THE MEDIATING EFFECT OF PROACTIVE MARKET ORIENTATION CAPABILITY IN ENTREPRENEURIAL ORIENTATION AND SERVICE INNOVATION

Purpose: The purpose of this article is to verify the mediating effect of a proactive market orientation capability in the relationship between entrepreneurial orientation (EO) and service innovation in micro and small companies in the food-away from home sector. We analyzed the mediating effect of a marketing capability (proactive market capability) because, according to Morgan et al. (2009), a capability is an ability developed from a strategic orientation, and capabilities and orientations together contribute to organizational performance. Originality/Value: The article verifies the mediating effect of a specific marketing capability, the proactive market orientation (PMO) in the proposed relationship. Most studies on market orientation (OM) treat the construct as a business strategic orientation, but few studies investigate market orientation based on the perspective of dynamic capabilities (Hou, 2008). Design/methodology/approach: A quantitative survey was carried out using a non-probabilistic sampling technique for convenience with 168 establishments. The research was carried out in micro and small companies of the food-way from home sector of Curitiba PR, and the respondents were the managers and owners of the establishments. Findings: The results indicate the existence of the mediating effect of PMO in the relationship between EO and service innovation.