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on Knowledge Management and Knowledge Economy |
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Issue of 2008‒01‒26
eighteen papers chosen by Emanuele Canegrati Catholic University of the Sacred Heart |
| By: | Lorraine Uhlaner; Haibo Zhou; Sita Tan |
| Abstract: | Western economies are increasingly viewed as knowledge-driven (Audretch and Thurik, 2001, 2004). Knowledge plays a crucial role in determining firm innovation capability and in enhancing working life quality of knowledge workers (Corso, Martini, Pelligrini, and Paolucci, 2001). Previous studies show that knowledge is managed in a different manner in SMEs. It is identified that knowledge is created, shared, transferred and applied via people based mechanisms in SMEs. Although research and policy interest in knowledge management is beginning to grow for SMEs (Sparrow, 2001; Wong, & Radcliffe, 2000), still relatively limited attention has been paid to understand the specifics of knowledge management issues for SMEs and to KM’s contribution to innovation performance in particular. Furthermore, most of studies are conducted by using methods on either qualitative case studies or very small samples. The aim of this study is to provide a quantitative insight of the relationship between KM and innovation performance of SMEs based on a large sample of Dutch SMEs, as well as the role of innovation orientation in this relationship. Our findings indicate that knowledge management- external acquisition and internal sharing- contribute positively to exploratory innovation performance of a firm. A full mediated effect of innovation orientation is identified in the relationship between external acquisition and exploratory innovation performance. We discuss how KM contributes to innovation performance, using the perspective of absorptive capacity. Based on a literature review on absorptive capacity, an implicit relationship between knowledge management practices and building a firm’s absorptive capacity is identified. |
| Date: | 2007–12–21 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eim:papers:h200718&r=knm |
| By: | Lorraine Uhlaner; Haibo Zhou; Sita Tan |
| Abstract: | Knowledge management (KM) is becoming a growing concern in management research and practice because of its role in determining firm innovation capability and in enhancing working life quality of knowledge workers. Although research and policy interest in KM is beginning to grow for small and medium-sized suppliers, still relatively limited attention has been paid to understand the specifics of KM issues of SMEs in particular. Previous studies rely on either qualitative case studies or very small samples. In this study, we will investigate KM among SMEs using empirical data from about 2000 SMEs. The aim of this study is to investigate the prevalence of different KM techniques and the determinants of KM. We found that SMEs are most likely to acquire knowledge by staying in touch with professionals and experts outside the company. Also, SMEs are most likely to share knowledge and experience by talking to each other and to store knowledge in formal repositories. Furthermore, we found a significant positive relationship between organizational learning and strategy and knowledge management, as well as a significant negative relationship between family orientation and knowledge management. In conclusion, knowledge management practices are not independent from other resources and processes inside SMEs. Therefore, there is no all-in-one knowledge management practices package for all types of SMEs across industries. |
| Date: | 2007–01–26 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eim:papers:h200703&r=knm |
| By: | Jackie Krafft (GREDEG - Groupe de recherche en Droit Economie Gestion - Université de Nice Sophia-Antipolis); Jacques Laurent Ravix (GREDEG - Groupe de recherche en Droit Economie Gestion - Université de Nice Sophia-Antipolis) |
| Abstract: | Corporate governance and the governance of knowledge were for a long time distinct fields of analysis. Reasons for this incompatibility are linked to the restricted vision of corporate governance supported by shareholder value which essentially refers to information rather than knowledge. In this paper, we argue that other visions of corporate governance exist which are also closer to knowledge dynamics and knowledge governance problems. We elaborate thus on the possible reconciliation between corporate governance and the governance of knowledge. We sustain that each actor (the manager and the investor) embodies a piece of diversified and localised knowledge related to his/her specific domain and field of experience, and these different modules of knowledge have to be recombined by an appropriate mode of corporate governance that stimulates corporate development. In this perspective, the reconciliation really appears essential since managers, by defining and selecting innovative processes, and investors, by determining the money that is invested to sustain these processes, both take part to the creation and governance of new knowledge by the firm. We show that this reconciliation can be based on the notion of corporate coherence of the cognitive firm that allows replacing the conventional conflicting vision of corporate governance by a new vision based on cooperation between managers and investors that collectively contribute to corporate development and coherence. |
| Date: | 2008 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:papers:hal-00203550_v1&r=knm |
| By: | zhao, liang; zhu, xian chen |
| Abstract: | Using recent findings from modern empirical disciplines and mainly building on F.A.Hayek’s thoughts, the paper gives a definition of knowledge in accord with the Austrian School’s tradition, and basing on the definition, it sums up three behavior assumptions and a framework on explaining individual behavior and expounds ideas on hierarchical knowledge and its change in real situations. By this way, the paper believes that the Austrian School can be greatly advanced with the help of modern empirical findings. |
