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Can hybrid strategy improve SME performance?Introduction Recent global events, such as the global health pandemic alert and the new war conflicts, have led to a decline in global wealth (He and Harris, 2020) and have resulted in "the new normal" Can hybrid strategy improve SME performance? 173 The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at: https://www.emerald.com/insight/1460-1060.htm Received 13 July 2023 Revised 4 October 2023 8 December 2023 Accepted 16 January 2024 European Journal of Innovation Management Vol. 27 No. 9, 2024 pp. 173-197 Emerald Publishing Limited 1460-1060 DOI10.1108/EJIM-07-2023-0566 (Clau?et al., 2022). This new context is characterised by hypercompetition, high demand instability, disruptive changes in industry structure, unpredictable customer behaviour and instability of economic, social and technological factors (Lapersonne, 2013), with traditional competitive strategies proving ineffective (Anwar and Hasnu, 2017). The literature highlights that a pure differentiation or cost leadership strategy can cause firms to stagnate, especially when faced with new challenges, thereby encouraging the emergence of new types of competitive strategies that are better adapted to the new normal. Historically, during global crises, firms have tended to combine pure strategies for higher profits and reduced risk because hybrid competitive strategies alleviate pressures from the external environment (Alnooret al., 2023). Many large companies (e.g. Ikea, Tesco, Honda, and Mercadona) are simultaneously applying such combined strategies and finding success (Barotoet al., 2012;Blanco and Guti errez, 2008). Such hybrid strategy enables them to innovate in response to the turbulent environment, achieve competitive advantage, and obtain superior performance (Fatonah and Haryantoa, 2022). Innovation is strategic in firms that build competitive advantages (Hutomo and Pudjiarti, 2021). However, because innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is lower due to their lower resource capacity (AlQershiet al., 2020;Varis and Littunen, 2010), they are more constrained than large firms in achieving superior performance (Linet al., 2014;Zamani, 2022). Hybrid strategies are difficult to imitate because they reduce costs and increase quality, thereby enabling the development of unique capabilities that outperform generic ones (Anwar and Hasnu, 2017). In addition, a hybrid strategy gives rise to multiple sources of competitive advantage such as economies of scale, brand loyalty, and improved product quality (Baroto et al.,2012). Therefore, hybrid strategies have been recognised as a particularly interesting avenue of research (Gabrielssonet al.,2016). However, studies have mainly focussed on large companies such as United States multinationals (Gabrielssonet al.,2016) and large European companies (Acquaah and Yasai-Ardekani, 2008;Claver-Corteset al.,2012)oremergingmarkets such as China (Liet al.,2009;Li and Li, 2008), with few studies focussing on SMEs (Sof iaand Agustine, 2019). Therefore, there is currently a demand for studies that analyse the effect of a hybrid strategy in such companies and incorporate new influential variables relevant to the implementation of the hybrid strategy (Alnooret al., 2023). Based on these premises, the first objective of this study is to analyse the impact of implementing a hybrid strategy on SME firm performance. With this aim, our work helps to fill the gap in the literature on the implementation of hybrid strategies and their impact on firm performance, while simultaneously providing results specific to SMEs, regarding which research is scarce. The second objective of the research is to examine the mediating role of product and process innovation in the relationship between hybrid strategy and firm performance. In this way, we gain a better understanding of the functioning of hybrid strategies and increase existing knowledge on implementing hybrid strategies in SMEs. Finally, the third objective is to examine adaptive capacity as a potential moderator in the relationships of hybrid strategy with product and process innovation, as this in an organisational process that depends not only on business strategy but also on the capabilities of the firm (cf.Akg EUR unet al., 2012). Thus, although we expect hybrid strategy have a generally positive impact on fostering higher levels of product and process innovation, a firm's adaptive capacity may be a boundary condition. We argue that the presence of higher levels of adaptive capacity in SMEs can strengthen the relationships of hybrid strategy with product and process innovation. This will help advance the literature by incorporating new influential moderating variables into the hybrid strategy in SMEs. Therefore, SME managers will benefit from this research