Abstract

MARTIN DE CASTRO, Gregorio; ALAMA SALAZAR, Elsa Mercedes; LOPEZ SAEZ, Pedro  and  NAVAS LOPEZ, José Emilio. Relational capital as a source of technological innovation. Innovar [online]. 2009, vol.19, n.35, pp.119-132. ISSN 0121-5051.

Inter-organisational knowledge, as well as its different manifestations, plays a crucial role when effectively developing a company's processes and products (Teece, 1998; Alegre and Lapiedra, 2005). The present work explored the impact of different manifestations of inter-organisational knowledge (based on external relationships or relational capital) regarding innovation capacity in professional service-providing companies. An exploratory factorial analysis was thus carried out where three main blocks of relational capital were extracted: client relationships, alliances and corporate reputation, and relationships with suppliers. The basic hypotheses determining the positive influence of these types of relational capital on entrepreneurial innovation were then posed during the following stage. The results regarding Spanish professional service companies showed the positive effect of client relationships on innovation, as well as established alliances and companies' reputations.

Keywords : relational capital; innovation; client relationships; alliances and corporate reputation; professional services.

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