Strategic Innovation and Business Performance: Evidence from the Food and Beverage Industry

The study examines the relationship between strategic innovation and business performance of the food and beverage businesses in Cotabato Province, Philippines. Previous research established that businesses achieve better results through their strategic innovation efforts. However, the study focused only on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) operating in provincial areas of the Philippines and specifically examines the food and beverage sector. Using a descriptive correlational research design, data were collected from 100 top-and middle-level managers selected through purposive sampling. The researchers used descriptive statistics, Spearman's rank-order correlation, and simple linear regression to analyze the data. The results demonstrated that strategic innovation is associated with improved business performance outcomes, with the association statistically significant. The regression analysis demonstrated that strategic innovation accounts for 66.5 percent of changes in firm performance. The results suggest that higher levels of innovation are associated with better business performance. However, the study establishes no causal relationships because it uses correlational methods. The study contributes to existing research by presenting empirical data from a local small- and medium-sized enterprise context and by offering practical business performance improvement strategies through innovation.