as it will help them make strategic decisions that enable them to compete in turbulent environments. In response to these objectives, this study makes several contributions to the literature on SMEs, given their importance as drivers of economic development in the current environment (Kharubet al., 2022;Rubio-Andr eset al., 2022a). First, we help alleviate the dearth of literature EJIM 27,9 174 on hybrid strategies and their impact on value-generating variables (i.e. innovation and firm performance;Alnooret al., 2023). Specifically, our study reflects on and develops a unified model that has not been previously analysed in the literature and integrates several constructs such as hybrid strategies, innovation, adaptive capacity, and firm performance. Second, it analyses the mechanisms (product and process innovation) through which hybrid strategies can achieve firm performance. Third, we examine the active role that adaptive capacity can play in strengthening or minimising the positive influence of hybrid strategies on (product and process) innovation. Finally, through a survey of 1,842 CEOs of small and medium-sized Spanish firms in the leading sectors (industry, construction, commerce, and services), we contribute to the literature by a developing quantitative study whose empirical findings shed light on the disparate results of previous studies. The remainder of this paper is organised as follows. The second section reviews the extant literature on the theoretical background of our research variables, and hypotheses are developed in the third section. The fourth section describes the research method, including the sample, procedures, measures, and data analyses. In the fifthsection, we present the main results. Finally, the sixth and seventh sections present the discussion and conclusions, incorporating implications for theory and practice, along with the limitations and future research directions. 2. Theoretical background 2.1 Hybrid strategy Hybrid strategy emerged as an evolution of Porter's generic strategic framework (Lapersone et al., 2015) as a source of gaining advantage over rival firms, enabling them to compete in turbulent environments (Alnooret al., 2023). According toAnwaret al.(2021), detailed research on hybrid strategy has emerged as a key challenge in competitive strategy research. AlthoughPorter (1980,1985)opposes the simultaneous pursuit of low-cost and differentiation strategies, to avoid being"stuck in the middle", some authors defend the compatibility of this approach and establish the possibility of implementing hybrid, mixed, integrated, or combined strategies (Acquaah and Yasai-Ardekani, 2008;Claver-Corteset al., 2012;Spanoset al., 2004).First, our results confirmed the positive relationship between hybrid strategy adoption and business performance (H1), thus differentiating hybrid or combined strategies from the stagnant or"stuck in the middle"strategies described byPorter (1980,1985). Owing to their small size and high flexibility (Gubitta and Gianecchini, 2002), SMEs can effectively design their competitive strategy to adapt to the changing environment. Second, our research has shown that SMEs that implement hybrid strategies can improve their product and process innovation (H2aandH2b). These results are in line with recent studies such asAlbers and Rundshagen (2020), who established that a hybrid strategy improves innovation and enables better crisis management. In a similar study,Claver-Cort es et al.(2012)report that their empirical results confirm that a hybrid competitive strategy enhances innovation such that the more hybrid the strategy, the more innovative the firm. Similarly,Alnooret al.(2023)suggest that the use of hybrid strategies in different sectors leads a firm to obtain higher market share, improve quality, increase flexibility, strengthen innovation, improve lead times, and reduce costs. Third, we examined the relationship between each type of innovation (product and process) and its impact on firm performance. This study found no empirical evidence of a positive relationship between product innovation and company performance (H3a), confirming only a positive relationship between process innovation and performance (H3b). These findings confirm previous empirical studies (i.e.Cheahet al., 2022), which find a positive relationship between process innovation and performance in SMEs. Therefore, our study contributes to the literature by identifying how a particular type of innovation (process innovation in our case) is key to maintaining in SMEs performance. This may be because SMEs managers consider their competitive advantage is, to a greater extent, a result of internal (process) innovation rather than product innovation, since SMEs have fewer resources than large companies to communicate their results (Baumann-Paulyet al., 2013). Fourth, we analysed the