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The existing literature on SME internationalization has inadequately integrated joint innovation capabilities, organizational unlearning, and the internationalization process. Previous studies have primarily examined these concepts separately, obscuring their interconnection and reciprocal impact. This study fills in a gap in the literature and responds to calls for more studies (e.g., Du, Zhu & Li, 2023; Genc, Dayan & Genc, 2019) by developing and testing a moderated mediation model to examine how joint innovation capabilities affect exploratory innovation through the mediating role of organizational unlearning. The research also examines the moderating effect of the degree of internationalization on this relationship. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 300 logistics and general managers from SMEs in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), utilizing partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to evaluate the measurement models' validity and reliability, and to test the hypothesized relationships. The results demonstrate that organizational unlearning is a key mechanism linking collaborative innovation capabilities with exploratory innovation. Additionally, the degree of internationalization significantly moderates this relationship, with a stronger mediation effect when internationalization is low. These findings provide practical implications for SMEs and managers, especially in overseeing innovation and unlearning processes while accounting for the degree of internationalization in their growth strategies. Managers in SMEs must recognize the complexities introduced by internationalization, such as diverse cultural norms and regulatory frameworks, which can impede the process of unlearning. To address these challenges, SMEs should consider adopting region-specific innovation strategies or investing in cross-cultural training to effectively manage the integration of diverse knowledge sources.

The study aims to determine if organizational flexibility and support generate innovation in IT solutions, providing firms with enhanced competitiveness. It also explores the mediating role of organizational learning in its flexibility and innovation dynamics and the moderating influence of employees' perceived organizational support on its flexibility and learning. The paper argues that the inimitable internal resources of flexibility, learning capabilities, and a supportive climate can help service-oriented firms innovate to enhance their competitive advantage. A quantitative approach was adopted to conduct a cross-sectional survey of 1350 IT solution-providing companies concentrating on Software Export zones based in India. The structural equation modeling technique was adopted to test the validity and reliability of the measurement models, followed by the proposed direct, mediating, and moderating relationships among organizational flexibility, learning, support, and service innovation. The findings illuminate the significant positive influence of firm-level resources of organizational flexibility on learning, leading to amplified innovation in its services. Additionally, perceived support from the organization's side towards the employees mitigates the positive relationship between organizational flexibility and organizational learning, indicating a negative association. This study also highlighted the untested influence of organizational support as a mitigator of learning in flexible organizations.