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

Purpose - The 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/approach - Data 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. Findings - Both 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/value - This 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.