Title: The interaction of board network structure and network content on firm innovation

Authors: Tatevik Poghosyan; Kamal Badar; Julie M. Hite

Addresses: United Nations University (UNU-MERIT), Boschstraat 24, 6211 AX Maastricht, The Netherlands ' College of Business Administration, Prince Sultan University, P.O. Box No. 66833, Riyadh 11586, Saudi Arabia ' Department of Educational Leadership & Foundations, Brigham Young University, 306 MCKB, Provo, UT 84601, USA

Abstract: This study, extending prior research on the effect of strategic networks on firm performance, examines the impact of board networks on firm innovation. This research examines firm innovation based on the roles and interactions of the debated network structures (structural holes vs. network closure) and network content (network diversity in terms of industry diversity, network resourcefulness in terms of partners' assets and partners' exports) available through board ties with partner firms. Employing social network data of board interlocks in year 2005, an innovation survey for the period 2008-2010 and the firms' financial variables for the period 2000-2010, the hypothesised model was tested using a probit model. Findings from the board network of 192 Armenian firms provide empirical evidence of the influence of the interaction between structural holes and industry diversity and partners' exports on firm innovation. Hence, this study finds that while board network structure does matter, structure alone does not explain firm innovation. Rather, the combination of specific network structures and specific types of network content stands to provide critical value for firm innovation.

Keywords: structural holes; network closure; industry diversity; partners' assets; partners' exports; firm innovation; interaction.

DOI: 10.1504/EJIM.2023.132432

European Journal of International Management, 2023 Vol.20 No.4, pp.529 - 549

Received: 14 Mar 2019
Accepted: 05 Jul 2019
Published online: 20 Jul 2023 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article