SME Engagement with Open Innovation: Commitments and Challenges towards Collaborative Innovation

Abstract

The open innovation concept is a comparatively new model, and there is an absence of empirical evidence to support a conclusive determination of the factors that affect open innovation, especially in terms of behaviour and costs. Researchers have proposed a variety of methods and techniques for characterising open innovation, but those metrics are overly broad because new approaches that demonstrate current practices were not included. As a result, it is critical to recognise new methods in developing countries to assist SMEs in understanding open innovation and its practices. As such, this study aims to bridge the gap in the literature pertaining to behavioural and cost factors that impact the adoption of open innovation, with an appropriability regime as a moderating factor in determining the success of adoption. This research was undertaken to study the effects of organisational citizenship behaviours, organisational culture, managerial ties, and transactional costs (the predictor variables) on the adoption of open innovation (the criterion variable) and to study the moderating role of an appropriability regime on these relationships. The research used cross-sectional data from a survey of 376 SMEs in Malaysia. This study used quantitative methodology and suitable statistical methods; 376 SME owners, managers, and high-ranking executives participated and completed the survey. A simple random sampling technique was used, and PLS–SEM regression was employed to test the related hypothesis variables. The theories adopted in this research, namely the social exchange theory and the actor–network theory, pave the way for quantitative research. The results revealed that organisational citizenship behaviours predict open innovation positively and significantly. A highly integrative culture was also found to relate positively to open innovation. In addition, managerial ties and transactional costs were found to facilitate open innovation. With respect to open innovation, appropriability regimes were found to strongly moderate the relationships between managerial ties and transactional costs. However, appropriability regimes did not strongly moderate the relationships between organisational citizenship behaviours and organisational culture.