When cross-channel integration can benefit firm innovation and performance: the moderating role of e-commerce type
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ORIGINAL ARTICLE
When cross-channel integration can benefit firm innovation and performance: the moderating role of e-commerce type Weining Pan 1 & Yang Li 2
&
Hefu Liu 1 & Kai Zhang 1
Received: 21 July 2020 / Accepted: 7 October 2020 # Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
Abstract Cross-channel integration (CCI) has been adopted by firms to improve firm performance. However, the underlying mechanism by which CCI enhances firm performance remains unclear. To address this gap, we apply knowledge-based view and propose that CCI may affect firm innovation, thereby influencing firm performance. Specifically, we consider that exploratory innovation and exploitative innovation play the mediating roles between CCI and firm performance. In addition, the study explores the moderating effects of electronic commerce (EC) type (i.e., self-own website and third-party platform). We propose if CCI’s effects differ in terms of EC type. Survey-based samples of 338 EC firms and structural equation modeling are employed to examine the research model. The results show that CCI can influence firm performance through the mediating role of exploitative innovation but not exploratory innovation. In addition, CCI has a stronger effect on firm innovation in third-party platform than in self-own website. This paper also discusses about the theoretical contributions and practical implications of the study. Keywords Cross-channel integration . Electronic commerce type . Firm innovation . Firm performance . Knowledge-based view
1 Introduction Nowadays manufacturing enterprises are striving to leverage cross-channel integration (CCI) to innovate product and service with the diffusion of e-commerce (Du et al. 2018). For example, Apple unifies its product and service online and offline to consolidate a consistent brand image (Brynjolfsson et al. 2013). Haier integrates online and offline channels to expand its marketplace (Du et al. 2018). Although the effects of CCI on firm performance has been widely recognized in
* Yang Li [email protected] Weining Pan [email protected] Hefu Liu [email protected] Kai Zhang [email protected] 1
School of Management, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei 230026, China
2
School of Management, Hefei University of Technology, 193 Tunxi Road, Hefei 230009, China
retail firms (Cao and Li 2015; Oh et al. 2012; Tagashira and Minami 2019), few research studies the issue in the manufacturing context. Research posits that most manufacturing enterprises face the problem of employing CCI because of insufficient accumulation in e-commerce operations (Du et al. 2018). Therefore, a practical dilemma traditional manufacturing enterprise facing is that they don’t know how to effectively use CCI to gain competitive advantages. The concern about the effect of CCI on firm performance is increasing (Cao and Li 2015; Tagashira and Minami 2019), but few studies reveal the underlying mechanism. Specifically, innovation perspective has been proposed (Cao and Li 2018) but not empirical
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