LINKING CULTURE, ORGANIZATIONAL LEARNING ORIENTATION AND PRODUCT INNOVATION PERFORMNACE: THE CASE OF ETHIOPIAN MANUFACTURING FIRMS

Using formal survey data from textile and leather product manufacturing firms in Ethiopia, we investigate how the current national cultural setup (power distance, collectivism, masculinity and uncertainty avoidance) is affecting organizational learning, orientation and product innovation performance. Further, we assess the moderating role of sector and ownership structure on the interrelationship. The result demonstrates that the current national culture setup is negatively affecting the learning and innovation activities of the firms in the country. It also shows that while sector type is neutral, ownership type significantly affects the interrelationship among culture, learning orientation and product innovation performance.