基于TOE框架的企业创新质量提升路径研究——专利战略化申请视角的分析

Research on the Path of Enterprise Innovation Quality Advancement Within the TOE Framework:An Analysis from the Perspective of Patent Strategizing Application

创新质量的提升对中国企业来说是实现效益可持续增长和保持竞争力的重要手段。近年来,我国在知识产权保护方面取得了巨大进步,在专利数量与质量层面均呈现出显著的提升趋势。在此背景下,国内企业申请专利的动机不再仅限于技术知识保护的单一目标,还包含了开拓国际市场、建立声誉和增加谈判筹码等。因此,我国企业以多动机并存的方式进行专利布局,而多元化的专利战略化申请动机对企业创新活动与结果产生了异质性影响。以中国医疗制造型上市企业为研究对象,运用模糊集定性比较分析方法(fsQCA),基于技术—组织—环境(TOE)框架,探讨技术(发明专利战略化申请动机)、组织(企业技术知识基础广度与深度)和外部环境(政府经费支持与区域知识产权保护)对企业创新质量的多元影响路径。研究发现:①企业发明专利战略化申请动机、技术知识基础特性以及外部环境之间存在联动匹配的多重并发因果关系,引致企业高创新质量与非高创新质量的组态结果呈现出因果非对称性关系;②引致企业高创新质量的组态路径有技术与组织协同型(P1)及技术—组织—环境耦合型(P2、P3)共3条,以及发明专利战略化申请的阻挡动机与国际市场开拓动机是引致企业高创新质量的关键要素;③企业高创新质量背后涉及多种因素的协同作用,通过多种组合以“殊途同归”的方式提升企业的创新质量。研究结论为企业在不同外部环境与内部知识资源的条件下,根据不同发明专利战略化申请动机,更好地利用知识产权保护以实现创新质量提升提供了理论指导与管理启示。

Elevating the quality of innovation serves as a crucial means for Chinese enterprises to achieve sustainable economic growth and uphold competitiveness.In recent years,China has made significant progress in the protection of intellectual property rights(IPR),showing noticeable improvements in both quantity and quality.Against this backdrop,the motivations driving domestic enterprises to apply for patents go beyond a singular focus on the protection of technological knowledge.They now encompass a multitude of motives,including international market expansion,reputation building,and gaining negotiation leverage.Enterprises adopt a strategy for the simultaneous pursuit of multiple motives in patent applications,and this diversified approach to patent application strategies has heterogeneous impacts on innovation activities.Using Chinese-listed bio-pharmaceutical companies as the research sample and employing the fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis(fsQCA)method within the framework of Technology-Organization-Environment(TOE),this paper explores the multifaceted pathways through which technology(motivations of applying for patents),organization(breadth and depth of firms'technological knowledge base),and external environment(government support and regional intellectual property protection levels)collectively influence the quality of corporate innovation.The findings are as follows:Firstly,there are multiple concurrent causal relationships with interactive matching effects among a company's motives for applying for patents,the characteristics of its technological knowledge base,and the external environment.This complexity results in asymmetric causal relationships leading to configurations associated with both high and non-high innovation quality outcomes.Secondly,this research identifies three predominant the pathway(P1,P2,P3)that lead to high innovation quality within companies:the technology and organization systemic pathway(P1)and the technology-organization-environment coupling pathways(P2,P3).The blocking motive and international market expansion motive in patent applications are identified as crucial elements in driving innovation.Thirdly,High innovation quality in companies involves the synergistic interaction of multiple factors,which are combined in various ways to achieve the same goal,enhancing the quality of innovation.In conclusion,the research provides theoretical guidance and managerial insights for companies to leverage knowledge of intellectual property protection based on different strategic motives,thereby enhancing innovation quality through diverse and converging approaches.The study underscores the importance of recognizing and harnessing the synergies among technology,organizations,and the external environment to optimize innovation outcomes.The findings offer substantial guidance for Chinese enterprises to maintain a leading position and achieve sustainable success in global competition under different external environmental and internal knowledge resource conditions.