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on Knowledge Management and Knowledge Economy |
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Issue of 2011‒11‒14
sixteen papers chosen by Laura Stefanescu European Research Centre of Managerial Studies in Business Administration |
| By: | Angelika Jager |
| Abstract: | It is commonly accepted that universities are a source of new knowledge and an important part of innovation systems. Innovation and new knowledge are key drivers for regional economic growth and the economy of knowledge-based societies. Yet, regardless how prosperous universities’ research establishments prove to be, success in terms of economic effects and economically successful application strongly depends on how effectively the gathered knowledge and created innovation is transferred to society, the industry, and innovation networks. Therefore, the organization and governance of knowledge transfer has become an important strategic issue for universities. In times of performance related allocation of funds, this holds especially true for German universities of applied sciences, as they are very dependent on contract research and successful knowledge transfer as a source of funding for research activities. The interface of research and application of knowledge offers high potential – both for success and failure. Several models of governance and support exist. Governments and universities invest millions in transfer departments with a diversity of jobs and tasks. Some financially encourage research and knowledge transfer in general. Others are convinced that only very successful establishments should be supported. Support can be organized centrally or peripheral in the university departments, in private companies or private-public-partnerships. The proposed paper investigates models of organizing and supporting knowledge transfer focusing on German universities of applied sciences. By developing a composition of important indicators and applying empirical analysis on nationwide databases, seven best practice examples are identified. Further best practices analysis is accomplished by online research, site and region inspection and expert interviews with the universities’ representatives for knowledge transfer. The investigation proves that successful knowledge transfer depends on both internal and external factors. External factors often have strong influence and offer a high potential that needs to be realized, but can hardly be influenced. Analyzing the internal factors, it is underlined that no perfect way for organizing and managing knowledge transfer exists. But investigating the varying successful models, several conform features and interesting similarities can be identified. Keywords: Knowledge Transfer, German Universities of Applied Sciences, Best Practices Analysis |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p1332&r=knm |
| By: | Hajjem, Olfa; Ayadi, Mohamed; Garrouste, Pierre |
| Abstract: | This article analyzes the determinants of the French companies’ innovation activity while highlighting the importance and the complementarities of the organizational and technological practices’impact. Our results suggest on one hand, that the product or process innovation is determined by the internal and external attributes of the company (size, demand pull and technological class). On the other hand, the complementarities tests between the technological (R&D activity and technological partnership) and organizational practices showed that these strategies are interconnected and that they have complementary effects which call for their simultaneous adoption. Accordingly, to be able to benefit completely from the positive effect of the partnership and the R&D efforts on innovation, they must be accompanied by certain organizational practices related to a good skills management and the implementation of an organizational architecture facilitating the knowledge creation and sharing. |
| Keywords: | innovation; complementarities; technological and organizational competencies |
| JEL: | L23 O32 C25 |
| Date: | 2011–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:34617&r=knm |
| By: | Paulo Neto; Maria Manuel Serrano |
| Abstract: | ‘Innovation is the ability to take new ideas and translate them into commercial outcomes by using new processes, products or services in a way that is better and faster than the competition’ (Nedis & Byler, 2009). Innovation is considered as an important competitiveness factor for companies and a source of wealth for economies. Therefore it is an important subject of policy intervention and regional development. The understanding of what innovation is has evolved in the past decades away from a purely technological definition – of new products and processes introduced on the market, to a wider one including organisational and marketing aspects or incremental innovation in low tech production companies and more recently, innovation in services (European Commission, 2008). The main purpose of this paper is to propose a new methodology for territorial analysis and planning focused on innovation and knowledge transfer and in its governance mechanisms. A new methodology which is intended that can contribute to strengthen the present analytical tools applied to the processes of regional innovation and technology transfer. A new methodology that seeks, for each specific territorial context, contribute to the following results: 1) Evaluate the socio-economic and territorial impacts of knowledge transfer and technology diffusion; 2) Mapping territorial innovation effects and pathways – reinforcing innovation mapping and strategic planning; 3) Monitor innovation productivity, competitiveness and its systemic effects; 4) Monitor the innovation implementing processes and public policies, and support the multidimensional and multiscale evaluation of its results; 5) Better understand the knowledge transfer and technology diffusion in a specific territorial bases; 6) Increase the understanding of local and regional contexts of innovation governance. |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p514&r=knm |
| By: | Bode, Alexander; Alig, Simon |
| Keywords: | Innovation management, innovation strategy, innovation cooperation, innovation network |
| Date: | 2011 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:dar:wpaper:54933&r=knm |
| By: | Hugo Pinto |
