IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/kap/jtecht/v49y2024i4d10.1007_s10961-023-10047-5.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Managerial power and ambidextrous innovation: the moderating role of absorptive capacity and resource slack

Author

Listed:
  • Xiaoke Yang

    (Business School, Nankai University)

Abstract

In the modern global economic environment, innovation has become a crucial driving force for enhancing the competitiveness of enterprises and ensuring their sustainable development. Therefore, in the context of contemporary economic realities where innovation has become a strategic component of firm success, and the influence of top management on the innovation process can have a significant impact, there is a particular relevance in studying the relationships between managerial authority and corporate innovation. This research aims to establish the relationship between top management authority and two types of innovation - exploitative and exploratory while exploring the moderating role of absorptive capacity and resources in this relationship. To conduct this research, a sample of 6,717 firm observations traded on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges during the period from 2010 to 2020 was selected. Data on the financial status of companies, corporate governance, and characteristics of top executives were obtained from the CSMAR (China Stock Market and Accounting Research) database, while data on patents for measuring ambidextrous innovations were collected using a search engine and processed with Python software. The obtained results demonstrate that top management authority has a significant impact on both types of innovation. Furthermore, absorptive capacity and absorptive weakness effectively mitigate the negative relationship between managerial authority and exploitative innovations, whereas unabsorbed weakness amplifies the negative influence of managerial authority on exploitative innovations and the positive influence on exploratory innovations. The findings are valuable both in terms of enriching the academic understanding of the relationships between managerial authority and corporate innovation and in shaping prospective directions for future research. Moreover, this research may be pertinent to corporate governance practitioners seeking to enhance innovation effectiveness in the real economic sector. The contribution of this study lies in expanding knowledge regarding the influence of top management authority on innovation activity and the moderating role of factors in this process, which can be beneficial to company executives and researchers in the field of corporate governance.

