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on Small Business Management |
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Issue of 2021‒03‒22
fifteen papers chosen by João Carlos Correia Leitão Universidade da Beira Interior |
| By: | Johannes van der Pol; Jean-Paul Rameshkoumar; Sarah Teulière; Thierry Bazerque |
| Abstract: | In France, Regions do not make their own innovation policies, this is the role of the State. A Region implements national policies and uses grants and subsidies to create and dynamize innovation eco-systems important for its economic development. The Region’s role is therefore largely influential. In order to influence one needs to how and when to exert this influence. A precise understanding of an innovation eco-system is therefore of vital importance. On the occasion of the venue of a Nobel laureate to the French region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine the regional counsel aimed to connect her with the regional innovation eco-system around her research. The purpose of this paper is to show methods and techniques using patents, scientific publications and non-patent literature citations that can help with the identification of an innovation eco-system and how to integrate a researcher into this eco-system. |
| Keywords: | NPL ; Technology Intelligence ; Patents ; innovation networks |
| JEL: | R11 O34 |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:grt:bdxewp:2021-04&r=all |
| By: | Berulava, George; Gogokhia, Teimuraz |
| Abstract: | The study investigates the impact of business environment on export performance of individual firms in transition economies. For these goals, the study utilizes the firm-level data from the Business Environment and Enterprise Performance Survey (BEEPS V round) across 28 transition economies. Applying the modified CDM model the paper examines the structural link between the business environment reforms, firm R&D, innovation, labor productivity, and export performance. The model was estimated sequentially, step-by-step. The estimates of the structural model, generally, proved our hypothesis about the impact of business environment reforms on the relationships between R&D investments, innovation, labor productivity and export performance. This study also supports the early findings that R&D is an important determinant of innovation, that innovation is a driver of labor productivity and that labor productivity, in turn, substantially increases the probability of firm’s participation at export markets. |
| Keywords: | Business environment reforms, R&D, Innovation, Productivity, Export, Transition economies |
| JEL: | D22 O12 O31 O38 P31 |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:106327&r=all |
| By: | Rho, Yeirae; Fabrizi, Simona; Lippert, Steffen |
| Abstract: | We investigate the determinants of firm absorptive capacity, with a particular focus on the effect of employee characteristics, and study how it affects a firm’s ability to generate new knowledge. Using administrative and national survey data on individuals and businesses, we first estimate absorptive capacity measures for New Zealand firms. We then show that the share of employees with international experience and the average skill level of employees have a positive impact on a firm’s learning capabilities, and that the positive effect of employees with international experience is greater if the firm also has a highly skilled workforce overall. We finally find that a firm's absorptive capacity is highly positively correlated to the likelihood of the firm innovating. |
| Keywords: | Absorptive capacity, knowledge spillover, innovation, linked employer-employee data |
| JEL: | D20 D22 D24 O31 |
| Date: | 2021–01–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:106407&r=all |
| By: | WASHIMI Kazuaki (Bank of Japan) |
| Abstract: | With the declining birthrate and ageing population and a decline in the working age population in Japan, Japanese firms face the need to strengthen innovation including the digital domain. Expectations are particularly high for startups as they play a vital role in creating innovative technology. In recent years, there have been a number of initiatives such as expediting patent examinations and introducing an open innovation tax incentive in Japan. It is expected that venture capital (VC) funds will play a pivotal role in providing financing for growth so that startups can continue research and development. On the other hand, due in part to data constraints, there has been limited research on startup innovation on a comprehensive scale and virtually no earlier literature on the impact of VC investments on innovation by portfolio companies in Japan. This paper summarizes those two issues with a focus on the number of patent applications as a proxy for innovation, and it also discusses challenges that lie ahead. First, taking a look at patent applications by startups, around 40 percent of startups have applied for a patent—albeit with significant variation across firms—which appears a much higher proportion than existing firms. An estimate of the impact of VC investments on innovation suggests that in about 60 percent of cases, the number of patent applications by portfolio companies significantly increased compared to a control group. While care should be taken in interpreting those studies as the results vary from firm to firm, these successful cases reflect the possibility that financing and management support including intellectual property management from VC funds could have contributed to an increase in patent applications. Challenges ahead include: (1) expanding investments in VC funds by institutional investors; (2) increasing opportunities for startups to go public in a way that encourages sustainable growth; and (3) establishing intellectual property strategies while maintaining and developing professional human resources in relevant areas. |
