How do executive incentives strengthen the innovation transformation of intellectual capital?

Based on data sourced from Chinese A-share listed high-tech companies spanning the period from 2013 to 2023, this study conducts an empirical investigation into how intellectual capital influences corporate innovation performance, as well as the moderating role played by executive incentive mechanisms. The findings reveal that intellectual capital exerts a notably positive influence on both innovation inputs and outputs, thereby substantiating the key tenets of the resource-based view and knowledge-based theory. Both executive compensation incentives and equity incentives markedly boost the efficiency with which intellectual capital is transformed into innovation outcomes, demonstrating a two-pronged enhancement mechanism characterized by ''direct impact plus moderating influence''. Furthermore, the moderating effect varies across enterprise sizes; large-scale enterprises are better positioned to unlock the innovation potential of intellectual capital by capitalizing on their resource integration capabilities, whereas small-scale enterprises face the challenge of overcoming technological transformation barriers to fully harness this potential.