The impact of open innovation on intrapreneurship: A study in the textile industry

Sustainability challenges in the globalizing world have led businesses to open innovation. In this process, businesses have developed low-cost and customer-oriented solutions by collaborating with internal and external resources. Intrapreneurship, which has attracted attention since the 1980s, stands out as a critical factor in organizational and economic development. This thesis examined the effects of open innovation (inside-out and outside-in) on intrapreneurship and its sub-dimensions (innovation, risk taking, proactiveness, autonomy) in the ready-made clothing and apparel factories of the textile industry in Erzurum. In the study, data was collected from 244 participants via a survey, and Pearson correlation, multiple regression, t-test and ANOVA methods were used in the analysis. The findings showed that open innovation generally has significant effects on intrapreneurship, but these effects differ according to the direction of innovation and the dimension of entrepreneurship. For example, while outside-in open innovation has an impact on innovation, inside-out open innovation shows stronger effects on risk taking, proactiveness, and autonomy. The study offers suggestions for businesses to gain competitive advantage and increase employee creativity by adopting open innovation strategies for intrapreneurship activities. Keywords: Innovation, Open Innovation, Entrepreneurship, Intrapreneurship