The role of innovation capability in the relationship between marketing capability and new product development: evidence from the telecommunication sector

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to examine the relationships between marketing and innovation capabilities and new product development (NPD), including the potential mediating and moderating roles of innovation capability (IC) in the relationship between marketing capability (MC) and NPD.Design/methodology/approachData were collected from telecommunication firms operating in the Kurdistan region of Iraq using a self-administered questionnaire. Of 556 distributed questionnaires, 272 were returned and used for statistical analysis. To analyze the data, a structural equation model (SEM) was developed to test both measurement and structural models.FindingsBoth innovation capability and marketing capability positively impact NPD. Furthermore, IC not only strengthens the relationship between MC and NPD but also serves as a mechanism enabling this relationship.Originality/valueThis study offers NPD researchers a deeper understanding of the capabilities that may affect the NPD process. From a theoretical perspective, previous studies focused exclusively on IC and MC separately and thus did not capture the relationships between these antecedents and NPD. Another valuable contribution of this study to the NPD literature is the inclusion of different roles of IC within the frame of MC and NPD. For practitioners, this study outlines novel combinations of antecedents leading to better levels of NPD.

A mediated–moderated model for social media adoption and small and medium‐sized enterprise performance in emerging countries

“…Thus, it is suggested that SMEs must engage in IC to improve their performance. This finding is consistent with prior work (Aljanabi, 2020; Fan et al, 2021; Vakulenko, 2020) emphasizing the moderating role of IC. The final finding concerns the moderation effect of SMA.…”

“…Furthermore, Vakulenko (2020) evidenced the moderating role of IC between the limitations of small firm size and innovative output. Aljanabi (2020) corroborated the moderating effect of IC on the link between marketing capabilities and new product development in the telecommunication sector of Iraq. Further, Fan et al (2021) recently evidenced that IC significantly moderates the relationship between EO and SMEP in the SME setting in developing countries.…”

“…Similarly, RBV theory (Barney, 1991) has been widely used to shed light on the value of resources (tangible and intangible) that are pivotal for performance improvement (Fan et al, 2021; Foltean et al, 2019). RBV theory has also received ample attention from scholars, both from a developed‐ and developing‐countries perspective; recent work has widened the scope of RBV theory to IC (Aljanabi, 2020; Ferreira et al, 2020), EO (Alvarez‐Torres et al, 2019; Fatima & Bilal, 2020; Sok et al, 2017), and CRMC (Foltean et al, 2019). There remains, however, a lack of understanding of SMA as a resource in the context of RBV theory in the SME setting.…”

“…Capabilities and resources are crucial for SMEs' ability to produce innovative outputs, achieve sustainability in the market, and remain competitive (Vakulenko, 2020). However, investing substantial resources in an organization's innovation requires the effective management of resources and capabilities to generate to a competitive advantage and improve performance (Aljanabi, 2020). Therefore, because SMEs have fewer innovative outcomes (in terms of profits and market share) due to having less funds, SMEs need to possess IC to overcome the lack of resources due to their small size (Vakulenko, 2020).…”

Factors impacting innovation performance for entrepreneurs in India

“…Past research done on SMEs has shown that high levels of innovation are crucial to build EO (Miller, 1983). Higher innovation capability in the person could lead to a higher chance of building networks with partners and generate a huge variety of resources by the entrepreneur (Aljanabi, 2020; Ganguly et al , 2019; Ramachandran and Ramnarayan, 1993; Su et al , 2018). Studies done by Cho and Pucik (2005) find innovativeness related to the firm venturing into new arenas and increasing EO by enhancing the firm's opportunities in existing markets.…”