Linking organizational learning and customer capital through an ambidexterity context: an empirical investigation in SMEs

Abstract Ambidexterity is an organization's context to achieve alignment and adaptability simultaneously within the organization learning processes. This paper examines the relationship between and significance of two key factors of organization learning (exploration and exploitation of knowledge) and two possible control factors (company size and sector) on the ambidexterity context, and their effects on the creation of customer capital. These relationships are examined through an empirical investigation of 269 Spanish SMEs from two different sectors (Optometry and Telecommunications), using structural equation modelling validated by factor analysis. The results indicate that the effects of exploration and exploitation of knowledge on customer capital are mediated through an ambidexterity context, which in this study is not affected by the size of SMEs but might be related to the sector in which they operate. Keywords: Contextual ambidexterityexploration and exploitation of knowledgesizesector and SMEs Acknowledgements The authors would like to thank the business organizations that took part in the study and to the editor and anonymous reviewers whose detailed and constructive comments helped us to restructure the paper. Notes 1. The data of this research originated from a research programme supported by the European Regional Development Fund entitled: 'Knowledge management, intellectual capital, technology systems and other management alternatives', Reference: EX-300-503. 2. Sistema de Análisis de Balances Ibéricos or SABI is a database containing information on over 550,000 Spanish companies and over 67,000 Portuguese companies.