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Enterprise's R&D and Innovation Management

Research on the Path of Enterprise Innovation Quality Advancement Within the TOE Framework: An Analysis from the Perspective of Patent Strategizing Application 

Liu Yan1 , Jia Hanbo1 , Zhang Ruyi2 , Gao Yanhui1

(1.School of Management, Xi'an Polytechnic University, Xi'an 710049, China; 2.College of Economics and Man⁃ agement, Xi'an University of Posts & Telecommunications, Xi'an 710049, China)

Abstract: Elevating the quality of innovation serves as a crucial means for Chinese enter⁃ prises to achieve sustainable economic growth and uphold competitiveness. In recent years, China has made significant progress in the protection of intellectual property rights(IPR), show⁃ ing noticeable improvements in both quantity and quality. Against this backdrop, the motivations  driving domestic enterprises to apply for patents go beyond a singular focus on the protection of  technological knowledge. They now encompass a multitude of motives, including international  market expansion, reputation building, and gaining negotiation leverage. Enterprises adopt a  strategy for the simultaneous pursuit of multiple motives in patent applications, and this diversi⁃ fied approach to patent application strategies has heterogeneous impacts on innovation activities. Using Chinese-listed bio-pharmaceutical companies as the research sample and employing the  fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) method within the framework of TechnologyOrganization-Environment (TOE), this paper explores the multifaceted pathways through which  technology (motivations of applying for patents), organization (breadth and depth of firms' techno⁃ logical knowledge base), and external environment (government support and regional intellectual  property protection levels) collectively influence the quality of corporate innovation. The findings  are as follows: Firstly, there are multiple concurrent causal relationships with interactive match⁃ ing effects among a company's motives for applying for patents, the characteristics of its techno⁃ logical knowledge base, and the external environment. This complexity results in asymmetric  causal relationships leading to configurations associated with both high and non-high innovation  quality outcomes. Secondly, this research identifies three predominant the pathway (P1, P2, P3) that lead to high innovation quality within companies: the technology and organization systemic  pathway (P1) and the technology-organization-environment coupling pathways (P2, P3). The  blocking motive and international market expansion motive in patent applications are identified  as crucial elements in driving innovation. Thirdly, High innovation quality in companies involves  the synergistic interaction of multiple factors, which are combined in various ways to achieve the  same goal, enhancing the quality of innovation. In conclusion, the research provides theoretical  guidance and managerial insights for companies to leverage knowledge of intellectual property  protection based on different strategic motives, thereby enhancing innovation quality through di⁃ verse and converging approaches. The study underscores the importance of recognizing and har⁃ nessing the synergies among technology, organizations, and the external environment to optimize  innovation outcomes. The findings offer substantial guidance for Chinese enterprises to maintain  a leading position and achieve sustainable success in global competition under different external  environmental and internal knowledge resource conditions. 

Key words: the patent strategizing application; technological knowledge base; government  funding support; intellectual property protection; innovation quality