mediating role of both types of innovation in the positive relationship between hybrid strategy and firm performance (H4aandH4b). We confirmed that only process innovation mediates this relationship. Therefore, we advance the notion that a particular type of innovation, process innovation, is key to SMEs sustaining their entrepreneurial businesses (Singhet al., 2022). Finally, the implementation of a hybrid strategy requires more flexible and organic structures (Claver-Corteset al., 2012) that allow for high adaptability. This study empirically demonstrated that SMEs with higher adaptive capacity achieve better innovation outcomes from their hybrid strategies than those with lower adaptive capacity (H5aandH5b). Therefore, we confirmed the findings ofOktemgil and Greenley (1997)on how highly adaptive firms perform better than low-adaptive firms despite the impacts of higher costs, Can hybrid strategy improve SME performance? 187 because high adaptive capacity involves a market orientation that allows firms to operate in more turbulent external environments. 7. Conclusions 7.1 Theoretical implications Our findings advance the existing literature in several ways. First, this study expands the current theoretical knowledge on how firm performance is formed from a strategic point of view. In doing so, we developed a unified model that has not been previously analysed. Our model integrates several constructs: hybrid strategy, innovation (processes and products), adaptive capacity, and firm performance. Thus, the study provides a better understanding of what happens in the first stages of the process that leads to improved firm performance. When considering a hybrid strategy, this study helps researchers understand that process innovation plays a specific mediating role between hybrid strategy and firm performance and that higher levels of a company's adaptative capacity enhances innovation development (in processes and products). Second, over time, many publications, empirical works, and case studies onPorter's (1980, 1985)competitive strategies have served to guide many companies to improve their competitive positions in the market. However, this theory perceives competitive strategies as dichotomous and does not focus on their potential to be understood as simultaneous strategies, that is, as combined or hybrid strategies that are of interest in the turbulent environments in which SMEs compete. Thus, SMEs that develop a hybrid strategy can overcome the weaknesses of a pure competitive strategy (cost leadership or differentiation) because they combine the advantages of both strategies (Leitner and G EUR uldenberg, 2010). Hence, achieving a cost-leadership strategy drives SMEs to achieve differentiation strategies, and vice versa. This finding implies that a dual strategy, although derived from highly divergent organisational philosophies, is not prohibitively difficult to implement successfully in SMEs if the company has adequate resources and competencies to do so. However, contrary to our prediction that a hybrid strategy would allow the development of process and product innovation and, in turn, improve firm performance, this is only possible through process innovation. This may be because SME managers consider their competitive advantage to be, to a greater extent, the result of internal (process) innovation rather than product innovation as SMEs have fewer resources than large companies to communicate any product-innovation results (Baumann-Paulyet al., 2013). Finally, while research on hybrid strategies reveals significant benefits in terms of higher levels of product and process innovation (Kaya, 2015), it has not examined the active role of dynamic capabilities in increasing or minimising the positive influence of hybrid strategies on innovation. Our results show that adaptive capacity moderates the effects of hybrid strategy on product and service innovation. Thus, under conditions of high adaptive capacity, the relationships of hybrid strategy-product innovation and hybrid strategy- process innovation are strengthened, whereas under conditions of low adaptive capacity, these relationships are weakened. In summary, our study helps advance the knowledge of the application of hybrid strategies in SMEs in the current times of high uncertainty, thus opening the door to new theories that complement previous ones. 7.2 Practical implications Beyond theory, our empirical findings have significant implications for both practice and policymaking. The finding that hybrid strategies should be recommended for any manager facing of the difficulty that always exists in decision-making: based on their initial EJIM 27,9 188 competitive strategy, our advice would be to invest resources and capabilities to achieve innovation, allowing the competitive strategy to be improved. For example, according to our findings, if