AUTHORS:

Bolívar Bernal Mojica - Facultad de Ingeniería Industrial, Centro Regional de Azuero, Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá, Panamá, Panamá
Enith González - Facultad de Ingeniería Industrial, Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá, Panamá, Panamá
Gabriel Vergara - Facultad de Ingeniería Industrial, Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá, Panamá, Panamá
Edilsa Q. de Sanfilippo - Centro de Investigación e Innovación Eléctrica, Mecánica y de la Industria, Universidad Tecnológica de Panamá, Panamá, Panamá

BACKGROUND

This paper presents the results of an empirical study, conducted during the months of February to March 2021, with the objective of analyzing innovative activity in product, process and organizational innovation and its impact on the performance of MSMEs. An online survey was conducted with the participation of 430 companies stratified according to sector (Industry, Construction, Commerce and Services) and size (micro, small and medium enterprises). The model used was multiple linear regression, whose response variable was company performance and the explanatory variables were product, process and organizational innovations. The results showed that process and organizational innovations were statistically significant, while product innovations were not significant. The coefficients were positive, implying that the higher the degree of process and organizational innovation, the higher the company's performance is expected to be. These innovations included changes in production processes, acquisition of new equipment, improvements in management, new procurement and purchasing processes, and changes in sales and commercial management. All these innovations were made during the pandemic period.