| Keywords: | knowledge; shared knowledge; hierarchy; behavioral assumption; reduced framework; empirical foundation |
| JEL: | B31 A12 B25 B41 B53 |
| Date: | 2008–01–18 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:6825&r=knm |
| By: | André van Stel; Mickey Folkeringa; Joris Meijaard; Lorraine Uhlaner |
| Abstract: | This article investigates the relationship between knowledge management (KM), innovation and firm performance of smaller firms (less than 100 employees), based on a panel of more than 400 Dutch firms. Regression analyses explain the variations in sales turnover growth from various measures of KM strategies. We distinguish between KM input, throughput and output (or innovation) strategies. We find that KM input strategies related to knowledge acquisition are positively related to sales turnover growth. In contrast, we do not find a relation between KM throughput and KM output (innovation) measures and firm performance. The results emphasize the importance of both knowledge absorption and knowledge creation to the success of innovative efforts in small firms. This is an updated version of Scales-paper N200322. |
| Date: | 2007–01–24 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eim:papers:h200704&r=knm |
| By: | Maarten van Rooij (De Nederlandsche Bank and Netspar); Annamaria Lusardi (Dartmouth College and NBER); Rob Alessie (Utrecht University, Netspar and Tinbergen Institute) |
| Abstract: | Individuals are increasingly put in charge of their financial security after retirement. Moreover, the supply of complex financial products has increased considerably over the years. However, we still have little or no information about whether individuals have the financial knowledge and skills to navigate this new financial environment. To better understand financial literacy and its relation to financial decision-making, we have devised two special modules for the DNB Household Survey. We have designed questions to measure numeracy and basic knowledge related to the working of inflation and interest rates, as well as questions to measure more advanced financial knowledge related to financial market instruments (stocks, bonds, and mutual funds). We evaluate the importance of financial literacy by studying its relation to the stock market: Are more financially knowledgeable individuals more likely to hold stocks? To assess the direction of causality, we make use of questions measuring financial knowledge before investing in the stock market. We find that, while the understanding of basic economic concepts related to inflation and interest rate compounding is far from perfect, it outperforms the limited knowledge of stocks and bonds, the concept of risk diversification, and the working of financial markets. We also find that the measurement of financial literacy is very sensitive to the wording of survey questions. This provides additional evidence for limited financial knowledge. Finally, we report evidence of an independent effect of financial literacy on stock market participation: Those who have low financial literacy are significantly less likely to invest in stocks. |
| Date: | 2007–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mrr:papers:wp162&r=knm |
| By: | Adeline Delavande (RAND); Robert J. Willis (University of Michigan) |
| Abstract: | This study analyzes the role of individual’s and spouse’s survival expectations and knowledge about Social Security rules on the expected Social Security claiming age, taking into account the various incentives single and married individuals face. There is substantial heterogeneity in the level of knowledge about SS rules according to demographic characteristics. We find that single men and women who expect to be long-lived plan on delaying Social Security claiming. When we allow for differential effects of survival on knowledge about Social Security rules, subjective survivals matter only for single women who are knowledgeable. For single men, knowledge is not so important in their decisions. The claiming decision of married individuals is more complicated, because they are entitled to spouse’s and survivor’s benefits. Consistent with the incentives provided by Social Security rules, we find that married men base their expected claiming age on their spouse’s survival expectations but not on their own survival. For married women, both own and spouse’s subjective survivals positively influence the timing of claiming. Knowledge about Social Security rules affects the expected claiming age of both married men and women. |
| Date: | 2007–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mrr:papers:wp167&r=knm |
| By: | Albrecht, James (Department of Economics, Georgetown University); van den Berg, Gerard J (IFAU - Institute for Labour Market Policy Evaluation); Vroman, Susan (Department of Economics, Georgetown University) |
| Abstract: | The Swedish adult education program known as the Knowledge Lift (1997-2002) was unprecedented in its size and scope, aiming to raise the skill level of large numbers of low-skill workers. This paper evaluates the potential effects of this program on aggregate labor market outcomes. This is done by calibrating an equilibrium search model with heterogeneous worker skills using pre-program data and then forecasting the program impacts. Our calibrations suggest that the equilibrium treatment effects were positive - wages are predicted to increase, as are the employment rates of the treated. The equilibrium effects magnify the partial effects by a factor 1.5 to 2. This is due to the increase in demand for skills that is triggered by the increase in its supply. |
| Keywords: | Job search; policy evaluation; wages; unemployment; Swedish labor market; calibration; adult education; equilibrium effects |
| JEL: | I21 |
| Date: | 2007–12–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:ifauwp:2008_001&r=knm |
| By: | André van Stel; Jolanda Hessels; Dirk De Clerq |