a strategy is based on differentiation to compete in a turbulent environment, the focus should be on process innovation, which allows cost improvement. In contrast, in the case of a cost strategy, the focus should be on innovation, allowing the firm to achieve differentiation. The results of this study offer interesting ideas for both managers and professionals, especially for managers of SMEs. First, this study highlights that SMEs need to establish strategies that capitalise on all types of resources and capabilities and not limit themselves to generating competitive advantages in a single direction, such as differentiation or cost leadership. In situations of dramatic change such as the current scenario, SME managers must be aware that applying hybrid or combined strategies may be the best way to ensure their company's survival. Second, implementing a hybrid strategy requires agile and flexible systems for greater and faster adaptation to changes. It also requires a combination of efficiency and innovation in both products and processes to deliver better business results than competitors that implement pure strategies (focussing solely on differentiation or cost reduction), thereby limiting their use of resources. Third, organisations exist for a purpose: to continually improve their firm performance. Our results suggest that SME managers and leaders can improve performance through process innovation. This can be a key weapon in fighting competition through the design of sustainable and innovative processes. Fourth, managers and leaders need to invest a significant amount of time and organisational resources to develop high levels of adaptive capacity because adaptive capacity significantly facilitates product and process innovation when a company uses a hybrid strategy. In other words, firm innovation largely depends on a firm's intention to improve its adaptive capacity. As companies develop and implement these types of capabilities in their routines, systems, and organisational processes, innovation becomes a reality and helps companies remain competitive. Finally, managers can use hybrid strategies to generate process innovation, making it more difficult for competitors to imitate them. 7.3 Limitations and future research directions Although our study has numerous implications for theory and practice, it is not without limitations, which offer possibilities for future research. First, one of the limitations of the study is the use of a database, which limits the study to variables that are part of the survey; therefore, we lack information about how the culture or beliefs of the company affect the implementation of a hybrid strategy. Determining the contingency factors in the implementation of this type of strategy would be much more enriching. As a line of future research, we propose identifying both internal (e.g. organisational culture) and external factors (e.g. sector dynamism) that favour the hybridisation of competitive strategy to improve both innovation and business performance. Second, our study focussed on SMEs, and we thus suggest that future researchers use our framework to undertake a comparative study between SMEs and large companies to determine the differences in terms of the direct and indirect effects between hybrid strategy, innovation, adaptive capacity, and firm performance. Finally, the results of this study are based exclusively on quantitative information. Therefore, to arrive at solid implications for both theory and practice, we suggest that future research use a mixed-research design that combines quantitative and qualitative information to compensate for the weaknesses of each data source. Can hybrid strategy improve SME performance? 189 Despite the aforementioned limitations, the results of this study provide several vital insights for theory, researchers, organisations on hybrid strategies, and innovation and firm performance in the context of SMEs. References Acquaah, M. and Yasai-Ardekani, M. (2008),"Does the implementation of a combination competitive strategy yield incremental performance benefits?Burdon, S., Mooney, G.R. and Al-Kilidar, H. (2015),"Navigating service sector innovation using co- creation partnerships",Journal of Service Theory and Practice, Vol. 25 No. 3, pp. 285-303, doi:10. 1108/jstp-08-2013-0164. Cegarra-Navarro, J.G., Soto-Acosta, P. and Wensley, A.K. (2016),"Structured knowledge processes and firm performance: the role of organizational agility",Journal of Business Research, Vol.Launching innovative products with new or Author (year)Type of study Data and sampleRelevant findings Alnooret al.(2023)Bibliometric analysis A total of 92 studies from the Scopus and Web of Science database The hybrid strategy based on the strategies of Miles, Snow and Porter is of global interest because such an approach to an emerging strategy can lead to outstanding performance Pertusa-Ortega et al.