledge on this important topic, the question of why some entrepreneurs use market information better than others for the purpose of innovation has yet to be addressed. In this study we propose that entrepreneur’s proactivity influences the effectiveness of market information in the innovation process. We propose a conceptual model and test it on SMEs from the United States and Slovenia. The paper concludes by discussing the implications of these results for entrepreneurship theory and practice.