Exploitative and explorative innovation in small and medium sized enterprises : individual ambidextarity and cognitive style

In this study, we examine the relationship between cognitive style and the extent a manager engages in exploration or exploitation activities, and a combination of both. Conducting linear regression analysis on a sample of 250 managers, we observe that the more a manager has an analytic cognitive style the more he would engage in exploitation activities. Moreover, we also found a positive relationship between a manager’s analytic cognitive style and the extent he engages in both exploration and exploitation. Furthermore, results from this study show that managers with a dominant cognitive style (either intuition or analytical) are more likely to engage in exploration activities. These findings have important theoretical and managerial implications in the field of individual ambidexterity.