Fostering firm innovativeness: Understanding the sequential relationships between human resource practices, psychological empowerment, innovative work behavior, and firm innovative capability

Abstract

This study investigated the relationships between human resource (HR) practices, employee psychological empowerment, employee innovative work behavior, and firm innovation capability in the context of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) sector in Jordan. Employing the Social Exchange Theory (SET) as a guiding framework, this study explored how employee psychological empowerment and innovative work behavior mediated the influence of HR practices on a firm's innovative capabilities. Drawing on extensive data collected from ICT organizations in Jordan, our analysis had several key findings. A significant positive correlation between HR practices and psychological empowerment was observed. Job design emerged as the most influential factor affecting psychological empowerment, whereas compensation had a weaker impact. Furthermore, we established that psychological empowerment significantly enhanced innovative work behavior, underscoring its role as a catalyst for innovative work behavior within the sector. Finally, our study supported the theory that psychological empowerment influenced a firms' innovation capabilities, emphasizing the pivotal role of employee empowerment in driving firm-level innovation in the Jordanian ICT sector. These findings provide insights for academic and practical audiences, clarifying how HR practices, employee psychological empowerment, and innovative work behavior collectively influenced firm innovation capability within the unique context of the Jordanian ICT sector.

Keywords

• Human resources practices
• Psychological empowerment
• Innovative work behavior
• Firm innovative capability
• Social exchange theory
• Job design