Suggested Citation

  • Xiaoke Yang, 2024. "Managerial power and ambidextrous innovation: the moderating role of absorptive capacity and resource slack," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 49(4), pages 1471-1495, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jtecht:v:49:y:2024:i:4:d:10.1007_s10961-023-10047-5
    DOI: 10.1007/s10961-023-10047-5
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10961-023-10047-5
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s10961-023-10047-5?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Guan, Jiancheng & Liu, Na, 2016. "Exploitative and exploratory innovations in knowledge network and collaboration network: A patent analysis in the technological field of nano-energy," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(1), pages 97-112.
    2. James G. March, 1991. "Exploration and Exploitation in Organizational Learning," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 2(1), pages 71-87, February.
    3. Bebchuk, Lucian Arye & Fried, Jesse & Walker, David I, 2002. "Managerial Power and Rent Extraction in the Design of Executive Compensation," CEPR Discussion Papers 3558, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    4. Markus Glaser & Florencio Lopez-De-Silanes & Zacharias Sautner, 2013. "Opening the Black Box: Internal Capital Markets and Managerial Power," Journal of Finance, American Finance Association, vol. 68(4), pages 1577-1631, August.
    5. Bilal Ahmad & Da Liu & Mirza Huzaifa Asif & Muhammad Ashfaq & Muhammad Irfan, 2022. "Ambidextrous Leadership and Service Recovery Performance Under B2B Selling Context: An Examination Through Service Innovation Capability," SAGE Open, , vol. 12(2), pages 21582440221, May.
    6. Chikh, Sabrina & Filbien, Jean-Yves, 2011. "Acquisitions and CEO power: Evidence from French networks," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 17(5), pages 1221-1236.
    7. Venugopal, Aparna & Krishnan, T.N. & Upadhyayula, Rajesh Srinivas & Kumar, Manish, 2020. "Finding the microfoundations of organizational ambidexterity - Demystifying the role of top management behavioural integration," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 106(C), pages 1-11.
    8. Donald C. Hambrick & Sydney Finkelstein, 1995. "The effects of ownership structure on conditions at the top: The case of CEO pay raises," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 16(3), pages 175-193.
    9. Marlin, Dan & Geiger, Scott W., 2015. "A reexamination of the organizational slack and innovation relationship," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 68(12), pages 2683-2690.
    10. Benedikt Schnellbächer & Sven Heidenreich, 2020. "The role of individual ambidexterity for organizational performance: examining effects of ambidextrous knowledge seeking and offering," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 45(5), pages 1535-1561, October.
    11. Martin R. W. Hiebl & David I. Pielsticker, 2023. "Automation, organizational ambidexterity and the stability of employee relations: new tensions arising between corporate entrepreneurship, innovation management and stakeholder management," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 48(6), pages 1978-2006, December.
    12. Sariol, Ana M. & Abebe, Michael A., 2017. "The influence of CEO power on explorative and exploitative organizational innovation," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 73(C), pages 38-45.
    13. Shuanglong Wang & Nathan Eva & Alexander Newman & Haihua Zhou, 2021. "A double-edged sword: the effects of ambidextrous leadership on follower innovative behaviors," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 38(4), pages 1305-1326, December.
    14. Ghosh, Dipankar & Olsen, Lori, 2009. "Environmental uncertainty and managers' use of discretionary accruals," Accounting, Organizations and Society, Elsevier, vol. 34(2), pages 188-205, February.
    15. Tina Wolf & Uwe Cantner & Holger Graf & Michael Rothgang, 2019. "Cluster ambidexterity towards exploration and exploitation: strategies and cluster management," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 44(6), pages 1840-1866, December.
    16. David B. Audretsch & Maribel Guerrero, 2023. "Is ambidexterity the missing link between entrepreneurship, management, and innovation?," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 48(6), pages 1891-1918, December.
    17. Brown, Rayna & Sarma, Neal, 2007. "CEO overconfidence, CEO dominance and corporate acquisitions," Journal of Economics and Business, Elsevier, vol. 59(5), pages 358-379.
    18. Al Mamun, Md & Balachandran, Balasingham & Duong, Huu Nhan, 2020. "Powerful CEOs and stock price crash risk," Journal of Corporate Finance, Elsevier, vol. 62(C).
    19. Johannes Luger & Sebastian Raisch & Markus Schimmer, 2018. "Dynamic Balancing of Exploration and Exploitation: The Contingent Benefits of Ambidexterity," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 29(3), pages 449-470, June.
    20. Andreea N. Kiss & Dirk Libaers & Pamela S. Barr & Tang Wang & Miles A. Zachary, 2020. "CEO cognitive flexibility, information search, and organizational ambidexterity," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 41(12), pages 2200-2233, December.
    21. Qing Cao & Eric Gedajlovic & Hongping Zhang, 2009. "Unpacking Organizational Ambidexterity: Dimensions, Contingencies, and Synergistic Effects," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(4), pages 781-796, August.
    22. Demetris Vrontis & Alkis Thrassou & Gabriele Santoro & Armando Papa, 2017. "Ambidexterity, external knowledge and performance in knowledge-intensive firms," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 42(2), pages 374-388, April.
    23. Koryak, Oksana & Lockett, Andy & Hayton, James & Nicolaou, Nicos & Mole, Kevin, 2018. "Disentangling the antecedents of ambidexterity: Exploration and exploitation," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(2), pages 413-427.
    24. Gökhan Akıncı & Lutfihak Alpkan & Bora Yıldız & Gaye Karacay, 2022. "The Link between Ambidextrous Leadership and Innovative Work Behavior in a Military Organization: The Moderating Role of Climate for Innovation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-19, November.