| Keywords: | Venture Capital; Innovation; Synthetic Control; Bayesian Structural Time Series |
| JEL: | G24 M13 O3 |
| Date: | 2021–03–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:boj:bojron:ron210312a&r=all |
| By: | Duleep, Harriet (College of William and Mary); Jaeger, David A. (University of St. Andrews); McHenry, Peter (College of William and Mary) |
| Abstract: | We present a novel theory that immigrants facilitate innovation and entrepreneurship by being willing and able to invest in new skills. Immigrants whose human capital is not immediately transferable to the host country face lower opportunity costs of investing in new skills or methods and will be more exible in their human capital investments than observationally equivalent natives. Areas with large numbers of immigrants may therefore lead to more entrepreneurship and innovation, even among natives. We provide empirical evidence from the United States that is consistent with the theory's predictions. |
| Keywords: | immigration, innovation, entrepreneurship, human capital |
| JEL: | J15 J24 J39 J61 L26 |
| Date: | 2021–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp14188&r=all |
| By: | Naudé, Wim (University College Cork); Nagler, Paula (Erasmus University Rotterdam) |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we describe the historical co-evolution of innovation and economic growth in Germany since 1871. The country's rise as an industrial power in the late 19th century, through its innovation and entrepreneurial performance, is contrasted with the post-World War II period. This latter period, although it contained the German economic miracle, was nevertheless a period during which innovation went into relative decline. We document this decline and offer four broad, interrelated explanations: (i) an innovation system locked into incremental innovation, (ii) a slowdown in the diffusion of technology, (iii) weaknesses in the education system, and (iv) entrepreneurial stagnation. Implications for policy are noted. Our paper contributes to the growing literature attempting to understand the decline in business dynamism that characterises many advanced economies. |
| Keywords: | entrepreneurship, inequality, innovation, productivity, technology |
| JEL: | D31 L26 O33 O38 O52 |
| Date: | 2021–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp14154&r=all |
| By: | Almalky, |
| Abstract: | Globally, organizations are under enormous pressure to implement green supply chain processes due to growing environmental concerns. Subsequently, organizations and firms have become more conscious of their suppliers’ green innovation ability. However, the selection of the most optimum supplier concerning green innovation ability remains a challenging task that needs to be analyzed. Thus, this study develops an integrated fuzzy and grey‐based methodology to analyze and prioritize suppliers for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the context of Saudi Arabia. Initially, the study identifies 4 criteria and 20 sub‐criteria through extensive literature review with respect to suppliers’ green innovation ability. Later, the Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) computes weights of criteria and sub‐criteria. Finally, the Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS)‐Grey was employed to rank the suppliers. The process of assigning weights to criteria and sub‐criteria involved twelve experts from academics and industry. The results of Fuzzy AHP indicated that the “Green Innovation Initiatives” is the most significant criterion for the supplier selection. The results of TOPSIS‐Grey revealed that the “Supplier‐3” is the most optimum supplier having the highest potential of adopting green practices among other suppliers. The overall results provide adequate feedback for organizations and firms to maximize their ability to curb environmental impacts from their upstream activities. |
| Date: | 2020–03–31 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:osf:osfxxx:3cg8j&r=all |
| By: | Federica Rossi (Birkbeck, University of London, UK); Ana Colovic (NEOMA Business School, France); Annalisa Caloffi (University of Florence, Italy); Margherita Russo (University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy) |
| Date: | 2021–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:img:wpaper:49&r=all |
| By: | Huang, Chong; Oehmke, Martin; Zhong, Hongda |
| Abstract: | We develop a theory of multiperiod debt structure. A simple trade-off between the termination threat required to make debt repayments incentive compatible and the desire to avoid early liquidation determines the number of repayments, their timing, and amounts. As firms increase their borrowing, they add periodic risky repayments from the back of the maturity structure, with the time between repayments increasing in cash-flow risk. Cash-flow growth or a significant risk-free cash-flow component limits the number of risky repayments. Firms with a significant risk-free cash-flow component choose dispersed maturity profiles with smaller, relatively safe repayments every period, rather than riskier periodic repayments. |
| JEL: | G30 G32 G33 |
| Date: | 2019–11–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:90429&r=all |
| By: | Lach, Saul; Neeman, Zvika; Schankerman, Mark |
