Reflections of formal and informal controls and learning in innovation in companies at the digital port

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the reflections of formal and informal controls and learning in innovation in companies at the Digital Port. A survey was carried out at the Digital Port, a technological park with 258 companies operating in the areas of information and communication technology, creative economy and incubated companies, in Recife, PE, Brazil. The questionnaire was sent to the managers of these companies through Google Forms platform and the sample consists of 62 valid questionnaires. The Structural Equation Modeling (SEM-PLS) technique was applied for the data analysis. The results revealed that informal controls and learning reflect positively and significantly, both directly and indirectly, on innovation. However, no significant effects of formal controls on learning and innovation were observed. It was concluded that, when analyzing the direct effects on learning, informal controls produce positive and significant effects, indirectly reflecting on innovation, while formal controls, despite the indication of the use of some financial assessment
controls, were not so present in this group of companies. The study contributes by emphasizing the importance of informal controls and learning in the innovation process of companies established in shared environments, such as technology parks and incubators.