Firms' connections and cluster opportunity: The case of biotechnology in the Community of Madrid

Much of the Spanish biotechnology industry activity operates in the Community of Madrid (CM). Regional and local authorities are very interested in constituting a biotechnology cluster in the Community. All the necessary elements can be found in the region: as shown, there exists the opportunity for the emergence of a biotechnology cluster in CM. However, at the present time no biotechnology cluster can be said to exist as such in the region; there is only a cluster opportunity. In order to demonstrate this proposition, we provide an overview of the biotechnology industry, focusing on the fi rms that operate in Madrid and their connections between themselves and the other actors in the system. Any cluster strategy that aims to develop a biotechnology cluster in Madrid should consider the form of these connections.Buena parte de la industria biotecnológica española opera en la Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid (CAM). Las autoridades regionales y locales están muy interesadas en constituir un cluster biotecnológico en la comunidad. Todos los elementos necesarios para que pueda surgir dicho cluster están presentes en la región: como se muestra en este trabajo, existe la oportunidad para que emerja un cluster biotecnológico en la CAM. Sin embargo, no se puede afi rmar con total seguridad que tal cluster exista por el momento en la región; tan solo hay una oportunidad de cluster. Para demostrar esta proposición, proporcionamos una panorámica de la industria biotecnológica centrándonos en las empresas que operan en Madrid y sus conexiones con otras empresas del sector y con otros actores del sistema de innovación. Cualquier estrategia que busque desarrollar un cluster biotecnológico en Madrid debería tener en cuenta la naturaleza de estas conexiones

Agents intentionality, capabilities and the performance of systems of innovation

We are interested on why and how an economic system evolves and, in particular, on the causes of the differences across systems of innovation (SI). SI’s performance differs substantially because there are specific causes at work, apart from the differences in the underlying technologies, institutions, etc. In particular, we refer to the intentionality of the agents interacting within a system for innovation to find out the relationship between agents’ goals, SI’s performance and its policy implications. The underlying thesis in this paper is that agent intentionality is a necessary condition for a substantive explanation of the dynamism of any socio-economic system. The paper departs from an abstract definition of a system as a set of constitutive elements and the connections among them serving a common purpose. And explores how intentionality shapes the structure, evolution and performance of an SI. In this context an evolutionary efficiency criterion is proposed

The allocation of entrepreneurial effort and its implications on economic growth

The problem to allocate effort to innovation activities is defined and modelled for any single entrepreneur according to its propensity to innovate, which combines pure innovation and rent-seeking strategies. The allocation problem is solved both analytically and via simulation. The individual decisions measured in units of innovation are then aggregated to calculate the innovation quantity for a given population based on the distribution of heterogeneous entrepreneurs. The entrepreneurship rate and the implications for economic growth are also quantified. Consequently, policy makers should focus on reducing the entry barriers and the costs of production in order to stimulate the entrepreneurial activity and maximize the innovation quantity. They should also foster the attitude and propensity towards innovatio

Agents intentionality, capabilities and the performance of systems of innovation

The performances of different Systems of Innovation (SI) vary substantially due to the fact that, apart from the differences in the underlying technologies, institutions, etc., there are specific causes at work. In particular, we refer to the intentionality of the agents interacting within a System of Innovation to find out the relationship between agents’ goals, and the SI’s performance. The underlying thesis is that agent intentionality is a necessary condition for a substantive explanation of the dynamism of any socio-economic system. This paper departs from an abstract definition of a system as a set of constitutive elements and the connections among them serving a common purpose. It also explores how agents’ intentionality and capabilities shape the structure, evolution and performance of an SI. In this context an evolutionary efficiency criterion is proposed.Support from INnoTEC (Project N. SEJ2004-02422 – Ministerio de Educación y Ciencia, Spain), Instituto de Investigaciones Económicas y Sociales ‘Francisco de Vitoria’ and Universidad Autónoma de Madrid

Teoría económica y acción humana: su integración en la obra de Rafael Rubio de Urquía

El presente artículo es una exposición muy sintética de una de las principales aportaciones de la obra de Rafael Rubio de Urquía a la Teoría Económica y la ciencia de la Acción Humana. En particular, en un reciente trabajo (Rubio de Urquía, 2005) al que este artículo hace especial referencia, se presenta por primera vez, y como resultado formal, la relación entre la Teoría Económica y la Teoría de la Acción Humana: el objeto teórico de la Teoría Económica es toda la Acción Humana. Las implicaciones epistemológicas, metodológicas y teóricas de este resultado son de enorme trascendencia para el desarrollo de la ciencia económica

