ABSTRACT While the literature on employees' innovative work behavior (IWB) treats leaders as a homogeneous source of firm‐internal knowledge, we examine how learning from different types of senior leaders (supervisors, coaches, and mentors) differentially affects employees' IWB and how these effects vary with the uncertainty of work tasks. Grounded in the knowledge‐based view and knowledge transfer theory, the study conceptualizes these leader roles as distinct conduits for transferring routine, meta‐cognitive, and strategic knowledge, respectively. It argues that the impact of learning from each leader type on IWB follows a non‐linear trajectory, moderated by environmental uncertainty. Hierarchical linear modeling of multi‐source, time‐lagged survey data from 123 employees and 41 supervisors in knowledge‐intensive firms reveals three differentiated patterns. Learning from supervisors exerts a positive effect on IWB that is attenuated under high task uncertainty. Learning from coaches has a U‐shaped effect on IWB, where both high and low learning are superior to a medium degree of learning, and this U‐shape steepens under high task uncertainty. Conversely, learning from mentors has an inverse U‐shaped effect on IWB, suggesting an optimal middle ground, and this optimal degree of knowledge acquisition increases as task uncertainty rises. These findings extend the knowledge‐based view by advancing theoretical understanding of leader‐mediated knowledge spillovers and offer practical guidance for developing innovation‐enhancing learning strategies in dynamic organizational contexts.
ABSTRACT By integrating stakeholders, digital platforms create ecosystems in which data and information are exchanged throughout the value chain. Although digital platform ecosystems based on transaction or innovation platforms have been the subject of research for a considerable time, ecosystems based on sustainability platforms are still in their infancy in theory and in practice. Sustainability platforms represent a new type of digital platform that focuses on the sustainability efforts of industrial companies. The implementation of sustainability platforms is driven by transparency regulations, changing customer demands, and internal motivation to make sustainability approaches visible. Such platforms extend the classic digital ecosystem approach beyond mere data exchange by including sustainability to achieve a common good. Because of the novelty of this topic and the lack of research on the sustainable impact of sustainability platforms in digital platform ecosystems, this study provides a qualitative analysis of 42 expert interviews to investigate the alterations to the digital platform ecosystem. An inductive coding approach was used to establish a theoretical framework based on our observations. The findings indicated that sustainability platforms enhance digital platform ecosystems within and without the platform infrastructure through External Requirements , Sustainability Data , Sustainable Value Creation , and Sustainable Value Chain Optimization . Such platforms innovate digital platform ecosystems through cyclical adaptation of these four impact factors. This study contributes to the recent research streams regarding digital platform ecosystems based on digital platforms and enhances such ecosystems in terms of sustainability.
ABSTRACT Although the concept of artists as creative entrepreneurs has been studied to enable artists to survive in uncertain environments, some studies have criticized this approach for focusing on individual artists, which may lead to isolation and jeopardize their careers. In light of this debate, this article explores how adopting a collective perspective on creative entrepreneurship can address these concerns by focusing on the relations between organizations and creative entrepreneurs. Using a qualitative methodology, this study analyzes the role of six French performing arts incubators in supporting artists' entrepreneurial journeys. These incubators act as “pivot organizations” that support artists' work across different stages of the creative process. Furthermore, by connecting innovative artists to mainstream actors in the industry, performing arts incubators play the role of “amphibious organizations” helping artists navigate the industry. These findings contribute to the literature on creative entrepreneurship.
ABSTRACT Although the value of design thinking (DT) in the innovation processes of large organisations is widely examined within the literature, its role and value for early‐stage start‐up innovation processes remains less well understood. This study investigates how start‐up founders implement DT practices in the early‐stage start‐up innovation processes in UK‐based MedTech/HealthTech start‐ups using 38 semi‐structured interviews with start‐up founders, DT experts and investors. The key findings shed light on the limited use of DT within the time‐pressured context of start‐up ecosystems and call for unique adaptations that can better support start‐up firms to benefit from DT. Furthermore, the study highlights the challenges in implementing DT in highly regulated contexts, like the MedTech/HealthTech sector, where stringent regulations limit user engagement of innovators during experimentation. The study contributes to the theoretical DT literature by extending insights on the barriers to the effective implementation of DT in different organisational and sectoral contexts. Additionally, it provides practitioner insights directed to entrepreneurship educators such as start‐up accelerators and incubators for better deployment of DT education for entrepreneurs.
ABSTRACT This paper investigates how data‐driven experimentation act as a key capability to sustain innovation, adaptability and organizational ambidexterity in disruptive environments, and how differences in data availability shape experimentation practices across firms. The study employs a multiple‐case study methodology, analyzing 14 interpretative cases through 32 in‐depth interviews. The data were systematically analyzed using a three‐level coding process, supplemented by triangulation with secondary data sources to ensure robustness and validity. Findings reveal that data‐driven firms characterized by advanced digital infrastructure deploy integrative ambidextrous approaches enabled by data‐driven experimentation embedded into their core processes and culture. This capability allows them to sense, seize and adapt rapidly in disruptive environments through contextual and integrative approaches to exploration and exploitation. In contrast, traditional firms rely more on differentiated approaches to exploration and exploitation, often constrained by limited data availability, rigid structures, and hierarchical cultures, which reduce their adaptability. The study also highlights the role of organizational culture—particularly failure tolerance, ethical experimentation and democratization—in shaping how experimentation practices translate into ambidexterity and innovation outcomes. While findings are context‐specific, they offer significant insights into how data‐driven experimentation supports organizational ambidexterity and adaptability under conditions of technological turbulence. Future research could explore longitudinal evolutions and sector‐specific variations. Firms seeking to enhance adaptive capacity should align experimentation practices with their data availability, invest in internal experimentation capabilities when feasible, and foster cultures that embrace failure and ethical experimentation, as well as more distributed and democratized decision‐making processes. This paper contributes to the literature on organizational ambidexterity and dynamic capabilities by conceptualizing data‐driven experimentation as a microfoundation of adaptive capabilities and by highlighting the role of data availability in shaping experimentation practices, and providing comparative insights into how different organizations leverage experimentation to sustain innovation and adaptability in disruptive environments.
