Unlocking Technological Innovation: The Synergy of Knowledge-Based HR Practices, Pi-Shaped Skills, and Employee-Led Innovation in the Pharmaceutical Industry of Developing Economy

Abstract

This study examines the interplay among knowledge-based HR practices, pi-shaped skills, innovative employee behavior, and innovative outcomes, addressing the gap in understanding their intricate relationships. The rapid pace of technological advancements has catalyzed technological and non-technological innovations. Firms have realized the importance of employee innovative behavior as central to achieving higher firm innovations, which could be shaped through knowledge-based HR practices and specialized skills such as pi-shaped skills. Yet, the relationship between knowledge-based HRM practices and pi-shaped skills, which shape employee innovative behavior and innovation outcomes, remains relatively unexplored.This quantitative study employed a comprehensive knowledge-based framework in light of KBV theory. Data were collected from the pharmaceutical industry of a developing economy. A dual mediation approach was used to examine mediating effects of pi-shaped skills and employee innovative behavior. Partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) tested the hypotheses. Findings reveal that dual mediation facilitated by pi-shaped skills and employee innovative behavior, along with knowledge-based HRM practices, enhances innovative behavior and innovation outcomes. Pharmaceutical management should adopt knowledge-based HRM practices to nurture pi-shaped skills and employee innovative behavior, fostering innovative competencies.