Business Strategy in Innovative SMEs: Digital Orientation, Diversity in Corporate Governance and Performance

The thesis investigates the evolution of business strategy in innovative small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by analysing how strategic orientation and corporate governance jointly influence firm performance. It explores multiple strategic and firm-level dimensions that explain how innovative SMEs achieve competitive advantage in dynamic landscapes. Specifically, four interconnected studies are developed examining i) the configuration of innovation drivers leading to high financial performance and the role of gender differences, ii) the curvilinear relationship between digital orientation and business performance, iii) the role of female board members in digital orientation-financial performance, vi) the relationship between digital strategy and young-female board members. By combining fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis with quantitative econometric methods such as Ordinary Least Square, Generalized Method of Moments and Two-Stage Least Square, this thesis offers a comprehensive understanding of the interplay between strategic orientation and governance mechanisms in sustain firm performance and shaping the business strategy trajectories of innovative SMEs. Finally, this work advances the current debate on SME strategy in the digital era, providing both theoretical insights and managerial implications on how to design, align, and govern digital and business resources for sustainable performance.