Profiting from the digital integration of the value chain and digital competencies: does open innovation matter for manufacturing SMEs?

Drawing from a resource-based view of the firm, this study investigates the effect of the level of digital integration in value chain (DIVC) activities and digital competencies (DCs) on the financial performance of SMEs, differentiating between firms that embrace open innovation (OI) and those that do not. We test our hypotheses on a sample of 348 manufacturing SMEs based in Tuscany (Italy). The results show that the level of DIVC positively influences firm performance, while the impact of DCs is not significant. Furthermore, SMEs that pursue OI perform better than those who do not pursue it, but only when the level of DIVC is low. The managerial and academic implications and avenues for future research are discussed.