The Relationship between Organizational Structure and Innovation in SMEs during a Crisis

Jonathan D Jensen; Rahul Anand; Lars Frederiksen

The Relationship between Organizational Structure and Innovation in SMEs during a Crisis

Jonathan D Jensen, Rahul Anand, Lars Frederiksen

Institut for Virksomhedsledelse

Publikation: Konferencebidrag › Konferenceabstrakt til konference › Forskning › peer review

Abstract

Our paper contributes to the debate on organizational design and strategy in a crisis by addressing two key research questions: (1) how SMEs should organize internally and (2) why SMEs differ in their strategic response during a crisis. Prior work suggests that innovation is invaluable in a crisis, yet we know very little about the conditions that lead some firms to innovate and not others. We argue that more hierarchy and centralized decision-making positively affect the choice of SME managers to innovate. While hierarchy frees up resources to identify opportunities, centralization allows managers to coordinate the shared information and situational awareness needed to exploit them. We combine secondary data obtained from Statistics Denmark with a survey of SMEs during Covid-19 to examine our hypotheses.

Originalsprog	Engelsk
Publikationsdato	sep. 2022
Status	Udgivet - sep. 2022
Begivenhed	Strategic Management Society Annual Conference: Innovative Strategies for an Open World - London, Storbritannien Varighed: 17 sep. 2022 → 20 sep. 2022 Konferencens nummer: 42 https://www.strategicmanagement.net/london/overview/overview

Konference

Konference	Strategic Management Society Annual Conference
Nummer	42
Land/Område	Storbritannien
By	London
Periode	17/09/2022 → 20/09/2022
Internetadresse	https://www.strategicmanagement.net/london/overview/overview

Citationsformater

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AU - Anand, Rahul

AU - Frederiksen, Lars

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N2 - Our paper contributes to the debate on organizational design and strategy in a crisis by addressing two key research questions: (1) how SMEs should organize internally and (2) why SMEs differ in their strategic response during a crisis. Prior work suggests that innovation is invaluable in a crisis, yet we know very little about the conditions that lead some firms to innovate and not others. We argue that more hierarchy and centralized decision-making positively affect the choice of SME managers to innovate. While hierarchy frees up resources to identify opportunities, centralization allows managers to coordinate the shared information and situational awareness needed to exploit them. We combine secondary data obtained from Statistics Denmark with a survey of SMEs during Covid-19 to examine our hypotheses.

AB - Our paper contributes to the debate on organizational design and strategy in a crisis by addressing two key research questions: (1) how SMEs should organize internally and (2) why SMEs differ in their strategic response during a crisis. Prior work suggests that innovation is invaluable in a crisis, yet we know very little about the conditions that lead some firms to innovate and not others. We argue that more hierarchy and centralized decision-making positively affect the choice of SME managers to innovate. While hierarchy frees up resources to identify opportunities, centralization allows managers to coordinate the shared information and situational awareness needed to exploit them. We combine secondary data obtained from Statistics Denmark with a survey of SMEs during Covid-19 to examine our hypotheses.

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