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on Knowledge Management and Knowledge Economy |
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Issue of 2007‒07‒13
nine papers chosen by Emanuele Canegrati Catholic University of the Sacred Heart |
| By: | Otto Raspe; Frank van Oort |
| Abstract: | This paper contributes to the debate on localized knowledge externalities as potential source for firm productivity gains. We apply multilevel analysis to link firm productivity (and growth) to knowledge intensive spatial contexts in the Netherlands. If localized knowledge externalities are important, then firms are hypothesised to co-locate in order to capitalize on each other's knowledge stocks. We conceptualise the regional knowledge base by three dimensions: local 'research and development' intensity, local 'innovativeness', and the characterization of locations by a ‘knowledge workers’ dimension (based on ICT use, educational level, communicative and creative skills). Controlling for firm's heterogeneity, we find a relatively small spatial effect: regional characteristics contribute for only a few percents to firm productivity. The regional intensity of 'innovation' most significantly contributes to this effect. We do not find a contextual spatial effect for productivity growth. These results suggest that the territorial dimension of knowledge externalities should not be exaggerated. |
| Keywords: | productivity, multilevel analysis, localized knowledge externalities, Netherlands |
| Date: | 2007–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:egu:wpaper:0706&r=knm |
| By: | Zoltan J. Acs (George Mason University); David Audretsch (Indiana University and Max Planck Institute of Economics, Jena); Ronnie J. Phillips (Kauffman Foundation and Colorado State University); Sameeksha Desai (George Mason University) |
| Abstract: | What differentiates American capitalism from all other forms of industrial capitalism is a historical focus on both the creation of wealth (entrepreneurship) and the reconstitution of wealth (philanthropy). Philanthropy has been part of the implicit American social contract that continuously nurtures and revitalizes economic prosperity. Much of the new wealth created historically has been given back to the community to build many of the great social institutions that have paved the way for future economic growth. This entrepreneurship-philanthropy nexus has not been fully explored by either economists or the general public. The purpose of this paper is to suggest that American philanthropists-particularly those who have made their own fortunes-create foundations that, in turn, contribute to greater and more widespread economic prosperity through knowledge creation. Analyzing philanthropy sheds light on our current understanding of how economic development has occurred, as well as the roots of American economic domi- nance. |
| Keywords: | entrepreneurship, philanthropy, capitalism, knowledge |
| JEL: | D64 M13 M14 |
| Date: | 2007–07–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:jrp:jrpwrp:2007-025&r=knm |
| By: | David B. Audretsch (Max Planck Institute of Economics, Jena, Germany; Indiana University, USA); Max Keilbach (Max Planck Institute of Economics, Jena, Germany) |
| Abstract: | Whereas initially physical capital and later, knowledge capital were viewed as crucial for growth, more recently a very different factor, entrepreneurship capital, has emerged as a driving force of economic growth. In this paper, we define a region's capacity to create new firms start-ups as the region's entrepreneurship capital. We then investigate the local embeddedness of this variable and which variables have an impact on this variable. Using data for Germany, we find that knowledge-based entrepreneurship capital is driven by local levels of knowledge creation and the acceptance of new ideas, indicating that local knowledge flows play an important role. Low-tech entrepreneurship capital is rather increased by regional unemployment and driven by direct incentives such as subsidies. All three measures are locally clustered, indicating that indeed, entrepreneurship capital is a phenomenon that is driven by local culture, and is therefore locally bounded. |
| Keywords: | Entrepreneurship capital, Local Clusters, Knowledge Spillovers, Spatial Econometrics |
| JEL: | L60 O30 G30 |
| Date: | 2007–07–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:jrp:jrpwrp:2007-029&r=knm |
| By: | Joshua S. Gans; David H. Hsu; Scott Stern |
| Abstract: | This paper considers the impact of the intellectual property (IP) system on the timing of cooperation/licensing by start-up technology entrepreneurs. If the market for technology licenses is efficient, the timing of licensing is independent of whether IP has already been granted. In contrast, the need to disclosure complementary (yet unprotected) knowledge, asymmetric information, or search costs may retard efficient technology transfer. In these cases, reductions in uncertainty surrounding the scope and extent of IP rights may facilitate trade in the market for ideas. We employ a dataset combining information about cooperative licensing and the timing of patent allowances (the administrative event when patent rights are clarified). While pre-allowance licensing does occur, the hazard rate for achieving a cooperative licensing agreement significantly increases after patent allowance. Moreover, the impact of the patent system depends on the strategic and institutional environment in which firms operate. Patent allowance seems to play a particularly important role for technologies with longer technology lifecycles or that lack alternative mechanisms such as copyright, reputation, or brokers. The findings suggest that imperfections in the market for ideas may be important, and that formal IP rights may facilitate gains from technological trade. |
| JEL: | L24 L26 O32 O34 |
| Date: | 2007–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:13234&r=knm |
| By: | Siri Terjesen (Brisbane Graduate School of Business, Australia; Max Planck Institute of Economics, Germany) |