(2009) QuantitativeMultisectoral sample of 164 Spanish firms Hybrid strategies are associated with higher levels of business performance, particularly those that emphasise more on strategic dimensions, such as innovation Acquaah and Yasai-Ardekani (2008) QuantitativeA total of 200 large and medium-sized companies in Ghana Positive performance implications of implementing a combined competitive strategy over singular or generic strategies Claver-Cort eset al. (2012) QuantitativeA total of 164 large Spanish companies from different sectors Hybrid strategies are associated with higher levels of performance.Study of organisational design variables associated with the development of hybrid strategies Salavou and Manolopoulos (2021) QuantitativeA total of 63 Greek social enterprises Compared to purely strategic ones, hybrid options are more influentially linked to impact in terms of positive environmental, social, and economic contributions Gabrielsonet al. (2016) QuantitativeA total of 145 Finnish and 114 Swedish companies The realisation of a hybrid competitive strategy depends on the internationalisation phase and key resources Anwaret al.(2021)Bibliometric analysis A total of 196 selected articles to identify trends of the most influential journals and papers Systematic review of the Miles and Snow typology and future strategies.The role of innovation and adaptive capacity Santiago Guti errez-Broncano Faculty of Social Sciences and Information Technologies, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Talavera de la Reina, Spain Jorge Linuesa-Langreo Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Cuenca, Spain, and Mercedes Rubio-Andr es and Miguel Angel Sastre-Castillo Department of Business Organisation, Faculty of Commerce and Tourism, Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain 1.Agyapong, A., Ellis, F. and Domeher, D. (2016),"Competitive strategy and performance of family businesses: moderating effect of managerial and innovative capabilities",Journal of Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Vol. 28 No. 6, pp. 449-477, doi:10.1080/08276331.2016.1217727. Aiken, L.S., West, S.G. and Reno, R.R. (1991),Multiple Regression: Testing and Interpreting Interactions, Sage, London. Akg EUR un, A.E., Keskin, H. and Byrne, J. (2012),"Antecedents and contingent effects of organizational adaptive capability on firm product innovativeness",Journal of Product Innovation Management, Vol.Several studies have corroborated this finding (Acquaah and Yasai-Ardekani, 2008;Claver-Corteset al., 2012;Kaliappenet al., 2019;Pertusa- Ortegaet al., 2009;Spanoset al., 2004). According to these studies, hybrid strategies increase learning and efficiency in multiple firm areas and require a combination of effectiveness and Can hybrid strategy improve SME performance? Considering the above, we formulate the following hypothesis: H1.There is a positive relationship between hybrid strategy and firm performance. 3.2 Hybrid strategy and innovation Companies that integrate generic strategies into their business vision can position themselves appropriately, improve their innovation capacity, and learn new skills and technologies (Sofia and Augustine, 2019).Thus, to achieve and maintain a sustainable competitive advantage, it is particularly important for firms to decipher signals from the changing environment, make predictions about volatile consumer preferences and government policies, reconfigure resources and coordinate processes, and respond to environmental changes quickly and flexibly by developing innovations (Chen and Wu, 2011;Pundzieneet al., 2022).Biedenbach and M EUR uller (2012)emphasise that adaptive capacity in the early stages of a project has a positive effect on short-term success and firm performance.Biedenbach, T. and M EUR uller, R. (2012),"Absorptive, innovative and adaptive capabilities and their impact on project and project portfolio performance",International Journal of Project Management, Vol. 30 No. 5, pp. 621-635, doi:10.1016/j.ijproman.2012.01.016. Blanco, M. and Gutierrez, S. (2008),"El empleo del modelo de gesti on de la calidad total en el sector de la distribuci on comercial en Espa ~ na: el caso de Mercadona",Universia Business Review, Vol.Alnoor, A., Khaw, K.W., Chew, X., Abbas, S. and Khattak, Z.Z. (2023),"The influence of the barriers of hybrid strategy on strategic competitive priorities: evidence from oil companies",Global Journal of Flexible Systems Management, Vol. 24 No. 2, pp. 179-198, doi:10.1007/s40171-022-00335-8. AlQershi, N.A., Diah, M.L.B.M., Latiffi, A.B.A. and Ahmad, W.N.K.W. (2020),"Strategic innovation and competitive advantage of manufacturing SMEs: the mediating role of human capital", Quality Innovation Prosperity, Vol.Through adaptive capacity, firms can: (1) recognise technical and market opportunities in