| Abstract: | In this paper we draw on knowledge spillover literature to suggest that a country’s proportion of exportoriented new ventures, compared to its total number of new ventures, represents an outcome of knowledge spillovers (export spillovers) that stem from foreign direct investment (FDI) and international trade, as well as a source of knowledge spillovers (entrepreneurship spillovers) that positively influence the country’s total level of entrepreneurial activity. We distinguish between higher-income and lower-income countries, because the latter are less integrated into the world economy. To test the hypotheses, we use macro-level data from 34 countries during the period 2002–2005. After controlling for relevant factors such as size of the domestic market and industry structure, we find that the relationship between FDI and international trade on the one hand and a country’s proportion of export-oriented new ventures on the other differs for higherand lower-income countries. In addition, a country’s proportion of export-oriented new ventures affects the subsequent emergence of new businesses. These findings have important implications for research and practice. This is an update of paper H200619. |
| Date: | 2007–11–16 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eim:papers:h200713&r=knm |
| By: | Jolanda Hessels; Kashifa Suddle |
| Abstract: | Abstract This study investigates whether ambitions amongst nascent entrepreneurs regarding innovativeness matter for the national level of innovativeness. We link ambitious nascent entrepreneurship to the national level of innovativeness for 36 countries, using data from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor. We find a significant positive relation between the level of nascent entrepreneurs who intend to offer a product or service that is new to all or to some of their customers and the national technology level. This may suggest that ambitions to offer new products or services tend to contribute to higher levels of competition and knowledge spillovers, and consequently to the emergence of highly innovative economies. Our results also suggest that this relationship is less strong in poor countries. |
| Date: | 2007–01–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eim:papers:h200702&r=knm |
| By: | Jeroen de Jong; Pieter Fris; Erik Stam |
| Abstract: | Creative industries are nowadays central in many policies to stimulate the economic development of cities, regions and advanced capitalist economies in general. This paper contributes to the creative industries literature in two respects. First, we empirically explore if high shares of creative industries in regions go together with one particular aspect of regional economic development, namely firm entry rates. Drawing on Dutch trade register data over a six-year period, it is concluded that at the level of municipalities there is indeed a connection between the share of creative industries and firm entry, even after controlling for the sizes of municipalities, and no matter if creative industries are defined broadly or narrowly. Second, the paper analyses if firms in creative industries are heterogeneous in terms of business processes and their contribution to regional firm entry. Drawing on previous work four creative domains are identified: arts, media and entertainment, creative business services and, at the periphery, knowledge intensive business services. After analysing survey data of 4,746 Dutch SMEs, we find that firms across these domains are distinct in their use of the surveyed business practices: innovation, strategy and marketing, and human resources practices. Especially knowledge intensive services firms are deviant. For the connection with firm entry rates, it appears that high shares of firms in the arts and knowledge intensive business services are significantly connected with regional firm entry rates, while media and entertainment and creative business services remain insignificant. Implications for practitioners and future research are discussed. |
| Date: | 2007–12–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eim:papers:h200714&r=knm |
| By: | Francesco Laforgia (Brescia University and CESPRI - Bocconi University, Milan, Italy.); Fabio Montobbio (University of Insubria and CESPRI, Bocconi University, Milan, Italy.); Luigi Orsenigo (Brescia University, CESPRI - Bocconi University, Milan, Italy, and The Open University, UK.) |
| Abstract: | In this paper we provide an introduction to some of the most salient aspects of the debate regarding the relationships between stronger intellectual property rights (IPRs) regimes and innovation in the pharmaceutical industry. We emphasize that, despite increased knowledge on the subject, little is known on the relationships between IPRs, innovation, and growth, especially as developing countries are concerned. We report on preliminary research on the patenting activities in Brazil using domestic patent data, rather than – as it is customary – international patents. Firstly, we show that the adoption of the TRIPs had substantial positive impact on the number of patent applications in Brazil, but that the great majority of these new patent applications have come from nonresidents, most likely as extensions of foreign patents. However it is too early to assess if this substantial increase in (foreign) patents is a permanent characteristic of patenting activity in Brazil. Secondly, the introduction of TRIPs has not changed the technological composition of patenting activity in Brazil, with one major exception, the growth of the share of the chemical and pharmaceutical patents, few years after the upsurge of patenting in other fields. |
| Keywords: | Intellectual Property Rights, Patents, Pharmaceuticals, Brazil, Developing Countries. |
| JEL: | O31 O34 |
| Date: | 2007–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cri:cespri:wp206&r=knm |
| By: | Juan C. Real (Department of Business Administration, Universidad Pablo de Olavide) |