| Abstract: | This case follows Sethu Sethunarayanan, Director of the non-profit Center for the Development of Disadvantaged People (CDDP), which is dedicated to the improvement of the Irula tribe in rural villages of southeast India. The Irulas specialize in catching rats, an activity which provides the bulk of their income and food. Following a routine visit to a local village, Sethu recognized an opportunity for a "better rat trap" to aid the Irula rat catchers. With feedback from rat catchers, Sethu developed an innovative new trap. His innovation won the prestigious Global Development Marketplace award from the World Bank which provided the funding necessary to commercialize the new technology. The venture’s implementation involved site visits to identify beneficiaries, health checks and treatment, preparatory workshops, factory establishment, factory training, production, women's micro-credit collectives, distribution and project evaluation. The case focuses on the relationship between human capital and technological entrepreneurship, considering the knowledge and skills required to commercialize technology for the rural poor and the positive impact on this greatly disadvantaged population. |
| Keywords: | Human Capital, India, Innovation, Irula, Social Entrepreneurship, Technological Entrepreneurship, World Bank |
| Date: | 2007–07–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:jrp:jrpwrp:2007-031&r=knm |
| By: | Vaz, Margarida |
| Abstract: | Given that one type of tourist does not exist and different strategies are drawn to reach the wished "extraordinary" by tourists for holidays, there are windows of opportunities to the tourist destinations, as these give them the chance for differentiated offers and for a flexibility that opposes uniformity and gives place to variety and difference. Assuming that the development of the destinations do not obey to just a standard way, and alternatively is embedded in the historical, cultural, institutional and natural matrices of the regions where destinations are anchored, then the specific resources of a place can assume the basic role of inputs for the differentiation of the tourist destination and for the diversification of its tourist offers. Taking into account the exceptionality of tourist product as an experience, which is associated with an integrated experience offer, one can say that an idiographic perspective of a destination requires that the valuation of its specific resources pass not only for the tourist services providers to assume themselves as agents who facilitate the stay and the mobility of the tourists, but also that they need to become ambassadors of all the kind of services of the destination as well as of the region itself. Such tourist destination generates change. As it generates differentiated strategies at the regional level and as it is based on co-operation and network, these strategies and related facts make the environment propitious to the dissemination of knowledge and innovation. Innovation, in turn, generates difference, that strengthens the identity of the region, and potentially, of the tourist destination. Such strategies of differentiation, in a sustainable development frame, can be the turning point for a more selective tourist industry, and where all can win: the local communities, the tourists, the tourist agents, and the environment. |
| Keywords: | Specific resources; idiographic approach; innovation; tourist destination; sustainability; regional development |
| JEL: | L83 R11 |
| Date: | 2007 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:3866&r=knm |
| By: | Simon Marginson; Marijk van der Wende |
| Abstract: | Economic and cultural globalisation has ushered in a new era in higher education. Higher education was always more internationally open than most sectors because of its immersion in knowledge, which never showed much respect for juridical boundaries. In global knowledge economies, higher education institutions are more important than ever as mediums for a wide range of cross-border relationships and continuous global flows of people, information, knowledge, technologies, products and financial capital.<p> Even as they share in the reinvention of the world around them, higher education institutions, and the policies that produce and support them, are also being reinvented. For the first time in history every research university is part of a single world-wide network and the world leaders in the field have an unprecedented global visibility and power. Research is more internationalised than before and the mobility of doctoral students and faculty has increased. The specifically global element in academic labour markets has gained weight, especially since the advent of global university rankings.<p> This working paper explores the issues for national policy and for individual institutions. Part I provides an overview of globalisation and higher education and the global responses of national systems and individual institutions of higher education. Part II is focused on certain areas of policy with a strong multilateral dimension: Europeanisation, institutional rankings and typologies and cross-border mobility. <BR>Avec la mondialisation économique et culturelle, l'enseignement supérieur entre dans une nouvelle ère. Jusqu'ici, l'enseignement supérieur a toujours été un secteur plus international que les autres, car plongé dans la connaissance, sans égard aux frontières juridiques. Dans les économies mondiales de la connaissance, les établissements d'enseignement supérieur sont plus importants que jamais en tant qu'intermédiaires dans une multiplicité de relations internationales et de flux continus d'individus, d'informations, de connaissances, de technologies, de produits et de capital financier.<p> Même si ils participent à la réinvention du monde autour d'eux, les établissements d'enseignement supérieur, et les actions politiques qui les engendrent et les soutiennent, sont aussi en train d'être repensés. Pour la première fois dans l?histoire, chaque université de recherche fait partie d'un unique réseau mondial, et les chefs de file internationaux dans le domaine sont dotés d'une visibilité et d'un pouvoir au niveau mondial sans pareil. La recherche est désormais plus internationalisée, et la mobilité des doctorants et du corps enseignant se développe. L'élément international a pris de la valeur sur les marchés du travail de la filière académique, et plus particulièrement depuis l'avènement des classements universitaires à l'échelle mondiale.<p> Ce document de travail étudie les problématiques pour les politiques nationales et les établissements eux-mêmes. La première partie analyse dans son ensemble la mondialisation et l'enseignement supérieur, et les actions internationales qu'entreprennent les systèmes nationaux et les établissements d'enseignement supérieur. La seconde partie observe plus spécialement certains domaines politiques à caractère très international : l'européanisation, les classements et les typologies des établissements, et la mobilité internationale. |