their environment and decide to explore them, (2) identify new customer needs and seek new products and services to diversify offers or enter new markets, and (3) continuously evaluate competitors'products to exploit their weaknesses and develop improved products to meet customer needs (Akg EUR unet al., 2012;Rubio-Andr eset al., 2021;Ruizet al.,2014).Finally, discriminant validity was Construct Item/first order constructLoading Construct reliability AVE Cronbach's alpha Dillon- Goldstein (?c) Dijkstra- Henseler (?A) Hybrid strategy (HS) 1111 HS11 Product innovation (PTI) 0.830.880.830.65 PTI10.81 PTI20.80 PTI30.81 PTI40.84 Process innovation (PSI) 0.740.830.760.66 PSI10.87 PSI20.73 PSI30.84 Firm performance (FP) 0.710.810.710.59 FP10.78 FP20.78 FP30.74 Adaptive capacity (AC) 1111 AC11 Source(s):Authors'own elaboration Table 3.29 No. 1, pp. 171-189, doi:10.1111/j.1540-5885.2012.00949.x. Albers, S. and Rundshagen, V. (2020),"European airlines'strategic responses to the COVID-19 pandemic", Journal of Air Transport Management, Vol. 87, 101863, doi:10.1016/j.jairtraman.2020.101863. Ali, S., Wu, W. and Ali, S. (2022),"Adaptive marketing capability and product innovations: the role of market ambidexterity and transformational leadership (evidence from Pakistani manufacturing industry)",European Journal of Innovation Management, Vol.Centobelli, P., Cerchione, R. and Singh, R. (2019),"The impact of leanness and innovativeness on environmental and financial performance: insights from Indian SMEs",International Journal of Production Economics, Vol. 212, pp. 111-124, doi:10.1016/j.ijpe.2019.02.011. Cheah, J., Leong, S.Y. and Fernando, Y. (2022),"Innovation strategies and organisational performance: the moderating role of company size among small-and medium-sized companies", Benchmarking: An International Journal, Vol.On the other hand, there are certain business practices that improve both competitive positions, such as quality improvement (Grant, 2002) and digital transformation (Bayo-Moriones and Lera-L opez, 2007); these help to enhance differentiation by improving responsiveness to market changes and achieve cost reductions as the decision-making process is improved and streamlined (Pertusa-Ortegaet al., 2009).EJIM 27,9 190 Baumann-Pauly, D., Wickert, C., Spence, L.J. and Scherer, A.G. (2013),"Organizing corporate social responsibility in small and large firms: size matters",Journal of Business Ethics, Vol. 115 No. 4, pp. 693-705, doi:10.1007/s10551-013-1827-7. Bayo-Moriones, A. and Lera-L opez, F. (2007),"A firm-level analysis of determinants of ICT adoption in Spain",Technovation, Vol.Bayraktar, C.A., Hancerliogullari, G., Cetinguc, B. and Calisir, F. (2017),"Competitive strategies, innovation, and firm performance: an empirical study in a developing economy environment", Technology Analysis and Strategic Management, Vol. 29 No. 1, pp. 38-52, doi:10.1080/09537325. 2016.1194973. Bernerth, J.B. and Aguinis, H. (2016),"A critical review and best-practice recommendations for control variable usage",Personnel Psychology, Vol.Discussion Studies over the past decades have not conclusively determined the specific conditions under which it is preferable for a firm to pursue a combined or hybrid competitive strategy, rather Indirect effect Variance explained Size of the mediation effect R 2 included R 2 excluded R 2 variance explained(f 2 ) Hybrid Strategy->Process Innovation->Firm Performance 0.370.340.030.05 (small effect) Note(s):f 2 5(R 2 included-R 2 excluded)/(1-R 2 included); effect sizes off 2
=0.02,>=0.15, and>=0.35 are small, medium and large, respectively (Cohen, 1988) Source(s):Authors'own elaboration Table 5.Anwar, J. and Hasnu, S.A.F. (2017),"Strategy-performance relationships: a comparative analysis of pure, hybrid, and reactor strategies",Journal of Advances in Management Research , Vol. 14 No. 4, pp. 446-465, doi:10.1108/jamr-07-2016-0056. Anwar, J., Hasnu, S.A.F., Butt, I. and Ahmed, N. (2021),"Miles and Snow Typology: most influential journals, articles, authors and subject areas",Journal of Organizational Change Management, Vol.The indicators to measure this construct were profitability (Delaney and Huselid, 1996;Pinheiroet al., 2021;Richard et al., 2009), business growth (Christensenet al., 2003;Piperopoulos and Scase, 2009;Szczygielskiet al., 2017;Vaccaroet al., 2010), and customer satisfaction (Rasoulzadehet al., 2013;Saeidiet al., 2015;Clark, 2000; Pekovic and Vogt, 2021;Rasoulzadehet al.,2013;Saeidiet al., 2015;Sridhar and Mehta, 2018).These premises deviate fromPorter's (1980)thinking, because the author advocates a categorical approach by defining cost leadership and differentiation strategies as two alternative, inconsistent, and incompatible methods to achieve competitive advantage.177 innovation (Alnooret al., 2023), thereby allowing firms greater agility and flexibility.3.Figure 1.5.6.
