Capturing Value from Innovation in Knowledge‐Intensive Business Service Firms: The Role of Competitive Strategy

Abstract

Building on a problem-solving perspective to value creation and capture, and on the business strategy literature, we argue that the actions that knowledge-intensive business service (KIBS) firms take to identify, select and solve client problems will affect their approach to capturing value from innovation. We apply regression analysis to data from an original survey involving a sample of 230 innovations introduced by 150 publicly traded UK and US KIBS firms. Distinguishing between cost-and differentiation-oriented KIBS firms, we find that cost-oriented firms tend to place more importance on all appropriability mechanisms than do differentiation-oriented firms. Furthermore, the perceived importance of formal appropriability mechanisms, relative to that of all appropriability mechanisms, tends to be higher for cost-oriented than for differentiation-oriented firms. This association is stronger for the case of the introduction of process (rather than product) innovation. These findings contribute to the strategy and service innovation literatures, by showing that KIBS firms' competitive strategies influence value capture, over and above the role of the innovation-, industry-and institutional-level factors examined in earlier studies.

Profiting from Green Innovation: The Moderating Effect of Competitive Strategy

“…The time period in which firms maintain a competitive advantage over competitors will be curtailed by competitive intensity, and this phenomenon thus requires firms to capture the value of green product innovation more rapidly [58,77]. Differentiation strategy helps firms harness the benefits of introducing new green products by distinguishing themselves from their competitors, cultivating customer loyalty, and expanding generic market segments [78]. Thus, differentiation strategy becomes a more important and efficient means for firms to profit from green product innovation in a situation of fierce competition.…”

“…Second, the role of a cost-leadership strategy in enabling firms to derive benefits from green process innovation will be more profound if the market is highly competitive. A cost-leadership strategy enhances firms' competitive advantages through green process innovation, since it enable firms to offer products in more efficient ways and establish distinctive manufacturing patterns that isolate them from imitation by rivals [78]. These methods become even more efficient as competitive intensity increases, because they empower firms to safeguard advantageous positions and defend competitive actions in the market [81].…”

An Integrative View of Knowledge Processes and a Learning Culture for Ambidexterity: Toward Improved Organizational Performance in the Banking Sector

“…Traditionally, it has been argued that learning and related knowledge processes have a significant effect on both performance and behaviour of individual employees. The argument acquires significant relevance in the context of knowledge-intensive sectors, often described on the basis of their workforce educational attainment levels [18]. Furthermore, it is argued that cultural norms and expectations are likely to determine the climate in which organisations may either encourage or discourage the acquisition and sharing of knowledge [1].…”

Knowledge-intensive business services and innovation performance in Brazil

“…2.1 Knowledge-intensive business services production process and their role in innovation systems KIBS are facilitators, sources and carriers of innovation in innovation systems (Hertog, 2000;Miles et al, 1995). A better understanding of the production process of KIBS in necessary to understand why such firms adopt these three roles, as their actions on how to identify, select and solve customers' problems affect how value and innovation are created (Desyllas, Miozzo, Lee & Miles, 2018). In KIBS delivery processes, providers have to identify customers Types of KIBS INMR 17,1 need, define a course of action that will address these needs and propose it to the customer (Bettencourt et al, 2002).…”