Many studies have investigated the determinants of product innovation in small firms, suggesting product, firm, market and innovation process factors are its key drivers of success. Variations across industries relating to the determinants of product innovation are often expected, but due to a lack of data this is still under-researched. This article explores if composite effects due to broad samples indeed blur one's view. Drawing upon a database of 1250 small firms across 7 industries, we investigate if any differences are found in the presence and impact of various firm-level determinants. Controlling for size and age differences, the analysis reveals some major differences to the extent small firms use innovative practices, and their connection with new product introductions.
Acs, Z. J. and Audretsch, D. B. (1988) ‘Innovation in Large and Small Firms: An Empirical Analysis’ , The American Economic Review78(4): 678–690 .
2.
Acs, Z. J. and Audretsch, D. B. (1990) Innovation and Small Firms. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press .
3.
Appiah-Adu, K. and Singh, S. (1998) ‘Customer Orientation and Performance: A Study of SMEs’ , Management Decision26(6): 385–394 .
4.
Atkins, M. H. and Lowe, J. F. (1997) ‘Sizing up the Small Firm: UK and Australian Experience’ , International Small Business Journal15(3): 42–55 .
5.
Banbury C. M. and Mitchell, W. (1995) ‘The Effect of Introducing Important Incremental Innovations on Market Share and Business Survival’ , Strategic Management Journal16(Special Issue): 161–182 .
6.
Bangma, K. L. and Peeters, H. H. M. (2003) Kleinschalig Ondernemen 2003: Structuur en Ontwikkeling van het Nederlandse MKB [Small-scale Entrepreneurship: Structure and Developments of Dutch SMEs]. Zoetermeer, The Netherlands: EIM .
7.
Bhattacharya, M. and Bloch, H. (2004) ‘Determinants of Innovation’ , Small Business Economics22(2): 155–162 .
8.
Bougrain, F. and Haudeville, B. (2002) ‘Innovation, Collaboration and SMEs Internal Research Capacities’ , Research Policy31(5): 735–747 .
9.
Brouwer, E. (1997) Into Innovation: Determinants and Indicators. Utrecht: Drukkerij Elinkwijk .
10.
Brouwer, E. and Kleinknecht, A. (1996) ‘Firm Size, Small Business Presence and Sales of Innovative Products: A Micro-econometric Analysis’ , Small Business Economics8(3): 189–201 .
11.
Churchill, G. A. (1999) Marketing Research: Methodological Foundations. Fort Worth, TX Dryden Press .
12.
Cooper, R. G. and Kleinschmidt, E. J. (1995) ‘Benchmarking the Firm's Critical Success Factors in New Product Development’ , Journal of Product Innovation Management12(5): 374–362 .
13.
Davenport, S. and Bibby, D. (1999) ‘Rethinking a National Innovation System: The Small Country as “SME”’ , Technology Analysis and Strategic Management11(3): 431–462 .
14.
De Brentani, U. (2001) ‘Innovative versus Incremental New Business Services: Different Keys for Achieving Success’ , Journal of Product Innovation Management18(3): 169–187 .
15.
Den Hertog, P. (2000) ‘Knowledge-intensive Business Services as Co-producers of Innovation’ , International Journal of Innovation Management4(4): 491–528 .
16.
Ernst, H. (2002) ‘Success Factors of New Product Development: A Review of the Empirical Literature’ , International Journal of Management Reviews4(1): 1–40 .
17.
Evangelista, R. (2000) ‘Sectoral Patterns of Technological Change in Services’ , Economics of Innovation and New Technology9(3): 183–221 .
18.
Freel, M.S. (2000) ‘Barriers to Product Innovation in Small Manufacturing Firms’ , International Small Business Journal18(1): 60–80 .
19.
Freel, M. (2003) ‘Sectoral Patterns of Small Firm Innovation, Networking and Proximity’ , Research Policy32(5): 751–770 .
20.
Freel, M.S. and P.J.A. Robson (2004), ‘Small Firm Innovation, Growth and Performance: Evidence from Scotland and Northern England’ , International Small Business Journal, 22(6): 561–575 .
21.
Freeman, C. and Soete, L. (1997) The Economics of Industrial Innovation, 3rd edn.London: Pinter .
22.
Galende, J. and De la Fuente, J. M. (2003) ‘Internal Factors Determining a Firm's Innovative Behaviour’ , Research Policy32(5): 715–736 .
23.
Hadjimanolis A. (2000) ‘An Investigation of Innovation Antecedents in Small Firms in the Context of a Small Developing Country’ , R&D Management30(3): 235–245 .
24.
Hair, J.F. , Anderson, R. E. , Tatham, R. L. and Black, W. C. (1995) Multivariate Data Analysis, 4th edn.Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall .
25.
Hanna V. and Walsh, K. (2002) ‘Small Firm Networks: A Successful Approach to Innovation?’ , R&D Management32(3): 201–207 .
