SpringerLink
Log in

Business model innovation: The effects of exploratory orientation, opportunity recognition, and entrepreneurial bricolage in an emerging economy

  • Published:
Asia Pacific Journal of Management Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Business model innovation takes shape through a process of experimentation. This study holds that exploratory orientation is a key initiating factor of the experimentation process, and opportunity recognition and entrepreneurial bricolage both are actions constituting this process and thereby serve as conduits between exploratory orientation and business model innovation. Based on a survey data of Chinese firms, this study finds the positive relationship between exploratory orientation and business model innovation is mediated by opportunity recognition and entrepreneurial bricolage. The findings not only enrich the discipline’s knowledge on the antecedents of business model innovation but also extend the implications of exploratory orientation, opportunity recognition, and entrepreneurial bricolage to business model innovation.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Subscribe and save

Springer+ Basic
EUR 32.99 /Month
  • Get 10 units per month
  • Download Article/Chapter or Ebook
  • 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
  • Cancel anytime
Subscribe now

Buy Now

Price includes VAT (Canada)

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. For a detailed literature review on business models, see Zott et al. (2011).

References

  • Ahlstrom, D. 2010. Innovation and growth: How business contributes to society. Academy of Management Perspectives, 24(3): 11–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ahlstrom, D., & Bruton, G. D. 2010. International management: Strategy and culture in the emerging world. Mason: Cengage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ahlstrom, D., & Ding, Z. 2014. Entrepreneurship in China: An overview. International Small Business Journal, 32: 610–618.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Aiken, L. S., & West, S. G. 1991. Multiple regression: Testing and interpreting interactions. Newbury Park: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Amit, R., & Zott, C. 2001. Value creation in e-business. Strategic Management Journal, 22: 493–520.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Amit, R., & Zott, C. 2012. Creating value through business model innovation. Sloan Management Review, 53: 41–49.

    Google Scholar 

  • Armstrong, J. S., & Overton, T. S. 1977. Estimating non-response bias in mail surveys. Journal of Marketing Research, 14: 396–402.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Atuahene-Gima, K. 2005. Resolving the capability-rigidity paradox in new product innovation. Journal of Marketing, 69: 61–83.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baker, T., & Nelson, R. E. 2005. Creating something from nothing: Resource construction through entrepreneurial bricolage. Administrative Science Quarterly, 50: 329–366.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baron, R. M., & Kenny, D. A. 1986. The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51: 1173–1182.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bauer, M., & Leker, J. 2013. Exploration and exploitation in product and process innovation in the chemical industry. R&D Management, 43: 196–212.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brettel, M., Strese, S., & Flatten, T. 2012. Improving the performance of business models with relationship marketing efforts: An entrepreneurial perspective. European Management Journal, 30: 85–98.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Casadesus-Masanell, R., & Zhu, F. 2013. Business model innovation and competitive imitation: The case of sponsor-based business models. Strategic Management Journal, 34: 464–482.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chesbrough, H. 2010. Business model innovation: Opportunities and barriers. Long Range Planning, 43: 354–363.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Christensen, C. M., & Raynor, M. E. 2003. The innovators solution: Creating and sustaining successful growth. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Demil, B., & Lecocq, X. 2010. Business model evolution: In search of dynamic consistency. Long Range Planning, 43: 227–246.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dunbar, R. L. M., & Ahlstrom, D. 1995. Seeking the institutional balance of power: Avoiding the power of a balanced view. Academy of Management Review, 20(1): 171–192.

  • Eckhardt, J., & Shane, S. 2003. Opportunities and entrepreneurship. Journal of Management, 29: 333–349.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fornell, C., & Larcker, D. F. 1981. Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error. Journal of Marketing Research, 18: 39–50.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garud, R., & Karnoe, P. 2003. Bricolage vs. breakthrough: Distributed and embedded agency in technology entrepreneurship. Research Policy, 32: 277–300.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • George, G., & Bock, A. 2011. The business model in practice and its implications for entrepreneurship research. Entrepreneurship: Theory and Practice, 35: 83–111.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giesen, E., Berman, S. J., Bell, R., & Blitz, A. 2007. Three ways to successfully innovate your business model. Strategy and Leadership, 35: 27–33.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gupta, A. K., Smith, K. G., & Shalley, C. E. 2006. The interplay between exploration and exploitation. Academy of Management Journal, 49: 693–706.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hamel, G. 2012. What matters now: How to win in a world of relentless change, ferocious competition, and unstoppable innovation hardcover. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hansen, D. J., Shrader, R., & Monllor, J. 2011. Defragmenting definitions of entrepreneurial opportunity. Journal of Small Business Management, 49: 283–304.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hatcher, L. 1994. A step-by-step approach to using the SAS(R) system for factor analysis and structural equation modeling. Cary: SAS Institute.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hayashi, A. M. 2009. Do you have a plan “B”?. Sloan Management Review, 51: 10–11.