| Abstract: | We study how to design an optimal government loan program for risky R&D projects with positive externalities. With adverse selection, the optimal government contract involves a high interest rate but nearly zero co-financing by the entrepreneur. This contrasts sharply with observed loan schemes. With adverse selection and moral hazard, allowing for two levels of effort by the entrepreneur, the optimal policy consists of a menu of at most two contracts, one with high interest and zero self-financing, and a second with a lower interest plus co-financing. Calibrated simulations assess welfare gains from the optimal policy, observed loan programs, and a direct subsidy to private venture capital firms. The gains vary with the size of the externalities, cost of public funds, and effectiveness of the private VC industry. |
| Keywords: | Mechanism design; Innovation; R&D; Entrepreneurship; Additionality; Government finance; Venture capital |
| JEL: | E6 F3 G3 |
| Date: | 2020–08–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ehl:lserod:105873&r=all |
| By: | Barbara Biasi; David J. Deming; Petra Moser |
| Abstract: | This chapter summarizes existing evidence on the link between education and innovation and presents open questions for future research. After a brief review of theoretical frameworks on the link between education, innovation, and economic growth, we explore three alternative policies to encourage innovation through education: expanding access to basic skills, improving the quality of education, and investing in universities. We also review the literature on the role of innovation for education. We conclude by outlining possible avenues for future research. |
| JEL: | I20 I23 L26 O30 |
| Date: | 2021–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:28544&r=all |
| By: | Robbiano, Simone |
| Abstract: | This paper empirically analyzes whether a prominent place-based innovation policy, the institution of the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT), has affected the treated region innovative capacity. By relying on the Synthetic Control Method (SCM) approach and Italian NUTS-3 regional panel data, the innovative development of the latter, proxied by (per-capita) fractional count of patents, is compared with a set of Italian NUTS-3 control ones. Results suggest that the establishment of IIT has impacted on the regional innovative output, on average, by about 22.5 more patents for million inhabitants per year in the post-intervention period. The paper also provides evidence of knowledge spillovers from IIT in the hosting region. In addition, positive effects on the regional endowment of high-skilled human capital as well as regional growth are also documented. Finally, these results are robust to a variety of placebo permutation tests as well as several sensitivity checks, or when considering a Difference-in-Differences (DiD) approach. Finally, the paper may provide useful insights to inform policy makers about the marginal benefits of additional research funding by highlighting the stream of private and social returns, against which the opportunity cost of the intervention must be compared. |
| Keywords: | Public Research Institutes; Regional Development; Growth; Innovation; Human Capital; Knowledge Spillovers; Knowledge Accumulation; Synthetic Control Method. |
| JEL: | I23 I25 J24 O10 O15 O18 O30 O31 R10 R11 R58 |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:106386&r=all |
| By: | van Criekingen, Kristof; Freel, Mark; Czarnitzki, Dirk |
| Abstract: | The concept of Open Innovation (OI) has breathed new life into both empirical research and industry practice concerned with distributed and collaborative modes of innovating. Certainly, the volume of OI research and its impact on practice has been remarkable. However, equally remarkable is the lack of balance. With few exceptions, the stories of OI are positive stories. A unbalanced focus on successes leads to open innovation imperatives and the conclusion that, for most firms, openness is good, and more openness is better. In this paper, we nuance this perception by empirically investigating the relationships between innovation openness and its effects on project abandonment and delays. Using survey data from Belgium, we find that open innovation strongly associates with an increased risk of both project abandonment and project delays. |
| Keywords: | Open innovation,collaboration,project abandonment |
| JEL: | O31 |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:zewdip:21006&r=all |
| By: | Chila, Vilma (Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management) |
| Date: | 2021 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:tiu:tiutis:a1f5d18c-783b-4af6-8414-61a224f6a525&r=all |
| By: | Burcu Ozgun; Tom Broekel; |
| Abstract: | Variations in the frequency and tone of news media are the focus of a growing literature. However, to date, empirical investigations have primarily confirmed the existence of such differences at the country level. This paper extends those insights to the subnational level. We provide theoretical arguments and empirical support for systematic regional variations in the frequency and sentiments of news related to innovation and new technologies. These variations reflect regional socio-economic structures. We find that the average newspaper circulating in urban areas features more news on innovation and new technologies than media in more rural areas. Similar endings hold for locations in East Germany and to a certain degree for regions with low unemployment. The sentiments of innovation and new technology news are negatively associated to the unemployment rate, and they tend to be lower in regional newspapers than in national ones. Overall, our results suggest a strong link between the regional socioeconomic conditions and how newspapers circulating in these places report on innovation and new technologies. |
| Keywords: | innovation, technology, news media, sentiment analysis, topic modeling |
| JEL: | O33 R12 L82 |
| Date: | 2021–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:egu:wpaper:2110&r=all |