| Abstract: | Knowledge transfer is a crucial aspect for the new paradigm of science-industry cooperation. The new role of universities and the relevance of external knowledge to firm's competitiveness brought a huge attention to this process both in analytical and decision-making terms. Commonly, formal mechanisms as intellectual property rights licensing, research contracts and spinning-off are the focus of the policy interventions and studies but the role of informality is being underlined by several recent research results. This article explores the crucial factors that induce science and industry collaborations in Andalusia, a catching-up region in Spanish and European context. The study uses limited dependent and count data regression analysis based in a survey applied in parallel to research groups and firms. The estimated regressions create a mirror image between these two institutional spheres stressing aspects that are more relevant in each reality to stimulate the existence, number, diversity and informality of knowledge transfer. The results give relevant insights for policies to stimulate knowledge transfer in technology moderate intensive South European regions. |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p212&r=knm |
| By: | Marta Foddi; Raffaele Paci; Alessandra Colombelli |
| Abstract: | Since the Lisbon agenda in 2000, Europe stated the goal to become the most advanced knowledge economy in the world relying specifically on the increase and strengthen of its human capital and technological endowments. However, given the presence of localized externalities in the knowledge accumulation process, this policy may produce distortive and unwanted consequences at the territorial level reinforcing the existing high inequalities among regions. Another crucial feature to be considered is the recent enlargement process of the European Union which has brought on stage new players characterized by a low average level of knowledge activity accompanied by a huge degree of internal territorial disparity. The aim of this paper is to identify the “knowledge regions†in Europe and to examine their main territorial features. To this aim we first build, for 287 regions belonging to 31 European countries, a comprehensive picture of the two variables - human capital and technological activity - which constitute the main pillars of the knowledge economy. For each of these two variables we construct several indicators examining their spatial distribution across the European regions. Further, we compute two synthetic indicators for human capital and technology and, on the basis of these two dimensions, we finally identify the knowledge regions. |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p1140&r=knm |
| By: | Giovanni Guastella; Frank van Oort |
| Abstract: | Within the Geography of Innovation literature, the Knowledge Production Function approach has become a reference framework to investigate the presence of localized knowledge spillovers and spatial econometric tools have been applied to study interregional spillovers. A linear specification for the KPF is assumed linking patents to R&D expenditure. This approach however suffers of different drawbacks. First patent applications are count data in nature. Patents per inhabitants may produce an unrealistic picture of the spatial distribution of innovative activities. Secondly, spatial heterogeneity is not usually observed, producing both omitted variables bias and spatial correlation in the error structure. Third, a positive R&D-patents linkage may arise as a spurious correlation if market size is not observed, causing R&D to be endogenous. This paper uses a regional cross section model to study the spatial distribution of high tech patents across 232 European regions in the period 2005/2006 to address these issues. Two main processes drive technological change in the model: research activities and knowledge generated outside firms and in a second moment embedded through either formal or informal acquisition. Among the different knowledge sources we particularly focus on the role of firms working in Knowledge Intensive Business Services and on that of universities. In developing the empirical model we take into account that a) patents are count data; b) the exclusion of market size will cause biased and inconsistent model parameters estimates; c) estimates of interregional spillovers may be biased by the omission of heterogeneity in the model specification. Empirical results indicate that, as expected, a count data distribution best fits the data, producing less spatially autocorrelated residuals. Regional innovative activity is explained by both investments in research and localization of KIBS, but only the first generates positive interregional externalities. Scientific universities do not directly affect the production of new knowledge. However, different knowledge production processes characterize regions with and without scientific universities, with R&D driving innovation in the sooner and KIBS in the latter. Finally, most of what are assumed to be interregional spillovers reveal to be, at a more careful inquiry, effect due to unaccounted spatial heterogeneity in regional innovation. |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p1114&r=knm |
| By: | Maria Manuela Natário; João Pedro Couto; Ascensão Maria Braga; Teresa Maria Tiago |
| Abstract: | There is interest in both academic literature and regional governments about the innovativeness of regions and the drivers of that competitiveness, especially if considering the impact on economic development and social progress. Innovation is the base for the global competitiveness. Innovative capacity enables regions to increase their productivity and attract investments, thereby sustaining continuous progress in the quality and standard of living. This study aims to measure regions’ innovativeness in different European regions and to evaluate the nature of the innovation process and the relationship existing between its innovativeness’ and its region of origin. It proceeds from the assumption that the competitiveness of a region is reflected in its innovation capacity or innovation dynamic. The literature review regarding regions’ innovativeness produces some insights regarding to the effect of contextual elements on regions performance. Thus, the objective is to compare the European regions to verify the existence of subjacent clusters and find out the characteristics that distinguish the different group of regions. The innovative capacity is considered in terms of innovative output and several factors are analysed to identify and differentiate the dynamics of innovations of the regions. The results point to the existence of five groups of regions, and the factors identified are related to innovation process, namely forms of innovation, factors and objectives of innovation and with aspects related to the innovation framework such as tertiary education and life-long learning, business and public R&D expenses, and level of collaboration for innovating. |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p466&r=knm |