    Google Scholar 

  • He, Z., & Wong, P. 2004. Exploration and exploitation: An empirical test of the ambidexterity hypothesis. Organization Science, 15: 481–494.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • IBM Global Business Services. 2006. Expanding the innovation horizon: The global CEO study 2006. www-07.ibm.com/sg/pdf/global_ceo_study.pdf, Accessed June 1, 2015.

  • Johnson, M. W., Christensen, C. M., & Kagerman, H. 2008. Reinventing your business model. Harvard Business Review, 86(12): 50–59.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ketchen, D. J., Hult, T. G. M., & Slater, S. F. 2007. Toward greater understanding of market orientation and the resource-based view. Strategic Management Journal, 28: 961–964.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lee, Y., Shin, J., & Park, Y. 2012. The changing pattern of SME’s innovativeness through business model globalisation. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 79(5): 832–842.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lévi-Strauss, C. 1967. The savage mind. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • March, J. G. 1991. Exploration and exploitation in organizational learning. Organization Science, 2: 71–87.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McGrath, R. G. 2010. Business models: A discovery driven approach. Long Range Planning, 43: 247–261.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nair, A., Ahlstrom, D., & Filer, L. 2007. Localized advantage in a global economy: The case of Bangalore. Thunderbird International Business Review, 49(5): 591–618.

  • Neter, J., William, W., & Kutner, M. H. 1985. Applied linear statistical models: Regression, analysis of variance, and experimental design. Homewood: Richard Irwin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nunnally, J. C. 1978. Psychometric theory, 2nd ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ozgen, E., & Baron, R. 2007. Social sources of information in opportunity recognition: Effects of mentors, industry networks, and professional forums. Journal of Business Venturing, 22: 174–192.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Podsakoff, P. M., MacKenzie, S. B., Lee, J. Y., & Podsakoff, N. P. 2003. Common method biases in behavioral research: A critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88: 879–903.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sambasivan, M., Abdul, M., & Yusop, Y. 2009. Impact of personal qualities and management skills of entrepreneurs on venture performance in Malaysia: Opportunity recognition skills as a mediating factor. Technovation, 29(11): 798–805.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sarasvathy, S. D. 2008. Effectuation: Elements of entrepreneurial expertise. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Sobel, M. E. 1982. Asymptotic confidence intervals for indirect effects in structural equations models. In S. Leinhart (Ed.). Sociological methodology: 290–312. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sosna, M., Trevinyo-Rodríguez, R. N., & Velamuri, S. R. 2010. Business models innovation through trial-and-error learning: The Naturhouse case. Long Range Planning, 43: 383–407.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Teece, D. J. 2010. Business models, business strategy and innovation. Long Range Planning, 43: 172–194.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wu, W. 2008. Dimensions of social capital and firm competitiveness improvement: The mediating role of information sharing. Journal of Management Studies, 45: 122–146.

    Google Scholar 

  • Young, M. N., Tsai, T., Wang, X., Liu, S., & Ahlstrom, D. 2014. Strategy in emerging economies and the theory of the firm. Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 31(2): 331–354.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zott, C., & Amit, R. 2007. Business model design and the performance of entrepreneurial firms. Organization Science, 18: 181–199.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zott, C., & Amit, R. 2008. The fit between product market strategy and business model: Implications for firm performance. Strategic Management Journal, 29: 1–26.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zott, C., & Amit, R. 2010. Business model design: An activity system perspective. Long Range Planning, 49: 216–226.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zott, C., Amit, R., & Massa, L. 2011. The business model: Recent developments and future research. Journal of Management, 37: 1019–1042.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This study is supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (71202107, 71472087, and 71472185). The authors would also like to thank Marc Ahlstrom of Rowan College at Burlington County for his editorial assistance.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Business, Renmin University of China, Bei**g, 100872, China

    Hai Guo

  2. Nan**g University Business School, Nan**g, 210093, Jiangsu, China

    Zhongfeng Su

  3. Department of Management CUHK Business School, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, NT, Hong Kong

    David Ahlstrom

Authors
  1. Hai Guo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Zhongfeng Su
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. David Ahlstrom
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Zhongfeng Su.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Guo, H., Su, Z. & Ahlstrom, D. Business model innovation: The effects of exploratory orientation, opportunity recognition, and entrepreneurial bricolage in an emerging economy. Asia Pac J Manag 33, 533–549 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-015-9428-x

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10490-015-9428-x

Keywords

Search

Navigation