Effects of relative power imbalance in the ecosystem on innovation

摘要

Successful innovation cannot be separated from knowledge resources outside. Innovation ecosystem describe interactions and inter-linkages between organizations and provide related complementary technology and asset for value creation and appropriation through innovation. In this paper, we explore power structure in the ecosystem impact on innovation performance of the focal firm. Relative power imbalance is one of the power structure in the ecosystem, which predicts the willing of actors to share their knowledge with other actors and the focal firm. Results based on a panel data of 396 observations about focal firms and their suppliers show that relative power imbalance has a negative effect on innovation performance, but firm age and high-tech certification positively moderate this relationship. These results contribute to the understanding about roles of power structure and knowledge sharing in ecosystem management.