Intentionality and the emergence of complexity: An analytical approach

The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00191-014-0342-zEmergence is a generic property that makes economies become complex. The simultaneous carrying out of agents’ intentional action plans within an economic system generates processes that are at the base of structural change and the emergence of adaptive complex systems. This paper argues that goals and intentionality are key elements of the structure of rational human action and are the origin of emergent properties such as innovation within economic complex systems. To deal with the locus and role of goals and intentionality in relation to the emergence of complexity we propose an analytical approach based on agents’ action plans. Action plans are open representations of the action projected by agents (as individuals or organizations), where the means (actions) and objectives (or goals) are not necessarily given, but produced by agents themselves

'Intencionalidad innovadora' y dinámica económica

Entender la actividad económica y su transformación exige considerar la “irrealidad” futura en la que se sitúan los fines de la acción de los agentes económicos. Producir o innovar son acciones condicionadas por los objetivos perseguidos por los agentes. Estos objetivos cambian en el tiempo. La explicación de algunas características de los procesos innovadores debe abordarse desde la consideración de la dinámica de formulación de objetivos cuya consecución precisa de unas capacidades. El artículo presenta algunas reflexiones sobre el papel esencial que juega la intención en la dinámica económica. Argumenta que la retroalimentación constante entre la intención y las capacidades dinámicas transforma el sistema económico. La intención de transformar los espacios de acción, la intencionalidad innovadora, está vinculada a objetivos innovadores.The understanding of economic dynamics requires the analytical consideration of the future “irreality” in which action goals are located. Producing or innovating are actions conditioned by the changing goals pursued by agents. The explanation of some characteristics of innovation processes can only be addressed by considering the dynamics of goals formulation. In order to achieve their goals, agents must deploy their capabilities. The paper presents some reflections on the essential role which intentions play in economic dynamics. The main argument states that the constant feedback between intentions and dynamic capabilities transforms the economic system. The intention of transforming action spaces, here referred to as innovative intentionality, is linked to the formulation of transforming goals

Estrategia internacional de las empresas japonesas en los países del sudeste asiático y China

El mercado asiático no es una mera fábrica de montaje con mano de obra barata: se trata de un mercado con un gran potencial de consumo, donde existen fábricas con tecnología sofisticada y es una fuente de mano de obra cualificada. En este trabajo, se examinan las tendencias de las empresas japonesas del sector manufacturero en su expansión por los países del sudeste asiático y China. La gran magnitud de estos mercados constituye un punto clave en sus estrategias internacionales.The Asian market is not merely a factory with low wages. It is also a consumer market with a huge potential for growth, in which there exists high technology and qualified workers. This paper explores the trends of Japanese manufacture firms in their expansion in South East countries and China. The big magnitude of these markets is a key point in their international strategies

On Economics, Ethics, and Corporate Social Responsibility

This paper suggests that understanding questions such as those related to Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) re- quires economic theorizing to include in its explanatory models the very fact that (economic) agents have their own distinctive conception of how reality ought to be (which implies making judgments of value). Under standard economic theorizing, the relationship between social or ethical values and economics is one of mere juxtaposition. Ethical and economic issues are being put together side by side in such a way that the anomalies pointed out by economics, which refer to the presence of goal paradoxes and the problem of altruism, etc., denote the presence of ethical issues within the processes of valuation and choice by agents. To surpass this relationship a change of perspective by means of the agents’ action plans approach is proposed. The action plan approach allows to pass from a conception of economics understood as a technology-of-choice to economics understood as a theory of production-of-action. In particular, it is shown that the ethical dynamics of agents are capable of generating “ethical novelties”, which consequently alter the agents’ space of goals. Insofar as this is heavily influenced by CSR, the consequence is that CSR is neither strange to Economics nor a concept juxtaposed with the analysis of autonomous economic processes

On entrepreneurship, intentionality and economic policymaking

Within evolutionary economics, entrepreneurship is seen as the main force of economic change, as the agency of self-transformation within restless capitalist economic systems. Therefore, a truly evolutionary perspective on economic policy-making must consider the significance and scope of entrepreneurship. On the basis of such a perspective, it might be possible to assess future outcomes of economic evolution under different policy measures related with, for instance, stimulating entrepreneurship as a policy that would provide the seeds for recovery from a slump in an econ-omy. In this short note, our main claim is that the very nature of entrepreneurship implies the recognition of the role played by entrepreneurs’ intentions, their tendency towards transforming goals and agents’ spaces of action. Recogni-tion is possible due to a more systematic analytical integration of these elements into a theory of entrepreneurship based on a ‘production of action’ conception (vs. the standard framework based on a ‘technology of choice’). This analytical vision sheds light on how economic policymaking should be implemented to stimulate entrepreneurship