Chinese regional innovation systems in times of crisis: the case of Guangdong

The dynamic economic development of Guangdong province is one of the most prominent examples of China's catch-up in the course of the past two decades. Once chosen as the nation's first experimental field for the market economy, the province continued to participate above average in national economic growth ever since. Up to today, it maintains a leading position with regard to general industrial performance and average personal income. As China's industry begins to embark on a path of technological up-grading, however, this pre-eminent position begins to be challenged. In the nation's emerging fields of strength, the province's rivals, Beijing and Shanghai, are in a better starting position since they are better endowed with both R&D capacities and qualified human capital. In this context, our paper illustrates the resulting challenges by means of a number of specialized indicators and explains why, despite a continously impres-sive export performance in the high-tech sectors, Guangdong is far from well prepared to maintain its current position. Finally, it briefly describes the policy responses that have been developed, concluding that despite clear evidence of progress some key issues with regard to regional innovation policy appear to remain unaddressed. --

Strategic Partnering with Chinese Companies: Hidden Motives and Treasures

In this paper we aim to investigate the key drivers of international alliance formation from the perspective of Chinese companies. Our results indicate that Chinese companies enter into alliances with Western companies mainly to get accesses to international markets and to develop their technological and managerial competences further. Therefore we can say that Chinese companies particularly value task-related criteria when selecting Western partners. Nevertheless we also find that Chinese companies also include 'soft' factors such trust, compatibility or reputation in their partner selection process. We therefore conclude that in searching for Western partners, Chinese companies try to find a combination of 'hard' competencies such as technology and other resources as well as more 'soft' attributes such as trust, mutual understanding and commitment.Strategic alliances, China, Innovation, Internationalization

Долевое финансирование НИОКР на малых и средних инновационных предприятиях: пример китайской биомедицинской промышленности

This study delves into the corporate governance challenges confronted by small and mediumsized innovative biomedical enterprises in the context of equity financing. Its objective is to provide valuable recommendations for the successful implementation of such financing. In order to address issues such as imperfect equity structure, inadequate financial audit systems, and low stability of the core team during equity financing, a range of improvement measures are proposed. These measures comprise optimizing internal management mechanisms, establishing an efficient R&D organizational structure, implementing practical incentive mechanisms for R&D enterprises focused on benefits, and enabling technical experts to actively engage in company ownership structures. Equity financing plays a vital role in resolving the difficulties faced by small and medium-sized innovative biomedical enterprises, particularly in fostering the development of innovative pharmaceutical products within the biomedical R&D field. Thus, it has a positive impact on effectively advancing China’s biomedical industry.”Данное исследование рассматривает вопросы корпоративного управления, стоящие перед малыми и средними инновационными биомедицинскими предприятиями в процессе выпуска акций. Статья ставит своей целью предложить рекомендации для успешного осуществления этого процесса. Для решения таких проблем, как неполная структуризация капитала, недостаточно эффективные финансовые системы контроля и невысокая устойчивость основного коллектива в процессе эмиссии, предлагаются меры для улучшения ситуации. В их числе: оптимизация внутренней системы управления, формирование эффективной структуры научно-исследовательских и опытно-конструкторских работ (НИОКР), внедрение практических механизмов стимулирования для прибыльно-ориентированных НИОКР и обеспечение присутствия технических экспертов в структуре управления компании. Выпуск акций играет значительную роль в решении вопросов, с которыми сталкиваются малые и средние инновационные биомедицинские компании, особенно в отношении развития инновационных фармацевтических продуктов и биомедицинских исследований. Таким образом, данная практика положительно влияет на активное развитие биомедицинского сектора Китая

Innovation: The Key Factor Of Competitiveness For Chinese SMES

Purpose-This study aims to present an overview of SMEs’ innovation in China, to identify the main problems, and provide practical suggestions. Design/methodology/approach-The research of this paper is based on the collection and evaluation of existing literature and survey reports. Findings-This study presents the general situation and characteristics of SMEs’ innovation in China, and concludes the main reason that hinders Chinese SMEs’ innovation is the lack of human resources, capital, innovation culture and information. Practical implications-This study suggests that, in addition to improving resources and environment, SMEs can also try to adopt micro-innovation to promote innovation activities. These suggestions are practical and can help SMEs maintain competitiveness. Originality/ value-This study provides an overview of Chinese SMEs’ innovation, which can be the basis for future research in this area

SMEs; Virtual research and development (R&D) teams and new product development: A literature review

