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The purpose of this paper is to develop an instrument that measures a set of dynamic drivers for managing innovation capability; and to validate this instrument in the agri-food sector.

Based on the innovation drivers identified after an extensive literature review, a measurement instrument was developed and then empirically validated through collecting preliminary data from 434 Greek agri-food companies. Exploratory factor analysis was applied, while their validity was confirmed through confirmatory factor analysis.

The analysis of the data confirms a valid measurement instrument of innovation drivers which consists of five drivers, namely, collaboration, environmental dynamism, knowledge orientation, quality orientation, and process management. The level of the five innovation drivers by the sample companies is deemed high, though not, however, excellent.

A research challenge is to understand how the five innovation drivers are associated with agri-food business performance taking into consideration the role of environmental uncertainty. Moreover, it is worth validating this measurement instrument using multiple indicators for innovation drivers.

The main contribution of this paper is that it develops a valid measurement instrument that can be used by agri-food companies as a self-assessment tool and a benchmarking tool. In doing so, suitable strategies can be selected in order for an agri-food to improve its innovation capability.

The proposed model provides plausible guidelines that advance innovation management research in the agri-food companies.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which the five European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) model enablers, as the latent factor “enabler excellence,” are associated with business performance, taking into consideration the mediating role of innovation in this relationship.

The analysis followed in order to investigate the relations among the various constructs of the proposed model includes an initial exploratory factor analysis, followed by confirmatory factor analysis and finally structural equation modeling.

According to the study findings, “enabler excellence” and innovation performance directly contribute to business performance. Moreover, this paper concludes that innovation performance partially mediates the effect of excellence enablers on business performance.

This study does not separate between radical and incremental innovation; thus, it would be very interesting to explore this issue in future research. Moreover, it might be useful for researchers to reassess the proposed relationships examining the mediating role of organizational culture.

This study offers clear implications for managers, proving that they should give higher emphasis on quality management (QM) and the four dimensions of innovation in order to achieve increased performance.

Based on the multidimensional structure of the EFQM model, this empirical study determines the contribution of QM to business performance taking into consideration the role of innovation performance as a mediator in this relationship.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the impact of the dimensions of innovation on manufacturing firm performance taking into consideration the moderating role of environmental uncertainty among these relationships.

A research study was carried out using a sample of 580 Greek manufacturing firms. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were applied to extract and validate the latent factors. K-means cluster analysis was also applied in order to group the responding firms. Finally, the structural relationships among the latent factors were determined through structural equation modeling.

According to the study findings, only three dimensions of innovation performance directly contributes to business performance. Moreover, this paper shows the differential effects of firm innovativeness on business performance under the influence of environmental uncertainty.

The sample of the responding firms which is limited to the Greek manufacturing sector and the subjective business evidence coming from only one firm representative constitute the main limitations of the present study.

Firms can properly manage innovation dimensions. In case of high uncertainty, they should focus on product, marketing and process innovation, while in case of low uncertainty the focus should be on process, organization and product innovation.

Based on the multi-dimensional structure, this empirical study determines the contribution of innovation performance to business performance taking into consideration the role of environmental uncertainty as moderator on this relationship.

The present study focuses on two basic determinants of company innovation, namely, quality practices of top management and process quality management. The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of these determinants on product and process innovation. Determining the impact of these dimensions of innovation on the market performance of a company is also an aim of the present study.

A research study was carried out on a sample of 433 Greek manufacturing and service companies. Data were obtained through a structured questionnaire from the chief executive officers of the companies. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses are applied to extract and validate all the latent factors considered in the suggested model, while their relationships are determined through structural equation modeling.

The analysis of the empirical data shows that both the dimensions of company innovation examined in the present study (product and process innovation) are positively influenced by the quality practices of top management and process quality management. Improving these two dimensions of company innovation, in turn, results in increased market performance.

First, the sample of the responding manufacturing and service Greek companies which includes both small and medium-sized enterprises and large companies and which operate in circumstances of financial crisis; second, the subjective data collected from only one company representative; and third, the examination of only two factors influencing company innovation, are the main limitations of the present study. Based on these limitations, future research studies are recommended.

The empirically validated theoretical model of the present study can guide the policy makers of a company to select a quality management and innovation strategy through which the company can lay the foundations to increase its market performance, and thus, overcome the current economic downturn and financial crisis. Researchers can also use the suggested valid model as an assessment tool, a benchmarking tool and a tool for the design of their future research studies.

The present study contributes to the literature by determining a valid model that describes simultaneously the relationships between quality management factors, product and process innovation and market performance. This is also the first study reflecting Greek companies’ efforts to withstand the current downturn and penetrate the market through innovation.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptual model and examine the relevance of a set of five dynamic drivers to building and sustaining the innovation capability of agri-food firms.

The empirical data were acquired through a recent study of 436 Greek agri-food firms. Regression analysis was employed to examine the correlation between innovation drivers and each of the four innovation capability dimensions, namely, product innovation, process innovation, organizational innovation and marketing innovation.

The findings verify that quality orientation and process management are the two most important innovation drivers. However, the impact of learning orientation, collaborations and environmental dynamism on a firm’s agri-food innovation capability is yet to be investigated.

This study has not investigated how firms’ characteristics form the drivers and barriers to innovation at the company. Moreover, a second limitation is related to the kind of innovation that drivers boost. This research does not separate between radical and incremental innovation.

In order to maintain their sustainable development and enhance their whole innovation capability, agri-food firms should closely relate their innovation capability dimensions to the formulation of a strategy and harmonization of innovation and innovation drivers’ activities.

