Does absorptive capacity foster open innovation? Examining the impact of innovativeness and risk-taking on the innovative performance of tourism firms

To maintain competitiveness and sustainability, firms must implement a combination of internal and external strategies that enhance their innovation potential. This study identifies absorptive capacity (ACAP) as a strategic antecedent of open innovation (OI) and examines its effect on innovative performance (IP). Additionally, it investigates the mediating role of innovativeness and the moderating effect of risk-taking. The empirical analysis was conducted using data from 238 tourism firms located in Peru’s World Heritage Cities. The findings confirm the positive impact of absorptive capacity on innovative performance. Furthermore, innovativeness partially mediates the relationship between absorptive capacity and innovative performance, while risk-taking strengthens this relationship. This study contributes to the existing literature by demonstrating how innovativeness, risk-taking, and absorptive capacity all have complementing effects on the creative performance of tourism firms. Moreover, it provides knowledge and information for managerial decision-making in the field of tourism enterprises.