26.
Hoffman, K. , Parejo, M. , Bessant, J. and Perren, L. (1998) ‘Small firms, R&D, Technology and Innovation in the UK: A Literature Review’ , Technovation18(1): 39–55 .
27.
Huang, X. , Soutar, G.N. and Brown, A. (2002) ‘New Product Development Processes in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises: Some Australian Evidence’ , Journal of Small Business Management40(1): 27–42 .
28.
Hyvärinen, L. (1990) ‘Innovativeness and its Indicators in Small-and Medium-sized Industrial Enterprises’ , International Small Business Journal9(1): 64–79 .
29.
Karlsson, C. and Olsson, O. (1998) ‘Product Innovation in Small and Large Enterprises’ , Small Business Economics10(1): 31–46 .
30.
Kim, Y. , Song, K. and Lee, J. (1993) ‘Determinants of Technological Innovation in the Small Firms of Korea’ , R&D Management23(3): 215–225 .
31.
Martin, C. R. and Horne, D. A. (1995) ‘Level of Success Inputs for Service Innovations in the Same Firm’ , International Journal of Service Industry Management6(4): 40–56 .
32.
Miozzo, M. and Soete, L. (2001) ‘Internationalization of Services: A Technological Perspective’ , Technological Forecasting and Social Change67(2–3): 159–185 .
33.
Oerlemans, L. A. G. , Meeus, M. T. H. and Boekema, F. W. M. (1998) ‘Do Networks Matter For Innovation?: The Usefulness of the Economics Network Approach in Analysing Innovation’ , Tijdschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografi e89(3): 298–309 .
34.
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (1997) Oslo Manual: Proposed Guidelines for Collecting and Interpreting Technological Innovation Data. Paris: OECD .
35.
Parthasarthy, R. and Hammond, J. (2002) ‘Product Innovation Input and Outcome: Moderating Effects of the Innovation Process’ , Journal of Engineering and Technology Management19(1): 75–91 .
36.
Pavitt, K. (1984) ‘Sectoral Patterns of Technological Change: Towards a Taxonomy and Theory’ , Research Policy13(6): 343–373 .
37.
Rogers, M. (2004) ‘Networks, Firm Size and Innovation’ , Small Business Economics22(2): 141–153 .
38.
Romijn, H. and Albaladejo, M. (2002) ‘Determinants of Innovation Capability in Small Electronics and Software Firms in Southeast England’ , Research Policy31(7): 1053–1067 .
39.
Roper, S. (1997) ‘Product Innovation and Small Business Growth: A Comparison of the Strategies of German, U.K. and Irish Companies’ , Small Business Economics9(6): 523–537 .
40.
Rothwell, R. (1977) ‘The Characteristics of Successful Innovators and Technically Progressive Firms’ , R&D Management7(3): 191–206 .
41.
Rothwell, R. (1991) ‘External Networking and Innovation in Small and Medium-sized Manufacturing Firms in Europe’ , Technovation11(2): 93–112 .
42.
Soni, P. K. , Lilien, G. L. and Wilson, D. T. (1993) ‘Industrial Innovation and Firm Performance: A Reconceptualization and Structural Equation Analysis’ , International Journal of Research in Marketing10(4): 365–380 .
43.
Sterlacchini A. (1999) ‘Do Innovative Activities Matter to Small Firms in non-R&D-intensive Industries?: An Application to Export Performance’ , Research Policy28(8): 819–832 .
44.
Tatikonda, M. V. and Zeithaml, V. A. (2002) ‘Managing the New Service Development Process: Multi-Disciplinary Literature Synthesis and Directions for Future Research’, in T. Boone and R. Ganeshan (eds) New Directions in Supply-Chain Management, pp. 200–233. New York: Amacom .
45.
Tether B. S. (2002) ‘Who Co-operates for Innovation, and Why?: An Empirical Analysis’ , Research Policy31(6): 947–967 .
46.
Urban, G. L. and Hauser, J. (1993) Design and Marketing of New Products, 2nd edn.Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall .
47.
Vermeulen, P. and Dankbaar, B. (2002) ‘The Organization of Product Innovation in the Financial Sector’ , The Service Industries Journal22(3): 77–98 .
48.
Vermeulen, P. A. M. , de Jong, J. P. J. and O'shaughnessy, K. C. (2005) ‘Identifying Key Determinants for New Product Introductions and Firm Performance in Service SMEs’ , The Service Industries Journal25(5): 625–640 .
49.
Vossen, R. (1999), ‘Relative Strengths and Weaknesses of Small Firms in Innovation’ , International Small Business Journal16(3): 88–94 .
50.
Wakasugi, R. and Koyata, F. (1997) ‘R&D, Firm Size and Innovation Outputs: Are Japanese Firms Effi cient in Product Development?’ , Journal of Product Innovation Management14(5): 383–392 .