| Date: | 2007–07–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:eduaab:8-en&r=knm |
| By: | Peter Arbo; Paul Benneworth |
| Abstract: | The contribution of higher education institutions to regional development is a theme that has attracted growing attention in recent years. Knowledge institutions are increasingly expected not only to conduct education and research, but also to play an active role in the economic, social and cultural development of their regions. The extent to which higher education institutions are able to play this role depends on a number of circumstances: the characteristics of the institutions, the regions in which they are located and the policy frameworks are all significant. At the same time, there are signs of more fundamental conceptual and strategic confusion. The discussions in this domain are frequently characterised by slogans and popular metaphors. This literature review was prepared to support the OECD project entitled 'Supporting the Contribution of Higher Education Institutions to Regional Development', which was conducted by the OECD Programme on Institutional Management in Higher Education (IMHE) in collaboration with the Directorate of Public Governance and Territorial Development. Drawing mainly from a selection of European and North American publications, the report takes an overall view on the development of higher education institutions in the regional context. It focuses on the evolution and discourses of higher education and research, the regional aspects of higher education policies, the various functions and roles that the institutions play, measures taken to link the universities with their regional partners, and the conditions which favour or hamper stronger regional engagement. <BR>La contribution de l'enseignement supérieur au développement régional suscite depuis plusieurs années un intérêt toujours croissant. De plus en plus, on attend des institutions en charge du savoir non seulement qu'elles mènent les activités liées à l'enseignement et à la recherche, mais aussi qu'elles prennent une part active au développement économique, social et culturel de leur région. La marge de manoeuvre dont disposent les établissements d'enseignement supérieur pour remplir ce rôle varie selon certains facteurs : les caractéristiques de l'établissement, la région et le cadre politique dans lesquels il s'inscrit sont autant de critères significatifs. Par ailleurs, on identifie également les signes d'une confusion conceptuelle et stratégique plus profonde, les débats sur ce sujet étant souvent caractérisés par les slogans et les métaphores populaires. Cette analyse bibliographique a été préparée en soutien au projet de l'OCDE intitulé « Appuyer la contribution des institutions d'enseignement supérieur au développement régional », mené par le Programme de l'OCDE sur la gestion des établissements d'enseignement supérieur (IMHE) en coopération avec la Direction de la gouvernance publique et du développement territorial. À partir d'une sélection de publications principalement européennes et nord-américaines, ce rapport adopte une vue d'ensemble sur le développement des établissements d'enseignement supérieur dans le contexte régional. Il cible notamment l'évolution et les débats dans l'enseignement supérieur et la recherche, le volet régional des politiques d'enseignement supérieur, les divers fonctions et rôles que remplissent les établissements, les mesures prises pour relier les universités à leurs partenaires régionaux, ainsi que les conditions qui favorisent ou freinent un engagement régional plus marqué. |
| Date: | 2007–07–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:eduaab:9-en&r=knm |
| By: | Shah, Deepak |
| Abstract: | The present study, carried out in the state of Maharashtra during 2003-04, has its foci on the cooperative leadership and characteristics in cooperative success and failure, especially with respect to fruit marketing societies operating in Maharashtra. The study concentrates on two societies dealing with the marketing of banana in the state of Maharashtra – one showing success (NCFSS) and the other failure (KGFSS) due to positive and negative leadership qualities and characteristics associated with societies. Due to strong financial position, the NCFSS showed autonomy/independence in its functioning. This society had shown perfect knowledge about the market forces and its business activities in accordance to the new domestic as well as global market environment. The KGFSS showed poor grasp either in terms of studying the market forces or shown inefficiency because of its own internal drawbacks in terms of managing the society or its own personal interests involved in the functioning of the society. The KGFSS is unable to generate allies for lobbing to safeguard as well as promoting its own interests and the interests of its members, whereas NCFSS is quite successful in such lobbing and promotional interest related activities. Since a significant number of fruit marketing societies operating in Maharashtra have shown a falling trend in their amount of extension of loan and its recovery, and also in respect of higher amount of losses in proportion to profit, efforts should be made to rectify these deficiencies in the functioning of these societies dealing with the marketing of high value crops. Some remedial measures and strategies framed or initiated by these marketing societies, particularly in respect of recovery of their loan advances, will certainly improve the efficiency and functioning of these societies in the future. Government support in this respect will have a catalytic effect in improving the overall efficacy and efficiency, as well as functioning |
| Keywords: | Rural Cooperative Marketing Management Efficiency and Era of Globalization |
| JEL: | R11 P13 |
| Date: | 2006–12–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:3853&r=knm |