Shareholder heterogeneity, board dicisionmaking process and ambidextrous corporate innovation: evidence from China

Purpose Shareholder heterogeneity reflects the interactive relationship between shareholder groups of different industries and ownership types. This paper aims to discuss the impact of shareholder heterogeneity on ambidextrous corporate innovation. Design/methodology/approach Combining questionnaire and database data, this study empirically analyzes the internal mechanisms of the impact of shareholder heterogeneity on ambidextrous corporate innovation. Findings The authors find that shareholder heterogeneity can promote ambidextrous corporate innovation and that board’s decision-making processes play an intermediary role. Specifically, shareholder industry-type heterogeneity promotes ambidextrous corporate innovation by improving procedural rationality in board’s decision-making process, and shareholder ownership-type heterogeneity promotes ambidextrous corporate innovation by improving political behavior in board’s decision-making process. The analysis of the impact degree shows that shareholder industry-type heterogeneity has a greater impact on exploitation innovation, while shareholder ownership-type heterogeneity has a greater impact on exploratory innovation. In addition, the research also shows that shareholder groups dominated by industry-type heterogeneity have an impact on corporate innovation by shaping an engaged board with higher procedural rationality and lower political behavior. Shareholder groups dominated by ownership-type heterogeneity have an impact on corporate innovation by shaping a contested board with higher political behavior and lower procedural rationality. Originality/value This study not only enriches the research on shareholder heterogeneity and corporate innovation in the context of transformation but also provides an analytical framework for research on board’s decision-making process.