| 1. |
- Grillitsch, Markus, et al.
(författare)
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Combining Knowledge from Different Sources, Channels and Geographical Scales
- 2014
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Ingår i: European Planning Studies. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1469-5944 .- 0965-4313. ; 22:11, s. 2305-2325
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The aim of this article is to examine conceptually and empirically how innovative firms combine knowledge (1) provided by different sources, (2) accessed at different spatial scales and (3) acquired through different channels. We add to the conceptual debate by contrasting and synthesising the perspectives offered on these issues by four key concepts, namely the local buzz and global pipelines argument, the knowledge-base approach, the notions of Science-Technology-Innovation and Doing-Using-Interacting modes of innovation as well as the regional innovation systems concept. The empirical part of the article contains an analysis of knowledge-sourcing activities employed by 181 firms belonging to the Austrian automotive supplier industry. Our findings reveal that it is, indeed, combinations of knowledge sourced from different partners located at different spatial scales and acquired through different channels that are relevant. However, it is particular combinations that dominate while others are negligible. Austrian automotive supplier firms combine knowledge provided by customers with knowledge inputs from a variety of other sources. Most of the combinations involve the European or global levels combined with the regional and/or national level. Finally, firms combine spillovers with a variety of other channels to acquire innovation-relevant knowledge.
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| 2. |
- Grillitsch, Markus, et al.
(författare)
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Innovation in peripheral regions: Do collaborations compensate for a lack of local knowledge spillovers?
- 2014
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Annan publikation (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- It is widely accepted that firms in peripheral regions benefit to a lesser extent from local knowledge spillovers than firms located in agglomerations or industrial clusters. This paper investigates the extent to which innovative firms in peripheral regions compensate for the lack of access to local knowledge spillovers by collaborating at other geographical scales. So far the literature predominantly suggests that collaborations complement rather than compensate for local knowledge spillovers. Using data on the collaboration patterns of innovative firms in Sweden, this paper provides evidence that firms with low access to local knowledge spillovers tend to collaborate more. This effect, however, depends on firm size and in-house capabilities. Our findings suggest that firms with strong in-house capabilities do indeed compensate for a lack of local knowledge spillovers with collaborations while firms with weaker in-house capabilities depend more on the regional knowledge infrastructure.
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| 3. |
- Grillitsch, Markus, et al.
(författare)
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Technological competencies and firm performance: Analyzing the importance of internal and external competencies
- 2013
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Annan publikation (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- In this paper, we analyze the relationship between technological competencies (TC) and firm performance. Theoretically, the importance of TC is well established and widely accepted. Therefore, it is surprising that a number of empirical studies have been unable to confirm a substantial positive relationship between TC and firm performance. We identify two major reasons for this: [i] affected by the availability and choice of indicators existing studies are often biased towards large firms; and [ii] they frequently do not consider both internal and potential access to firm-external TC. This paper discusses conceptually the interplay between firm-internal and firm-external TC as well as the mediating effect of firm size. These relationships are then analyzed empirically using Swedish micro data on 15,682 firms in 290 Swedish municipalities. Novel indicators based on occupational statistics are combined with measures of time-distance accessibility to study internal and external TC. The results provide evidence for a positive relationship between firm growth and TC. In particular, the combination of firm-internal and firm-external competencies seems to be conducive for growth. Lastly, our study suggests that firm size is an important factor to further our understanding about these relationships. Based on this we identify a number of future research questions to be addressed.
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| 4. |
- Grillitsch, Markus
(författare)
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Types of innovation, competencies of firms and external knowledge sourcing - Findings from selected sectors and regions of Europe
- 2014
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Ingår i: Journal of the Knowledge Economy. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1868-7865 .- 1868-7873. ; 5:2, s. 330-330
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Many innovation studies have focused on a narrow concept of technological innovation, such as the generation of patents or the introduction of new products. The performance of firms, however, often depends on innovation defined from a broader perspective. This includes process, organizational, and market innovations as was pointed out already by Schumpeter and more recently by other scholars and the OECD. Still underexplored, however, are the questions on what kinds of knowledge sources such different types of innovations rely and which spatial levels (regional, national, and international) are most relevant for acquiring knowledge. Also, sector and regional contexts are argued to matter for knowledge sourcing and innovation. Drawing on the concepts of knowledge bases and innovation systems, we investigate these relationships by analyzing evidence from seven European countries regarding patterns of knowledge sourcing and their relation to innovation. Based on a multivariate model, we are able to show that product, process, strategic, and organizational innovations rely on partly similar, partly different types, and sources of knowledge reaching from regional to global levels. We also found evidence that sector contexts and the institutional characteristics of regions and countries matter.
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