Can hybrid strategy improve SME
performance? The role of
innovation and adaptive capacity
Santiago Guti
errez-Broncano
Faculty of Social Sciences and Information Technologies,
University of Castilla-La Mancha, Talavera de la Reina, Spain
Jorge Linuesa-Langreo
Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Social Sciences,
University of Castilla-La Mancha, Cuenca, Spain, and
Mercedes Rubio-Andr
es and Miguel
Angel Sastre-Castillo
Department of Business Organisation, Faculty of Commerce and Tourism,
Complutense University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
4039521.4
Sector
Industry60032.6
Construction25313.7
Retail34818.9
Service64134.8
Number of employees
No employees120.7
Micro-sized (1–9)64334.9
Small-sized (10–49)96552.4
Medium-sized (50–250)22212.1
CEO qualification
Higher education1,00154.3
Basic education84145.7
Family business
Yes1,29970.5
No54329.5
Total1,842100
Note(s):Sampling error: 2.9%. Confidence level 95%
Source(s):Authors’own elaboration Table 2.
Sample of SMEs
in Spain Can hybrid
strategy
improve SME
performance?
181 and several recommended procedural remedies were used (cf.Podsakoffet al.,2003,2012). For
example, to reduce SDB, anonymity was guaranteed as the survey asked for vague
demographic information. Additionally, to mitigate CMV, (1) the survey included a
psychological separation between predictors and criterion variables to make them appear
unrelated; (2) the study variables were intermingled with other variables related to
entrepreneurial intention, which acted as distractors; and (3) all items were kept simple,
specific, and concise. Additionally, findings using the marker test (e.g.Khosraviet al., 2020)
showed that our efforts concerning method variance were successful. Specifically, one marker
item (i.e. the gender of the CEO) was unrelated to any of the target constructs. The mean
correlation between the marker item and each study variable was 0.04, which was below the
recommended 0.05 threshold (R € onkk € o and Ylitalo, 2011). Moreover, there were no significant
changes in the parameter estimates in the model in which the marker was free to relate to the
study variables. Thus, common method variance is unlikely to be a concern in our data.
4.2 Measures
When measures are used to examine a latent construct, the researcher can design reflective or
formative indicators (MacKenzieet al., 2005). While reflective measurements are highly
correlated indicators that may be caused by the latent construct, formative measures involve
indicators that determine the construct without necessarily being correlated (Hairet al., 2017).
Following the four criteria proposed byMacKenzieet al.(2005)to distinguish between these
two types, all the variables in our survey were reflective.
We adapted all the measures linguistically, semantically, and culturally. Mode A
composites (linear combinations of reflective indicators) were used for all the major variables
(Hairet al., 2017), together with a five-point Likert response format.
Hybrid strategy. This construct was measured through the interaction between two
indicators: differentiation strategy, measured through one item capturing the production of
the product or provision of the service under quality criteria, and cost leadership strategy,
measured through one item capturing the efficiency of internal processes.
Product innovation. We used indicators that assess the degree of importance of product
innovations in SMEs, such as product innovation as changes or improvements in existing
products or services, substantial improvements in products or services, and launching new
products in the market with or without a direct relation to the core product. The indicators
used in this construct have been validated byBurdonet al.(2015),Cegarra-Navarroet al.
(2016),Okeet al.(2007).
