The Impact of Human Capital, Business Networks, and Organizational Innovation on Tourism Industry Success in Zhejiang Province, China

บทคัดย่อ

The purpose of this study is to investigate the individual and combined effects of human capital, business networks, and organizational innovation on the success of tourism SMEs, as well as to examine the structural relationships among these variables within the context of China’s tourism SMEs, based on evidence from Zhejiang Province. An explanatory sequential mixed-methods design was adopted. Quantitative data were first collected from 400 tourism SMEs through structured questionnaires to test the proposed conceptual framework using descriptive statistics and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Subsequently, qualitative data were obtained through in-depth interviews with 15 key informants to further explain, contextualize, and enrich the quantitative findings. Qualitative content analysis was employed to identify underlying mechanisms and operational challenges influencing tourism SME performance.

The findings indicate that human capital, business networks, and organizational innovation have significant effects on tourism SME success, which in this study is reflected in business performance, service quality, adaptability, and organizational resilience. Among these factors, organizational innovation emerges as the strongest predictor (β = 0.376, p < 0.001), followed by human capital (β = 0.312, p < 0.001) and business networks (β = 0.295, p < 0.001). In addition, organizational innovation plays a mediating role in the relationships between human capital, business networks, and tourism SME success, suggesting that innovation transforms internal capabilities and external network resources into competitive outcomes. Qualitative findings further emphasize the role of digital leadership, technology-enabled service delivery, and guanxi-based collaboration in enhancing organizational agility and post-crisis recovery. Overall, the study highlights the importance of strategically integrating human capital development, network collaboration, and organizational innovation to strengthen the sustainability and competitiveness of tourism SMEs.