Global Journal of Human Resource Management Vol.11, No.2, pp.18-42, 2023 Print ISSN: 2053-5686(Print), Online ISSN: 2053-5694(Online) Website: https://www.eajournals.org/ Publication of the European Centre for Research Training and Development-UK 18 Revisiting Innovation Typologies among Agro-food Small and Medium- Size Enterprises (SMEs) in a Developing Country 1 Chiedu Florence Amah; 2 Joseph E. O. Oshi 1, 2 Faculty of Management Sciences, University of Port Harcourt, P.O.Box 419,Choba, Nigeria doi: https://doi.org/10.37745/gjhrm.2013/vol11n21842 Published April 17, 2023 Citation: Amah C.F., and Oshi J.E.O. (2023) Revisiting Innovation Typologies among Agro-food Small and Medium-Size Enterprises (SMEs) in a Developing Country, Global Journal of Human Resource Management , Vol.11, No.2, pp.18-42 ABSTRACT: Innovation has been identified as an enhancer of competitiveness of Small and Medium-Size Enterprises (SMEs). Moreover, a growing body of scholarly research demonstrate the that organisations stand to gain competitive advantage if they combine the right mix of culturally embedded innovative and knowledge sharing practices. Despite the vast amount of studies that have spawned concerning innovation in SMEs, very few have been done among Agro-food SMEs in developing countries of Sub-Saharan Africa, such as Nigeria. Given the importance of the agri-food sector, particularly with respect to the many SMEs in developing countries, this study considers it fruitful to identify the typologies of innovation of such firms in Nigeria, in order for them to compete in world markets. Moreover, this study draws its relevance from the fact that agri-SMEs in Nigeria still lag behind those in developed countries in terms of innovation. Based on the reviewed literature, this study advances two conceptual frameworks for further studies on Agro-food SMEs in developing countries, viz: (i) the relationship between culturally-embedded innovation and competitiveness (ii) the relationship between knowledge-based innovation and competitiveness. KEYWORDS: Organisational innovation, competitiveness, organisational culture, knowledge sharing, Agro-food SMEs INTRODUCTION Innovation is concept in business practices that is receiving enormous attention among small- and medium-sized enterprises (El Chaarani et al., 2022; YahiaMarzouk & Jin, 2022; Zighan et al., 2023) due to its proven performance benefits (Jalil et al., 2022). Through innovations small agri-food farms can modernize their production processes to become more efficient, grow more quality produce, be more cost-effective (reduce staffing costs), be more flexible in delivering products, minimize cultivation risk related to climatic factors and be more resilient during turbulence. Innovation could be crucial for farms to seize new opportunities remain competitive and sustainable over time (Taneo et al., 2020; Paoloni et al., 2022). For instance, in Indonesia, it has been observed that the low competitiveness of food SMEs is caused by the slow pace of