Determinants of innovative behavior of employees: evidence from Spanish firms

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to analyze how the presence of communication and knowledge flows influences the creation of a work context that supports innovation, and how this relationship is moderated by labor externalization.

Design/methodology/approach

To study these relationships, the authors use a sample of 249 workers from five organizations. The different hypotheses proposed are contrasted using hierarchical regression analysis.

Findings

The results obtained show the authors that, when communication flows exist, workers’ orientation to innovation is greater; likewise, knowledge transfer influences workers’ innovative attitude positively. However, the results are different when externalization of workers acts as a moderating variable.

Practical implications

The firm's management should make decisions and foster the production of information flows between employees, as the results obtained indicate that communication and knowledge transfer encourage employee attitudes and behavior favorable to innovation.

Originality/value

The main contribution of this study is to provide new empirical evidence on the influence of communication and knowledge flows on workers’ orientation to innovation. The authors also analyze how these relationships are affected by the presence of externalization. The evidence obtained in this study permits to deduce what actions foster or inhibit organizations in creating a work context that supports innovation and thus encourages the generation of innovation.

Citation

Teresa Ortega-Egea, M., Ruiz Moreno, A. and Carmen Haro Domínguez, M. (2014), "Determinants of innovative behavior of employees: evidence from Spanish firms", Employee Relations, Vol. 36 No. 6, pp. 606-621. https://doi.org/10.1108/ER-07-2013-0081