Building entrepreneurs' innovativeness through knowledge management: the mediating effect of entrepreneurial alertness

This paper explores the possible relationship between sources of knowledge acquisition and entrepreneurs' innovativeness from the perspective of knowledge management. Specifically, it employs the partial least squares structure equation model to study the entrepreneurs' innovativeness through knowledge acquisition. It has been found that knowledge acquisition through social networks with suppliers, manufacturers and distributors and management practices has a positive effect on entrepreneurial alertness to business ideas. Moreover, entrepreneurial alertness plays a mediating role between sources of knowledge acquisition and entrepreneurs' innovativeness. In addition, entrepreneurial alertness plays a completely mediating role between core social network knowledge and entrepreneurs' innovativeness, and a partial mediating role between sources of knowledge acquisition and entrepreneurs' innovativeness. This finding has both theoretical and practical implications for entrepreneurial learning in general.