Title: Growing companies and innovation: the influence of managing knowledge (enhancement, acquisition and infrastructure) on innovativeness

Authors: Michael Lewrick, Maktoba Omar, Robert Raeside, Thomas Peisl

Addresses: Corrodistrasse 1, CH-8037 Zurich, Switzerland. ' School of Marketing, Tourism and Languages, Edinburgh Napier University Business School, Craiglockhart Campus, Edinburgh EH14 1DJ, UK ' School of Management, Edinburgh Napier University Business School, Edinburgh, EH14 1DJ, UK. ' Department of Business Administration, Munich University of Applied Sciences, Am Stadtpark 20, 81243 München, Germany

Abstract: The study is designed to explore in depth the impact of knowledge on different innovation typologies. This study starts with an overview of literature on innovation and knowledge. Three hypotheses tested using data from 200 innovative companies in a high tech cluster. Factor analysis has been used to construct variables which reflect knowledge infrastructure, enhancement and acquisition. Further, the study provides new insights on the use of knowledge in start-up and mature companies in diverse sectors. An interesting research result is that start-up companies utilise the knowledge infrastructure while mature companies aim to enhance knowledge to become innovative.

Keywords: innovation; knowledge management; KM strategy; knowledge acquisition; organisational learning; knowledge enhancement; knowledge infrastructure; start-up companies; mature firms; start-ups.

DOI: 10.1504/IJKMS.2010.038168

International Journal of Knowledge Management Studies, 2010 Vol.4 No.3, pp.248 - 264

Accepted: 25 Sep 2009
Published online: 19 Jan 2011 *

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