The main contribution of this paper is that it develops an appropriate research framework (a proposed structural model) for examining the links among the five innovation drivers with each of the four innovation capability dimensions.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a conceptual framework to investigate how the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) excellence model enablers influence the four types (product, process, organizational and marketing) of innovation performance of a manufacturing firm.

The study uses survey data from a sample of 580 manufacturing firms in Greece and employs structural equation modeling to test the developed hypotheses.

The results reveal that enablers of the EFQM model are either directly or indirectly associated with the four types of innovation. Furthermore, the findings show that it is essential for a firm to manage all the facilitating enablers included in the EFQM model, since they cannot boost innovation when implemented in isolation.

The sample is limited to one country (Greece). In addition, researchers have to assess the same relationships considering the effect of external factors such as environmental uncertainty. The potential consequences of enablers on innovation performance may be mediated by customer or people results.

The empirical findings of the present study help managers to develop the appropriate quality strategies and allocate the respective resources according to the desired type of innovation.

Based on the multi-dimensional structure of quality, this empirical study determines the contribution of EFQM model enablers to specific innovation performance dimensions of manufacturing companies.

The purpose of this study is to gain insight into existing empirical studies on performance management of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It categorizes the main antecedents for SMEs’ performance, the dimensions of SMEs’ performance and all variables used as moderators in the conceptual relationships.

This study undertakes a systematic literature review of 58 articles published in 33 peer-reviewed academic journals from 2000 to 2020 followed by a synthesis of individual studies to analyze the trends and background of research into SMEs.

A new academic conceptual model was developed grounded in selected theoretical lenses to advance our understanding of the different categories of antecedents, moderators and SMEs’ performance dimensions.

The author has provided a future research agenda in the context of SMEs. Future studies may investigate the role of different categories of determinants, the influence of key cultural values, the digital capability in SMEs and the Internet in the internationalization of SMEs.

This paper offers a framework for both practitioners and scholars in thinking about those factors that may be critical for success in SMEs.

This is a systematic review that suggests a new conceptual model of what existing empirical studies have found on SMEs. It can be used to influence thinking and research design in the area of SMEs’ performance and success.

This paper is to examine whether organizational ambidexterity leads to success. Moreover, it attempts to understand how proactiveness and quality orientation might create and maintain ambidexterity. Environmental uncertainty as a moderator is also examined.

To achieve these objectives an empirical survey was conducted among 449 firms in Greece. Initially, EFA and then CFA were applied. Finally, the structural relationships among the latent factors were determined through SEM.

Organizational ambidexterity leads to superior business performance, moreover, the two antecedents were positively related to organizational ambidexterity. Environmental uncertainty acts as a moderator between organizational ambidexterity– business performance and proactiveness–organizational ambidexterity.

A research challenge is to understand how organizations develop ambidexterity competency in different organizational structure. Moreover, it will be important to expand the model by taking into consideration different factors of antecedents, for example, type of innovation or different strategic orientations.

This study sends the message that companies focussing on specific antecedents can be led to higher ambidexterity capabilities, which in turn act as a catalyst for business improvement.

The proposed model provides plausible guidelines that advance organizational ambidexterity research in the companies.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which five core dimensions of quality management, as a single factor, are associated with product innovation and process innovation; and finally how these two affect a firm’s competitive advantage in the market.

The analysis followed in order to investigate the relations between the constructs of the proposed model, includes an initial exploratory factor analysis (EFA), followed by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and finally structural equation modelling (SEM)

According to the study findings, quality management (QM) directly contributes to product and process innovation. Furthermore, product and process innovation have a direct impact on companies’ competitive advantage. Thus, the study proves that QM is an opportunity for a firm to improve its innovation and consequently its competitiveness.

This study relies on the perceptions of the respondents to operationalize the survey instrument. In addition, all variables are measured in the year that the survey was carried out. However, since the research exams the relationship between QM, technical innovation and competitive advantage across various organizations, it would be interesting to conduct a longitudinal study within these organizations.

Our study offers clear implications for managers, proving that they should give higher emphasis on QM and innovation in order to prioritize their product, production and technology strategies, to achieve sustainable competitive advantage.

Based on the multi-dimensional structure of QM, this empirical study determines the contribution of QM to specific innovation performance and overall competitiveness of companies.

The purpose of this paper is to provide additional evidence of the impact of ISO 9001 effectiveness on three dimensions of a firm’s performance, namely product quality, operational performance and business performance.

The analysis includes an initial exploratory factor analysis (EFA), followed by confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and structural equation modeling (SEM), in order to investigate the relations between the constructs of the proposed model. A sample of 287 ISO 9001 certified Greek manufacturing firms is used for this purpose.

According to the study findings, ISO 9001 effectiveness directly contributes to product quality and operational performance. Although it has no direct impact on manufacturing firms’ business performance, it has an indirect impact through the moderator of operational performance.

The sample of the responding manufacturing companies is limited to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from one country (Greece). In addition, the effects of the internal business environment and endogenous business factors have not been assessed through the present study.

The study offers clear implications for managers who focus on elements that will increase the ISO 9001 effectiveness and desire to choose strategies, allocate resources and improve their firm’s performance.

The present study contributes to the literature gap aiming at examining the degree to which ISO 9001 effectiveness influences the performance of certified firms. The concept of “ISO 9001 effectiveness” is introduced as the extent to which its prescribed quality objectives are met.