Linkage and innovation: the entrepreneur’s perspective

The results of an empirical study are presented, whose data were collected between October 2021 and May 2022, with the objective of identifying the relationship between the degree of linkage and innovation performance from the perspective of the company manager. The survey was sent through the Qualtrics technological platform; 150 companies with operations in Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Spain, Panama, Puerto Rico and Venezuela participated. The hierarchical cluster analysis technique was used to group the companies according to the degree of linkage (defined as low, medium and high) with the university; after grouping the companies according to their degree of linkage, the statistical technique of Analysis of Variance was used to validate whether there was a statistically significant difference between groups for the level of innovation achieved (product, process and organizational). The analysis of variance tests (ANOVA) performed showed that there was no statistically significant difference in the degree of innovation achieved and the level of linkage for the sample studied. This result can be explained by the fact that the innovations carried out, as well as the level of interaction with the university, were reported for the period 2020 - 2021 during which the pandemic (Covid-19) affected and transformed the operations of both companies and universities, globally. Companies were forced to implement strategies and a whole series of adjustments in their activities to ensure their financial performance and survival.