Effect of supplier development on innovation performance: moderating role of supplier evaluation and IT use with suppliers

This study aims to investigate how manufacturers align supplier development with formal supplier evaluation and information technology (IT) use with suppliers to enhance innovation performance more effectively. By using multi-source data collected from 298 manufacturers worldwide, the current study investigates the proposed hypothesis. The results show that supplier development plays a key role in promoting innovation performance. Further, the findings of this study suggest that formal supplier evaluation strengthens the positive effect of supplier development on innovation performance, while IT use with suppliers does not so. This study extends our understanding of the relationship between supplier management and innovation. Also, it provides valuable insights into how manufacturing companies apply supplier development approaches to enhance innovation performance more effectively.