Crowdsourcing capabilities: fueling new products? How firm size and business type matter

Abstract

Crowdsourcing has emerged as a valuable tool for organizations seeking to access external knowledge and resources for their innovation processes. This study aims to investigate crowdsourcing capabilities in the context of new product development initiatives, with a focus on exploring the moderating effects of firm size and type. Structural Equation Modeling using Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS) is used to analyze both the measurement and structural models, with data drawn from 217 owners and managers of diverse businesses in Indonesia. These businesses range from small to medium-scale enterprises across various types, including cafes, restaurants, fashion, culinary, and furniture. The findings reveal a positive and significant impact of crowdsourcing capabilities on new product development initiatives (β = 0.746, p = 0.000). Moreover, the relationship between crowdsourcing and new product development is moderated by firm size (whether small or medium) (β = 0.103, p = 0.045) and the type of business (β = 0.157, p = 0.012). The outcomes of this study are anticipated to enrich the body of knowledge and provide valuable guidance for enterprises seeking to harness crowdsourcing in their new product development processes, with specific factors like firm size and type taken into account. AcknowledgmentThis study was supported by the Indonesian Ministry of Education, Culture, and Technology Research in 2022: Research Grant Scheme “PDUPT”No. 124/LL1/LT/K/2022.

Keywords

• business type
• crowdsolver
• crowdsourcing
• firm size
• new product development
• small- and medium-scale enterprises