| By: | Jan Stejskal; Katerina Matatkova |
| Abstract: | Czech Republic does not belong among the leaders, whose economies are characterized by strong focus on innovation, science and research. To make the situation gradually improved, there the strategic documents and concepts must exist and also very specific tools to influence the formulation of the field at certain levels of state. Czech Republic still 10 years create, update and proceed accordingly according to these documents. But more pronounced shift to focus on innovation and their impact on competitiveness is not clear. The paper focuses on the analysis of the strategic framework for supporting regional innovation systems, their components and support for regional actors who are capable of producing innovation and commerce them. Contribution will be based on the current situation in the Czech Republic. |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p61&r=knm |
| By: | Christian Sommeregger; Christoph Hammer; Daniel Bekesi; Matthias Koch |
| Abstract: | This paper attempts to analyze the impact of knowledge and knowledge spillovers on regional total factor productivity (TFP) in Europe. Regional patent stocks are used as a proxy for knowledge, and TFP is measured in terms of a superlative index. We follow Fischer et. al (2008) by using a spatial-spillover model and a data set covering 203 regions for six time periods. In order to estimate the impact of knowledge stocks we use a spatial autoregressive model with random effects, which allows for three kinds of spatial dependence: Spatial correlation in the innovations, the exogenous and the endogenous variables. The results suggest that there is a significant positive impact of knowledge on regional TFP levels, and that knowledge spills over to neighboring regions. These spillovers decay exponentially with distance at a rate of 8%. Using Monte Carlo simulations we calculate the distribution of direct and indirect effects. The average elasticity of a region's TFP with respect to its own knowledge stock is 0.2 and highly significant. The average effect of all other regions' TFP is about 50% higher, which confirms that the cross-country externalities are important in the measuring of the impact. |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p727&r=knm |
| By: | Mercedes Teruel; Agustà Segarra |
| Abstract: | This paper draws on a sample of innovative Catalan firms to identify the effects of the two main sources of innovation —internal R&D and external R&D acquisition— on productivity in the manufacturing and service industries. The sample comprises a 3,267 firms from the CIS-4 for the years 2002-2004. We compare empirical results when applying usual OLS and quantile regression techniques. Our results suggest the different patterns attributable to the two sources of innovation as we move up from lower to higher conditional quantiles. First, the effect of the marginal effect of internal R&D on productivity in both sectors decreased as we moved up to higher productivity levels. Second, the marginal effect of external R&D acquisition increased as we moved up to higher productivity levels, especially in high-tech manufacturing industries. Our empirical results suggest that the link between internal and external R&D is complex, varying between firms’ productivity levels and between industries. |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p1860&r=knm |
| By: | Annalisa Caloffi; Luciana Lazzeretti; Silvia Rita Sedita |
| Abstract: | The cluster concept has become an increasingly popular topic for researchers and policy makers. Although this concept is not new, its importance increased during the last decades. Following some authors, the persistence of the cluster concept, as well as its diffusion across different contexts and scientific fields, is a result of its fuzziness. The absence of a unique definition of cluster, as well as a unique methodology for “measuring†clusters favor its loose application to a wide variety of contexts (from economics to management, to economic geography, innovation studies and so forth). The paper aims at identifying the evolutionary pattern of the cluster concept, from the emergence, to the growth and the potential future development. The theoretical discussion is empirically supported by a bibliographic analysis based on statistical and social network analysis tools. The point of departure is an original database, consisting of 5332 academic articles about industrial clusters or industrial districts that have been published from 1989 to 2010 in international scientific journals (ISI Web of Science). We first identified the masterpieces of the cluster concept, selecting the most cited articles, second we performed a backward and forward citation analysis, in order to get information on the roots and the future development of the concept. The results shed light on the milestones in cluster literature as well as on its possible developments. The backward analysis emphasizes the multidisciplinary ground of the concept, which emerges in the realm of the agglomeration economy and local competitive advantage studies and spans over innovation and internationalization studies. The forward analysis highlights the new dimensions of the cluster concept, which give particular emphasis on the emergent literature on culture and creativity studies, as well as on the open innovation paradigm. |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p63&r=knm |
| By: | Michael Wyrwich |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates regional sources of entrepreneurial opportunities of knowledge-intensive start-up activity. Thereby it is investigated whether it makes a difference if the knowledge-intensive sector is a newly emerging industry compared to the case where its location across space could develop already over a long period of time. The analysis is on knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS) in East and West Germany in the 1990s. At the time of German re-unification in 1990s in the former socialist East Germany no KIBS sector existed in contrast to West Germany. The findings indicate that being new to the region makes a difference. Note: My other choice was to submit this paper for an R-Session. |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p1711&r=knm |