| Abstract: | This paper analyzes the influence of key organizational variables on organizational learning, considering the latter as a process of knowledge creation determining organizational performance. It is showed that both the entrepreneurial orientation of the organization and its learning orientation positively influence on organizational learning, and this has a significant effect on organizational performance. The results also reveal that the relationship established between entrepreneurial orientation and organizational learning is more intense for the large firms. Besides, learning orientation’s influence on organizational learning is greater in small and medium-sized enterprises, whereas organizational learning is positively linked to organizational performance in both types of firm. |
| Keywords: | Organizational learning, knowledge creation, learning orientation, entrepreneurial orientation, Partial Least Squares (PLS). |
| Date: | 2008–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pab:wpbsad:08.02&r=knm |
| By: | HUD - PD&R |
| Abstract: | Factory-built housing, which includes modular, panelized, and manufactured homes, increasingly allows homebuilders to provide consumers with homes that are less expensive than site-built housing without sacrificing a home’s quality or aesthetic appeal. Yet, such homes represent only 21 percent of housing starts in the United States. This study assesses the consumer’s knowledge and perception of site-built and factory-built housing. This information is useful for identifying what barriers there are to more widespread adoption of these more affordable construction techniques and what education and marketing strategies could be used to overcome any identified barriers. |
| JEL: | O00 |
| Date: | 2007–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hud:wpaper:39151&r=knm |
| By: | André van Stel; Jolanda Hessels |
| Abstract: | We investigate the relationship between a country’s prevalence of new ventures and its rate of economic growth, while distinguishing between export-oriented new ventures and domestic new ventures. It is generally acknowledged that new venture creation as well as export activity may both be important strategies for achieving national economic growth. However, to our knowledge no attempt has been made to empirically investigate the role of export-driven new ventures in economic growth. We focus on the national level and use data from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor for a sample of 36 countries. Our results suggest that a country’s prevalence of export-driven new ventures is significantly positively related to economic growth, whereas the prevalence of new ventures that focus exclusively on domestic market sales shows no significant relation to national growth. |
| Date: | 2007–12–21 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:eim:papers:h200721&r=knm |
| By: | Rosario Crinò (Università degli Studi di Milano and CESPRI - Bocconi University, Milan, Italy.); Fabrizio Onida (CESPRI, Bocconi University, Milan, Italy.) |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the effects of foreign participation on economic performance in Lombardy, a Northern Italian region accounting for more than 40% of Foreign Direct Investment inflows in Italy. We employ a large database consisting of balance sheet and foreign ownership information for more than 13,000 firms and analyze different dimensions of economic performance: capital and knowledge-intensity, productivity, wages, returns to investments and financial structure. We find that foreign multinationals are more knowledge-intensive, more productive, pay higher wages and show a more solid financial structure than national firms; at the same time, foreign multinationals show lower returns to investments. Propensity score estimation results show that this difference implies a true effect from foreign participation in the manufacturing sector; in the services sector, instead, the difference in favour of multinationals is mostly accounted for by a differential pattern of industry location between the two types of firms, by the larger size of multinationals and by the likely tendency of the latter to invest in already high-performing national firms. |
| Keywords: | Multinational Firms, Performance Indicators, Propensity Score Estimation |
| JEL: | F1 F2 |
| Date: | 2007–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cri:cespri:wp207&r=knm |
| By: | Marian Moszoro; Pawel Gasiorowski |
| Abstract: | This paper presents a model to assess the efficiency of the capital structure in public-private partnerships (PPP). A main argument supporting the PPP approach for investment projects is the transfer of know-how from the private partner to the public entity. The paper shows how different knowledge transfer schemes determine an optimal shareholding structure of the PPP. Under the assumption of lower capital cost of the public partner and lower development outlays when the investment is carried out by a private investor, an optimal capital structure is achieved with both the public and the private parties as shareholders. |
| Keywords: | Private sector , Public sector , Investment , |
| Date: | 2007–12–19 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:imf:imfwpa:08/1&r=knm |
| By: | T. Brenner; A. Mühlig |
| Abstract: | Local industrial clusters have attracted much attention in the recent economic and geographical literature. A huge number of case studies have been conducted. This paper presents a meta-analysis of the case studies of 159 local industrial clusters in various countries and industries. Based on an overview of the various theories and arguments about the emergence of such clusters in the literature, it analyses the involvement of 35 different local conditions and processes, providing a summary on the knowledge that is gathered in these case studies with a comparison between continents, new and old clusters, and high- and low-tech industries. |
| Keywords: | local industrial clusters, case studies, meta-study, local conditions Length 44 pages |
| JEL: | L60 O18 R12 |
| Date: | 2007–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:esi:evopap:2007-23&r=knm |