The Role of Gender Diversity on Innovation Performance in Tech-Based Start-Up

In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in the relationship between gender diversity and innovation performance. However, how gender diversity brings values to foster innovation was not fully understood, particularly in teach-based start-ups as previous studies mostly focused on established firms. This research aims to understand how tech-based start-ups leverage gender diversity in their teams to improve innovation performance. To gain deeper insight into the institutional context, we adopts a multiple-case study approach. Twenty people from five different tech-based start-ups supported by five different stakeholders from entrepreneurial ecosystems were interviewed using semi-structured interviews between March 2022- September 2023.
Through the frameworks emerging from the study, a novel construct, “team innovation capability”, is introduced as the missing linkage between gender diversity and digital innovation performance. The findings indicate that having gender diversity within the team does not necessarily result in improved innovation performance. Only by establishing this capability, tech-based start-up teams could leverage gender diversity to achieve innovation performance. To develop team innovation capability, tech-based start-up teams should respond to institutional pressures and navigate their internal dynamics, including building inclusive organisational cultures, developing effective leadership, and establishing gender-responsive HR policies and practices.
Our research contributes to the existing debates by providing a rationale for the inconclusive findings on the impact of gender diversity on innovation performance in tech-based start-ups. We contributed to the literature by linking gender and innovation studies and advancing institutional theory and social role theory, highlighting the complex interplay between external pressures and internal dynamics in tech-based start-ups.
The results highlight the practical implications of enhancing the ability of start-ups to promote innovation by leveraging gender diversity in start-up teams. By advocating for gender diversity, our efforts align with broader sustainable development goals, amplifying the importance of inclusive practices within entrepreneurial ecosystems such as start-ups.