    25. Matthias Guffler & Alexandra Bertschi-Michel & Andreas Hack & Franz W. Kellermanns, 2023. "Family firm ambidexterity: the influence of paradoxical tensions and the Entrepreneurial Family’s cohesion," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 48(6), pages 1945-1977, December.
    26. Erik G. Hansen & Samuel Wicki & Stefan Schaltegger, 2022. "Sustainability-Oriented Technology Exploration: Managerial Values, Ambidextrous Design, And Separation Drift," International Journal of Innovation Management (ijim), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 26(05), pages 1-27, June.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. David B. Audretsch & Maribel Guerrero, 2023. "Is ambidexterity the missing link between entrepreneurship, management, and innovation?," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 48(6), pages 1891-1918, December.
    2. Telma Mendes & Vítor Braga & Carina Silva & Vanessa Ratten, 2023. "Taking a closer look at the regionally clustered firms: How can ambidexterity explain the link between management, entrepreneurship, and innovation in a post-industrialized world?," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 48(6), pages 2007-2053, December.
    3. Olga Kassotaki, 2022. "Review of Organizational Ambidexterity Research," SAGE Open, , vol. 12(1), pages 21582440221, March.
    4. Wenke, Kathrin & Zapkau, Florian B. & Schwens, Christian, 2021. "Too small to do it all? A meta-analysis on the relative relationships of exploration, exploitation, and ambidexterity with SME performance," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 653-665.
    5. Carolina Rojas-Córdova & Amanda J. Williamson & Julio A. Pertuze & Gustavo Calvo, 2023. "Why one strategy does not fit all: a systematic review on exploration–exploitation in different organizational archetypes," Review of Managerial Science, Springer, vol. 17(7), pages 2251-2295, October.
    6. Songsong Cheng & Qunpeng Fan & Yang Song, 2023. "Performance Gap and Innovation Ambidexterity: A Moderated Mediation Model," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(5), pages 1-22, February.
    7. Lee, In Hyeock & Lévesque, Moren, 2023. "Do resource-constrained early-stage firms balance their internal resources across business activities? If so, should they?," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    8. Katou, Anastasia A. & Budhwar, Pawan S. & Patel, Charmi, 2021. "A trilogy of organizational ambidexterity: Leader’s social intelligence, employee work engagement and environmental changes," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 688-700.
    9. Marina Estrada-Cruz & Noelia Rodriguez-Hernández & Antonio J. Verdú-Jover & Jose Maria Gómez-Gras, 2022. "The effect of competitive intensity on the relationship between strategic entrepreneurship and organizational results," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 18(1), pages 1-24, March.
    10. Wenna Wang & Zhen Yang & Jin Chen & Jun He, 2024. "Economic policy uncertainty and enterprise ambidextrous innovation: Exploration or exploitation?," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 49(4), pages 1234-1258, August.
    11. Jiuling Xiao & Yuting Bao & Jiankang Wang, 2023. "Which neighbor is more conducive to innovation? The moderating effect of partners’ innovation," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 48(1), pages 33-67, February.
    12. Zhang, Xiaobin & Chu, Zhaofang & Ren, Lei & Xing, Jianguo, 2023. "Open innovation and sustainable competitive advantage: The role of organizational learning," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 186(PA).
    13. Krause-Söhner, Elena & Roth, Angela & Schaller, Christian, 2022. "Multifaceted and even contradictory? Impulses to push efficiency and innovativeness and the dynamic role of ambiguity in context of a German university," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 147(C), pages 258-277.
    14. Bruyaka, Olga & Prange, Christiane, 2020. "International cultural ambidexterity: Balancing tensions of foreign market entry into distant and proximate cultures," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 118(C), pages 491-506.
    15. Matthias Guffler & Alexandra Bertschi-Michel & Andreas Hack & Franz W. Kellermanns, 2023. "Family firm ambidexterity: the influence of paradoxical tensions and the Entrepreneurial Family’s cohesion," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 48(6), pages 1945-1977, December.
    16. Klaus Möller & Flavia Schmid & Theresa Maria Seehofer & Philipp Wenig, 2022. "How the Design of an Organizational Context Helps to Attain Contextual Ambidexterity," Schmalenbach Journal of Business Research, Springer, vol. 74(4), pages 603-629, December.
    17. Marina Estrada-Cruz & Noelia Rodriguez-Hernández & Antonio J. Verdú-Jover & Jose Maria Gómez-Gras, 0. "The effect of competitive intensity on the relationship between strategic entrepreneurship and organizational results," International Entrepreneurship and Management Journal, Springer, vol. 0, pages 1-24.
    18. Céline Bérard & Marc Fréchet, 2020. "Organizational antecedents of exploration and exploitation in SMEs: The role of structural and resource attributes," Post-Print halshs-02570775, HAL.
    19. Gu, Minhao & Yang, Lu & Huo, Baofeng, 2021. "The impact of information technology usage on supply chain resilience and performance: An ambidexterous view," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 232(C).
    20. Martin R. W. Hiebl & David I. Pielsticker, 2023. "Automation, organizational ambidexterity and the stability of employee relations: new tensions arising between corporate entrepreneurship, innovation management and stakeholder management," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 48(6), pages 1978-2006, December.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Absorptive capacity; Ambidextrous innovation; Managerial power; Resource slack;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • A1 - General Economics and Teaching - - General Economics
    • O3 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:kap:jtecht:v:49:y:2024:i:4:d:10.1007_s10961-023-10047-5. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.