| By: | Amnon Frenkel; Edward Benedit; Sigal Kaplan |
| Abstract: | Knowledge-workers belonging to the super-creative core of the creative-class are considered a mean to induce economic growth and to sharpen the regional competitive edge. Driven by the key-role of housing in attracting and retaining knowledge-workers, most studies focus on the residential choice of knowledge workers at the inter-metropolitan level. In contrast, empirical evidence and analysis at the intra-metropolitan level are scarce. This study focuses on investigating the tradeoff among location amenities, workplace and lifestyle in the residential choice of knowledge-workers at the intra-metropolitan level. The importance of this issue derives from the key-role of housing as enabler for attracting and retaining knowledge-workers, and from evidence regarding the contradicting role of knowledge-workers both as catalysts to urban revitalization and as contributors to urban sprawl. Consequently, understanding the determinants of knowledge-workers' residential choice is essential for suggesting policy measures to attract and to retain knowledge workers, while promoting sustainable urban development. Multinomial logit and nested logit models are estimated for the location choice within the metropolitan area. Residential alternatives include several community types in the metropolitan core and surrounding concentric rings. Considered amenities are municipal socio-economic ranking, municipal investment in education, housing density, population composition in terms of age and creative occupations, and land-use shares allocated to public open spaces, culture and sport, public services, healthcare, education and industry. Workplace attributes are location and self-reported commuting time to work. Lifestyle is viewed from a holistic perspective encompassing lifecycle stage, work-role and leisure consumption, subject to available budget and level of mobility. The proposed model is applied to 837 observations of actual housing choices collected by means of a custom-designed web-based survey. Survey respondents consist of knowledge-workers in high-technology and financial business services, who work and reside in Tel Aviv metropolitan region, also known as the ‘the startup metropolis’. The empirical results reveal the relative importance of location amenities, workplace location and lifestyle in the residential location choice of knowledge workers. Relevant policy directions are suggested and discussed. |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p208&r=knm |
| By: | Edward Bendit; Amnon Frenkel; Sigal Kaplan |
| Abstract: | Attracting firms in knowledge and technology intensive (KTI) sectors is highly desired at both the national and the regional level as a powerful engine of economic growth. Due to fierce competition in KTI sectors and national taxation policies, KTI firms often attract high-quality employees by offering car-related job perks as additional incentives to wage. In Canada, car allowance is offered by 46% of the employers to attract highly-skilled workers. In Israel, 61% of knowledge-workers in the KTI sectors receive a company-car with respect to 16% of workers in other sectors. In the U.K., car-related job perks are offered by 18% of the employers. This study focuses on the impact of car-related job-perks on the travel behavior of knowledge-workers. The importance of this issue derives from the impact of the travel behavior of knowledge-workers on congested transportation networks in metropolitan areas, as knowledge-based economy tends to concentrate mainly in metropolitan regions. This study applies discrete choice models in order to analyze the impact of company-cars and car allowances (reimbursement of fuel and parking expenses) on commute and leisure travel of knowledge-workers. The analyzed data consist of 750 observations, retrieved from a revealed-preferences survey among KTI workers who work and reside in the Tel-Aviv metropolitan area in Israel. Results show that car-related job perks are associated with (i) high annual mileage, (ii) high propensity of using the car as main commute mode, (ii) long commute distances and travel times, (iii) high trip chaining frequency in commuting trips, and (iii) high frequency of long-distance weekend leisure trips. Result also show that KTI workers generally prefer the car or non-motorized transport modes over the bus system. These results suggest that the development of sustainable knowledge-based cities should consider (i) the replacement of car-related job perks by other incentives, (ii) the provision of pedestrian and cyclist friendly infrastructures, and (iii) public transport improvements. |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p389&r=knm |
| By: | Manfred M. Fischer; James P. LeSage |
| Abstract: | We develop an empirical approach to examine static and dynamic knowledge externalities in the context of a regional total factor productivity relationship. Static externalities refer to current period scale or industry-size effects which have been labeled localization externalities or region-size effects known as agglomeration externalities. Dynamic externalities refer to the relationship between accumulated or prior period knowledge and current levels of innovation, where past learning-by-doing makes innovation positively related to cumulative production over time. Our empirical specification allows for the presence of both static and dynamic externalities, and provides a way to assess the relative magnitude of spillovers associated with spillovers from these two types of knowledge externalities. The magnitude of own-region impacts and other-region (spillovers) can be assessed using scalar summary measures of the own- and cross-partial derivatives from the model. We find evidence supporting the presence of dynamic externalities as well as static, and our estimates suggest that dynamic externalities may have a larger magnitude of impact than static externalities. |
| Date: | 2011–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wiw:wiwrsa:ersa11p31&r=knm |