Individual, organizational, technological and industry factors effects on innovation capability of dairy SMEs in Pakistan : knowledge sharing as mediated

Existing literature reveals a gap in the empirical knowledge on innovation capability in the dairy sector of Punjab, Pakistan. Innovation capability is a key player in the growth and success of a business. Therefore, the major objective of this study was to examine the mediating role of knowledge sharing on trust, motivation, training & development, supervisor support, ICT use, and industry cluster resources with innovation capability of the dairy sector. This research contributes to the growth of GDP through the dairy sector. The research framework in the study was based on the diffusion of innovation and the resource- based view theories. The data were collected from dairy farm owners and managers in the study locality, i.e. Punjab, Pakistan. The study instrument was 410 self- administered questionnaires which were distributed to the dairy farm mangers/owners through the simple random sampling technique. 254 valid questionnaires were used for the analysis. The SPSS and SMART PLS 3.0 were used for the basic screening of the raw data and testing the hypothetical statements. The study found that motivation, training & development, supervisor support and industry cluster resources have positive significant impacts on knowledge- sharing. Furthermore, motivation, training & development, ICT used and industry cluster resources also have positive impacts on innovation capability; and knowledge- sharing mediated the relationship between motivation, training & development, supervisor support and innovation capability. The results of the study provide important insights to outcome, policy- makers and researchers to further understand the effects of the innovation capability of dairy SMEs (small medium enterprises) in Pakistan. This study suggested that managers and owners of dairy farms must provide motivation, training & development and supervisor support to enhance the innovation capability of dairy workers.