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are indeed the engines of global economic growth. Their continued growth is a major subject for the economy and employment of any country. Towards that end, virtual research and development (R&D) could be a viable option to sustain and ease the operations of SMEs. However, literature shows there has not been a great deal of research into the diverse characteristic of virtual R&D teams in SMEs. This article provides a comprehensive literature review on different aspects of virtual R&D teams collected from the reputed publications. The purpose of the literature review is to provide an outline on the structure and dynamics of R&D collaboration in SMEs. Specifying the rationale and relevance of virtual teams, the relationship between virtual R&D team for SMEs and new product development (NPD) has been examined. It concludes with identifying the gaps and feebleness in the existing literature and calls for future research in this area. It is argued to form of virtual R&D team deserves consideration at top level management for venturing into the new product development within SMEs

Organizational resources, dynamic capabilities and strategic performance: an analysis of the Real Estate Appraisal Industry in Guangdong, China

With the deepening of market economy, China's real estate appraisal industry is growing from strength to strength. It is characterized by having a small scale, low profits, and weak competition, even though growth differences are becoming increasingly noticeable among companies. Currently, there is a significant shortage of empirical research about what is happening in this transition phase concerning this industry. Therefore, it is important to conduct studies that would help companies to develop business practices that allow them to succeed in the market economy. In this context, this thesis investigates the key factors that facilitate the performance of the organization from the resource-based view, aiming at explaining the interplay between organizational resources, dynamic capabilities, and strategic performance. Based on the existing Chinese and foreign literatures, a conceptual model is developed, and four hypotheses are proposed, for analyzing the influence of organizational resources (entrepreneur traits, TMT characteristics, and network relationships) and dynamic capabilities on the strategic performance of enterprises. This research is conducted with middle-level and senior managers of the real estate appraisal industry, in Guangdong province, China. A structured questionnaire is designed and 274 valid responses are gathered. Data analysis employs the variance-based structural equation model (known as partial least squares-based SEM, PLS-SEM). Results confirms that network relationships and dynamic capabilities have a direct positive effect on strategic performance; entrepreneurial traits, TMT characteristics, and network relationships have a positive impact on strategic performance through the mediating role of dynamic capabilities, which contributes to academia by expanding research into strategic performance in China.Com o desenvolvimento da economia de mercado, a indústria de avaliação imobiliária chinesa está a crescer e a ficar cada vez mais forte. Caracteriza-se pela pequena escala, baixos lucros e fraca competitividade, muito embora os diferenciais de crescimento estejam a tornar-se mais visíveis entre as empresas. Atualmente existe uma grande escassez de estudos empíricos sobre o que está a acontecer nesta indústria nesta fase de transição. Portanto, é importante realizar estudos que ajudem as empresas a desenvolver práticas de negócios que lhes permitam ser bem sucedidas na economia de mercado. Neste contexto, esta tese investiga os fatores chaves que facilitam o desempenho da organização a partir da perspetiva baseada nos recursos, com o intuito de explicar a interação entre recursos organizacionais, capacidades dinâmicas e desempenho estratégico. Com base na literatura, um modelo conceptual é desenvolvido e quatro hipóteses são propostas para analisar a influência dos recursos organizacionais (traços de empreendedorismo, características dos gestores de topo e relações em rede) e as capacidades dinâmicas no desempenho estratégico das empresas. Esta pesquisa é realizada com gestores intermédios e de topo da indústria de avaliação imobiliária, na província de Guangdong, China. Um questionário estruturado é criado e 274 respostas válidas são recolhidas. A análise dos dados emprega o modelo de equações estruturais baseado na variância (conhecido como os SEM baseado nos mínimos quadrados parciais, PLS-SEM - partial least squares - structural equation model). Os resultados confirmam que as relações em rede e as capacidades dinâmicas têm um efeito positivo direto sobre o desempenho estratégico; os traços de empreendedorismo, as características dos gestores de topo e as relações em rede têm um impacto positivo no desempenho estratégico através da mediação das capacidades dinâmicas. Este trabalho contribui para o estado da arte através do alargamento da investigação em desempenho estratégico na China

UK-China collaborative study on low carbon technology transfer: final report

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Virtual R&D teams in small and medium enterprises: a literature review

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the driving engine behind economic growth. While SMEs play a critical role in generating employment and supporting trade, they face numerous challenges, the prominent among them are the need to respond to fasting time-to-market, low-cost and rapid solutions to complex organizational problems. Towards that end, research and development (R & D) aspect deserves particular attention to promote and facilitate the operations of SMEs. Virtual R & D team could be a viable option. However, literature shows that virtual R & D teaming in SMEs is still at its infancy. This article provides a comprehensive literature review on different aspects of virtual R & D teams collected from the reputed publications. The purpose of the state-of-the-art literature review is to provide an overview on the structure and dynamics of R & D collaboration in SMEs. Specifying the foundation and importance of virtual teams, the relationship between virtual R & D team and SMEs has been examined. It concludes with the identification of the gaps in the existing literature's and calls for future research. It is argued that setting-up an infrastructure for virtual R & D team in SMEs still requires a large amount of engineering efforts and deserves consideration at top level management