Determinants of Co-workers' Innovative Behaviour: An Investigation into Knowledge-intensive Services

TLDR: In this article, the authors investigated the drivers of innovative behavior of individual co-workers, which is considered to be a major determinant of incremental innovation, and found that perceptions of job challenge, autonomy, strategic attention and external contacts are positively related to innovative behavior.

Abstract: Innovation researchers increasingly pay attention to service industries, resulting in a large amount of literature on success factors in new service development. However, the role of individual co-workers in innovation is still underexposed. This paper investigated the drivers of innovative behaviour of individual co-workers, which is considered to be a major determinant of incremental innovation. From the literature seven constructs were derived that are often discussed as drivers of innovation, but have not been tested as determinants of individual co-workers' innovative behaviour. Survey data were collected from 360 persons working in knowledge-intensive service firms. Based on a regression analysis, it appeared that perceptions of job challenge, autonomy, strategic attention and external contacts are positively related to innovative behaviour of individual co-workers. Also, operating in a market where firms compete on differentiation had a positive impact. On the other hand, a firm climate supportive to innovation and a high variation in demand did not affect innovative behaviour in a direct manner.