How institutions influence SME innovation and networking practices: the case of Vietnamese agribusiness

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This paper addresses impacts of the institutional framework on small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) innovation and networking practices. Through an explorative study of a domestic SME-dominated sector in Vietnam, we find that the institutional framework limits incentives for long-term investments, resulting in exploitative cost-control strategies rather than product-oriented innovation. Due to dominating social norms, SMEs form trust-based friendship networks, potentially limiting knowledge acquisition and weakening business rationality. Institutional pressures reinforce negative influences on SMEs' incentives to develop innovation ambidexterity. The findings suggest that new institutional economic sociology provides a promising foundation for understanding how institutional frameworks influence SMEs' innovation practices in emerging economies.
Original languageEnglish
JournalJournal of Small Business Management
Volume53
Issue numberSupplement S1
Pages (from-to)209-228
Number of pages20
ISSN0047-2778
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Oct 2015

ID: 99101334