Process innovation. We used three indicators to assess the degree of importance of process
innovation in SMEs. Process innovation considers indicators of changes or improvements in
the production process, acquisition of new capital goods, and changes in procurement
management. The indicators used in this construct have been validated byLichtenthaler
(2017)andHarelet al.(2021).
Firm performance. This was the main endogenous variable; all the latent variables of the
model converged on this variable. The indicators to measure this construct were profitability
(Delaney and Huselid, 1996;Pinheiroet al., 2021;Richard et al., 2009), business growth
(Christensenet al., 2003;Piperopoulos and Scase, 2009;Szczygielskiet al., 2017;Vaccaroet al.,
2010), and customer satisfaction (Rasoulzadehet al., 2013;Saeidiet al., 2015;Clark, 2000;
Pekovic and Vogt, 2021;Rasoulzadehet al.,2013;Saeidiet al., 2015;Sridhar and Mehta, 2018).
Adaptive capacity. This variable was measured using an indicator to assess the SME’s
adaptability to changes in the market, defined as the firm’s increased understanding of new
opportunities in the environment (Eshima and Anderson, 2017;Oktemgil and Greenley, 1997).
Control variables. In our initial analysis, we controlled for firm size (number of employees),
sector (service, industry, retail, or construction), and type of company (family or non-family). EJIM
27,9
182 Our analysis was reported without these controls as they did not affect our findings (cf.
Bernerth and Aguinis, 2016).
4.3 Data analysis
To test our hypotheses, we used partial least squares (PLS) with Smart PLS 3.2.7 (Ringleet al.,
2015). The PLS is a distribution-free approach that allows for non-interval-scaled data and
both reflective and formative measures (Hairet al., 2017). Thus, it was suitable for testing our
model, which included different measurement scales (nominal, ordinal, and interval-scaled
variables) and approaches (formative and reflective constructs). In addition, like other
structural equation modelling techniques, PLS is especially suitable for testing the mediation
and moderation hypotheses included in our study (Jameset al., 2006). Bootstrapping (5,000
resamples) was used to generate standard errors, andt-statistics were used to test the
hypotheses (Hairet al., 2017) and whether the indirect effects were significant (an important
criterion for establishing mediation).
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نطاق البحث يركز هذا البحث على تحليل الأطر القانونية والمؤسساتية لعدالة الأحداث، مع دراسة النماذج الد...
نفيد بموجب هذا الملخص أنه بتاريخ 30/03/1433هـ، انتقل إلى رحمة الله تعالى المواطن/ صالح أحمد الفقيه، ...
العدل والمساواة بين الطفل واخواته : الشرح اكدت السنه النبويه المطهرة علي ضروره العدل والمساواة بين...
آملين تحقيق تطلعاتهم التي يمكن تلخيصها بما يلي: -جإعادة مجدهم الغابر، وإحياء سلطانهم الفارسي المندثر...
Network architects and administrators must be able to show what their networks will look like. They ...
السيد وزير التربية الوطنية والتعليم الأولي والرياضة، يجيب عن أسئلة شفوية بمجلس النواب. قدم السيد مح...
حقق المعمل المركزي للمناخ الزراعي إنجازات بارزة ومتنوعة. لقد طوّر المعمل نظامًا متكاملًا للتنبؤ بالظ...
رهف طفلة عمرها ١٢ سنة من حمص اصيبت بطلق بالرأس وطلقة في الفك وهي تلعب جانب باب البيت ، الاب عامل بسي...
قصة “سأتُعشى الليلة” للكاتبة الفلسطينية سميرة عزام تحمل رؤية إنسانية ووطنية عميقة، حيث تسلط الضوء عل...
اعداد خطة عمل عن بعد والتناوب مع رئيس القسم لضمان استمرارية العمل أثناء وباء كوفيد 19، وبالإضافة إلى...
بدينا تخزينتنا ولم تفارقني الرغبة بان اكون بين يدي رجلين اثنين أتجرأ على عضويهما المنتصبين يتبادلاني...
خليج العقبة هو الفرع الشرقي للبحر الأحمر المحصور شرق شبه جزيرة سيناء وغرب شبه الجزيرة العربية، وبالإ...