Technological- and non-technological innovation during the growth phase of industry life cycle: an evidence from Vietnamese manufacturing enterprises

Abstract

In the context of Industrial 4.0, Vietnam has emerged to play a critical role in the global supply chain while facing intense competition and fast changes. However, what drives manufacturing enterprises in Vietnam to innovate themselves and how well they perform in coping with business obstacle remains one of the central questions in the extent of studies. Therefore, this research primarily attempts to establish how innovation investment and obstacles affect technological and non-technological innovations, especially in the growth phase of the industry life cycle (ILC), with an analysis of available data obtained from the General Statistics Office of Vietnam and World Bank Enterprise Survey data with the use of descriptive statistics and regression analysis. The outcome of this article highlights that researchers and practitioners should consider the importance of the industry life cycle in the choice of technological or non-technological innovation through third significant contributions. First, the innovation investment is driven by R&D, and formal training enables both technological- and non-technological innovation. Second, the innovation obstacle related to finance, policy, competition, and regulation directly impacts the choice of innovation activities. Third, this study demonstrates that the firm’s engagement in technological- and non-technological innovation in line with innovation investment can help maintain successful post-innovation performance.