How SMEs Promote Innovation through Bricolage: the Mediating Effect of Intellectual Capital

Studies have shown that small and medium enterprises (SMEs) can promote innovation through resource bricolage when facing resource constraint. However, the mechanism that how resource bricolage enhances innovation is ambiguous. Based on the dynamic capability theory, this paper examines the mediating effect of intellectual capital between resource bricolage and innovation. A sample of 101 SMEs showed that different types of intellectual capitals mediate differently: human capital partially mediates, and social capital completely mediates the relationship between resource bricolage and innovation, while organizational capital has no significant mediating effect. This paper not only provides novel empirical evidence on the positive relationship between resource bricolage but also opens the black-box of their relationship. Our findings are helpful for SMEs conducting innovation under resource constraint.