| Since the global crisis in 2008,governments in both developing and developed countries around the world have focused significantly on small and medium-sized enterprises(SMEs)as essential economic boosters.Small and medium-sized enterprises immensely contribute to the economy and social goals by reducing unemployment and poverty,promoting entrepreneurship and industrial growth,enhancing industrial competitiveness,and increasing exports.In Pakistan,small and medium-sized enterprises have increased GDP by about 50% and created 70%employment opportunities.Innovation is important for small and medium-sized enterprises to enhance their competitiveness and promote industrial upgrading.Innovative human resource practices comprehensively promote the transformation and innovation of human resource management models through new human resource management concepts,methods,and tools,thereby stimulating employees’ enthusiasm,initiative,and creativity and unleashing the innovation potential of enterprises.Therefore,exploring the mechanism by which innovative human resource practices affect the innovation performance of small and medium-sized enterprises is of great value in both theory and practice.Based on the Resource Based View(RBV),Transformational Leadership Theory,Capability,Motivation,and Opportunity(AMO)Model,and Schumpeter’s Innovation Theory(SIT),this study employs qualitative and quantitative methods to conduct research.First,this data was collected through semi-structured interviews with SME owners and managers.The Grounded theory method was used to identify the factors that affect the relationship between innovative human resource practices and SME innovation performance and the structural relationship among these factors.The quantitative analysis mainly uses a closed questionnaire(using the Likert 5-point scale)sent online to owners,CEOs,and managers of small and medium-sized enterprises.After a six-month data collection process,1039 valid respondent questionnaires were collected.Then,relevant theoretical hypotheses and the relationships among various variables were tested using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Model(PLS-SEM),Smart PLS 3.2.8,and Social Science Statistics(SPSS,v.24)software.Research has shown that entrepreneurial orientation,organizational commitment,and transformational leadership are key factors that affect the relationship between innovative human resource practices and innovation performance.Innovative human resource practices and entrepreneurial orientation significantly positively impact the innovation performance of small and medium-sized enterprises in Pakistan.Innovative human resource practices have a positive impact on entrepreneurial orientation.Organizational commitment,as a mediator,enhances the relationship between innovative human resource practices,entrepreneurial orientation,and innovation performance.Transformational leadership has a significant moderating effect on the relationship between innovative human resource practices and entrepreneurial orientation,as well as the relationship between organizational commitment and innovation performance.Based on the above research conclusions,this study proposes that owners and leaders of small and medium-sized enterprises should implement adventurous,innovative,and proactive corporate strategies,focusing on implementing transformational leadership and improving employee commitment levels.In addition,managers should redesign and align human resource practices with innovation goals and hire and select individuals with similar values to support their innovation activities.Performance management and compensation should also be aligned with innovation goals to enhance employee motivation and commitment.This article provides a roadmap for improving the innovation performance of small and medium-sized enterprises by adopting appropriate and specific constructs.The main innovations of this study include the following: firstly,innovative human resource practice is a new research field.This article focuses on small and medium-sized enterprises in Pakistan and explores the impact of innovative human resource practice on innovation performance.This develops the growth theory of small and medium-sized enterprises and enriches the theory of innovative human resource practice.Secondly,this paper discovers the role of entrepreneurial orientation,organizational commitment and transformational leadership through Grounded theory,theoretically reveals the mechanism of innovative human resources practices affecting SME performance,and tests the relationship among variables through a structural equation model,providing empirical evidence for subsequent theoretical research.Thirdly,this article proposes suggestions and countermeasures for human resource management practices and government policy formulation in small and medium-sized enterprises based on empirical research... |
