Unveiling the Power of Non-Technological Innovation Capability: Bridging Conventional and Emerging Strategic Orientations to Firm Performance—A SEM Analysis

In today’s business atmosphere, diverse strategies are essential for fostering innovation and performance. While conventional orientations, such as market and entrepreneurial orientations, have received considerable attention in research, there is a notable gap in understanding the combined effects alongside emerging orientations like digital and sustainability orientations on non-technological innovation capability (NTIC) and firm performance. Furthermore, the mediating role of NTIC in enhancing performance related to these orientations remains unclear. To address this gap, we explore the intervening role of NTIC in the impacts of emerging and conventional strategic orientations on performance among large manufacturers in Ethiopia from a dynamic capability perspective. The study employs a cross-sectional survey of 206 top managers from large manufacturing firms in Ethiopia and analyzes the data using partial least squares structural equation modeling. Results revealed that conventional strategic orientations—proactive market orientation (PMO), responsive market orientation (RMO), and entrepreneurial orientation (EO)—positively impact firm performance. In contrast, emerging orientations like sustainability orientation (SO) and digital orientation (DO) do not. Moreover, conventional (PMO, EO) and emerging (SO, DO) orientations significantly influence NTIC, while RMO has no effect. NTIC partially mediates the impacts of PMO and EO on performance and fully mediates SO and DO, but does not mediate RMO’s impact on performance. This study offers insight into the multiple strategic orientations and innovation literature by demonstrating how conventional and emerging orientations can effectively harness to elevate NTIC and organizational performance. It further underscores the critical role of NTIC in amplifying the performance implications of strategic orientations, offering insights for academia and practitioners.