The imitation-innovation link, external knowledge search and China's innovation system

Abstract

PurposeThe authors attempt to answer the basic questions: How is imitation tied to innovation? This question is addressed in the context of China's innovation system in the 2000s where Chinese industrial firms simultaneously implement innovation and imitation strategies in their new product developments.Design/methodology/approachThe authors first build on lattice theory and supermodularity theory to provide a rigorous and careful mathematical proof. The authors further conduct the empirical analyses using an original data on Chinese manufacturing firms' innovation and imitation strategies in the development of new products in 2002.FindingsThis article reveals the complementarity relation between imitation and innovation strategies and identifies external knowledge search as the boundary condition that influences the extent to which two strategies reinforce each other.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings of the imitation-innovation complementarity suggest that imitation is not only an indispensable strategy independent of innovation, but also is vital to the effectiveness of innovation itself.Practical implicationsThe imitation-innovation complementarity finding provides some evidence for the contention that Chinese latecomers exploit the synergies of imitation and innovation, transforming themselves from imitators to innovators and vibrant competitors in the global market (Wu et al., 2016) and, as a result, national innovation system has evolved from a state-sponsored imitation program to the imitation-innovation mixture.Originality/valueIn contrast to earlier innovation studies in which innovation and imitation are unrelated, this study reveals that imitation complements innovation, and the extent of Chinese firms' external knowledge search affects the complementary relationship between imitation and innovation. These findings add important insights to the innovation management literature and contribute empirical evidence to the interplay of innovation and imitation enhancing national innovation system.

Intellectual property institutions and innovation of emerging multinational companies

“…Knowledge is sticky, which results from the additional costs incurred during the adoption of complex technology and business processes, and involves conscious reconstruction, diffusion, and integration into new routines in an organization (Von Hippel, 1994;Wu, Zhang, Zhuo, Meyer, Li & Yan, 2020). Such stickiness causes knowledge, particularly its tacit component, to lie inert in an organization, where it is not readily accessible or retrievable and therefore not deployable or convertible into value (Whitehead, 1929).…”

“…The source of competitive advantage thus resides in socially complex tacit knowledge diffused throughout the firm (Kogut & Zander, 1993). Although it is possible to convert some tacit knowledge into explicit knowledge (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995), most tacit knowledge is difficult, if not impossible, to codify and can never be made explicit (Berman, Down, & Hill, 2002;Wu, Zhang, Zhuo, Meyer, Li & Yan, 2020 ). The two types of tacit knowledge are individual tacit knowledge (e.g., an individual's skills) and group-or team-based tacit knowledge (e.g., collective skills) (Berman et al, 2002).…”

“…For example, the act of solving a problem rests on how the phenomena function; the formal expression of the solution is unlikely to fully capture this procedural knowledge leading to a solution. The ability to transform tacit capabilities into a comprehensible code that is understood by large numbers of people resides in the collective experiences of firm members organized by maintained rules of coordination and cooperation (Zander & Kogut, 1995;Wu, Zhang, Zhuo, Meyer, Li & Yan, 2020). Even in the area of problem identification and solving, the know-how of heuristic search precedes the formal knowledge of the solution (Kogut & Zander, 1993).…”

Responsible I(m)ovation in Asia Pacific regions

“…However, another growing body of literature suggests that imitation capabilities in the region are evolving more quickly than the ability of firms to innovate (Jahanshahi & Brem, 2020;Wu et al, 2019;Bloodgood, 2019;Luo et al, 2011). Paradoxically, only a few scholars have discussed the intertwining of the two strategies-innovation and imitation, which the relevant literature terms 'imovation' (Wu et al, 2020).…”

Independent Innovation Incentive Mechanism of the National Independent Innovation Demonstration Zone of China Based on Evolutionary Game

“…As a result, there is a large gap between the supervision efficiency of the management committee and the actual independent innovation level of enterprises and the expectations. At present, Chinese enterprises have adopted catch-up strategies intertwined with imitative innovation and independent innovation in an increasingly competitive market environment [8,9], which makes them face unprecedented challenges [10]. Since the management committee, high-tech and general enterprises have different interest goals, and there are mutual games in promoting independent innovation, it affects the independent innovation performance and the rapid development of the zones.…”