This study seeks to explain how CMO (Chief Marketing Officer)-CTO (Chief Technology Officer) power disparity influences the innovation performance of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs). Drawing on the knowledge-based view, we proposed that CMO-CTO power disparity and SMEs’ innovation have an inverted U-shaped relationship, implying that both excessively high or low disparities are detrimental to collaboration and knowledge integration within the dyad. Furthermore, this research explores the moderating effects of gender dynamics within CMO-CTO pairs and the extent of firm internationalization. Using a sample of Chinese SMEs in different manufacturing sectors, we find that the inverted U-shaped relationship is flatter in firms where the CMO or the CTO is female and in firms with a high degree of internationalization. These results provide important implications for CMO-CTO interactions and intrateam power dynamics.
