Capacidade de inovação e desempenho: as relações entre as dimensões da capacidade de inovação e o desempenho financeiro e não financeiro de empresas industriais

Abstract

The purpose of this PhD thesis is to contribute to understanding the relationships that are established between the different dimensions of innovation capability and the firm's financial and non-financial performance. The central proposition is to propose and analyze a model that demonstrates how each dimension of innovation capability impacts each performance perspective. Innovation capability is considered a strategic differentiating factor for organizations, leading them to improve their performance. The scarcity of studies that explain the relationships between innovation capability and financial and non-financial performance demonstrates a theoretical gap in the theory of innovation capability, which needs to be better explained. This research presents a quantitative approach and was carried out through a theoretical-empirical study. Based on the literature related to theories on innovation capability and performance, hypotheses were developed and tested empirically, through a survey, applied to 166 industrial companies in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, in Brazil. Data was analyzed using structural equation modeling, where the innovation capability constructs are: technological development, operational, transactional and management capability; and the performance constructs are the perspectives: financial, customer, internal processes and learning and growth. Results demonstrated that innovation capability has a positive impact on the financial and non-financial performance of the companies surveyed. Furthermore, it was evident that there are relationships between each dimension of innovation capability with each performance perspective and that non-financial performance has a positive impact on financial performance. Another important result refers to the use of management capability as an orchestrating variable between other innovation capabilities and non-financial performance perspectives, bringing a new dynamic to the construct of innovation capability. As theoretical contributions, it is first highlighted that the different dimensions of innovation capability maintained positive associations with different perspectives of non-financial performance and provide a gradual understanding of these aforementioned relationships, representing an advance in the theory on innovation capability. Another important theoretical contribution is the use of management capability as a mediating variable between other innovation capabilities and business performance perspectives, which brings a new dynamic to the innovation capabilities construct proposed by Zawislak et al. (2012). This adjustment to the model contributes to advancing discussions between innovation capability and performance, as it expands understanding of the relationships between these variables and enables new research horizons on this topic. As a managerial and academic contribution, a framework was developed that demonstrates an integrated model between innovation capability and performance, considering the different dimensions of innovation capability and performance perspectives. of innovation capabilities, representing an advancement in the theory of innovation capability. It is expected that this model will be used to assist managers of organizations seeking to develop innovation capability and obtain better organizational performance, becoming an easy-to-implement performance measurement tool of great strategic importance for leveraging competitiveness and the results of innovative companies.