Innovation, skills development and labour: a European perspective

LSE Enterprise was approached by Microsoft, a software developer engaged in lobbying the European Commission and Parliament, to appoint an expert team of academic consultants to research and write a series of four reports on various aspects of innovation. Working with our nominated academic director, LSE Enterprise put together a strong research team, who continue to work closely with the client to deliver each of the reports to a standard suitable for consumption by top EU policy-makers, the client's industry sector, the press and the public. The reports are designed and printed professionally to ensure maximum quality and consistency across the series

Sky high economics

The global airline industry is on the cusp of a connectivity revolution. Currently 3.8 billion passengers fly annually, with only around 25% of planes in the air offering them some form of onboard broadband. This is often of variable quality, with patchy coverage, slow speeds and low data limits. By 2035, it is likely that inflight connectivity will be ubiquitous across the world. Non-broadband-enabled ‘traditional’ sources such as seat upgrades, onboard duty free and baggage fees are currently worth around $60 billion to airlines. For the first time, this research study bridges the gap between current market estimates of traditional revenues and the forecasting of incremental revenue from broadbandenabled cabins. Using IATA passenger traffic data and forecasts of growth, including a near doubling of passenger numbers to 7.2 billion annually, this research study forecasts that broadband-enabled ancillary revenue will reach an estimated$30 billion for airlines by 2035. Overall, a total market of $130 billion of additional revenues will be created. As well as airlines, this market will include content providers, retail goods suppliers, hotel and car suppliers, airlines and advertisers. The four primary areas of broadband enabled ancillary revenue have been defined in the research are: • Broadband access • Advertising, encompassing interruptive advertising and pay-per-click • E-commerce and destination shopping • Streaming, including premium content The research looks at six key regions: Asia Pacific, Europe, North America, Africa, Middle East and Latin America, analysed using both primary and secondary research, drawing on available data of passenger numbers and of forecasted aircraft growth globally. By 2035, broadband-access revenue is forecast to remain the highest single source of new ancillary revenues, accounting for 53$0.23 per passenger in 2018, to $2.82 in 2028, reaching$4 per passenger by 2035. With current traditional ancillary revenue for airlines of around $17 per passenger, the research study projects that broadband connectivity will add around 24$11 billion of revenues, and Full Service Carriers (FSC) around $19 billion. The capitalisation of opportunities presented by a connected cabin with high quality continuous coverage will depend on the degree that airlines are willing to engage with third party suppliers, retailers, destination companies, content providers and others. The research study forecasts that by 2035, from the estimated$30 billion airline share of the total broadbandenabled revenue of $130 billion, Asia Pacific has the highest figure at$10.3 billion, followed by Europe with $8.2 billion, North America with$7.6 billion, Latin America with $1.9 billion, Middle East at$1.3 billion and Africa with $0.58 billion. The opportunity for revenue growth from broadband enabled services is dependent on airlines commercialising passenger data to a much greater degree than occurs currently. Today, only 11% of existing airline schemes offer personalised rewards based on purchase history or location data. More loyal customers can generate a 23% premium in profitability and revenue to airlines. Airlines today have failed to fully develop the potential opportunities offered by passenger data. Airlines are in the driver’s seat for realising a massive opportunity. By bringing together right technological, retail, advertising and content partners, airlines will be able to offer passengers the services they are asking for, whilst improving the bottom line. With the number of passengers currently flying every day forecast to almost double by 2035 this is a ‘sky high’ multibillion dollar opportunity for the global airline industry

Connectivity will create a multibillion-dollar opportunity for the global airline industry

By 2035, airlines will see new revenues from e-commerce, advertising and premium content services in the sky, writes Alexander Grou

The impact of digitalisation on generations Y and Z

As the population ages, next-generation cohorts will increasingly make their mark at work and in society. Organisations that seek to hire and retain them as employees or earn their trust as customers must understand and adapt to their attributes. Alexander Grous interviewed two hundred generations Y and Z members from five countries (the UK, France, Germany, Norway, and Sweden) and explored their attitudes and actions related to work and social activities

Managerial practices, location and ICT: productivity of UK aerospace firms in business clusters

Globalisation and Information and Communications Technology (ICT) once appeared to be allies attempting to thwart the notion of the local economy. Recently, and somewhat paradoxically, policymakers and firms appear to be harnessing ICT to foster the development of local economies. To compete globally, firms are frequently looking locally, often by co-locating in industrial districts ('clusters'). Despite similar access to ICT, software, and government policies designed to ameliorate productivity impeding variables, wide gulfs continue to appear in ICT-led productivity between firms in different countries, within the same country, or within the same region or cluster. Attention is increasingly turning to the role that management practices may play in explaining such variations. Concomitant to, or perhaps as a result of this focus, the relationship between ICT and productivity warrants further consideration, with the recognition that ICT by itself cannot affect competitive capacity: it can only be productive if it is appropriately embedded in the organisation and is a function of managerial practices and skills. This dissertation has been undertaken at the nexus of ICT, managerial practices and spatial orientation. It has a firm-level focus and will rectify a current methodological and sampling deficit to provide answers on how and why managerial practices affect ICT both within and between organisational settings, and how this in turn influences productivity. A multiple embedded case study design has been utilised, nested in the aerospace sector in the UK. The research utilises both qualitative and quantitative empirical methodologies and is multidisciplinary, working across the Information Systems Group in the Department of Management and the Centre for Economic Performance at the LSE. Ontologically, the research ascribes to the assumption that technology is neither omnipotent nor uncontested, and impinges on the terms by which individuals interact with one another, influencing the individual-world interaction and affecting the behaviour of the organisation as a social system. Success or failure can ultimately depend on the negotiation of practices, with information systems capable of mediating productivity. By addressing the current lacuna at the overlap of the principal themes being explored, this research makes an original and relevant contribution on a topical issue that transcends borders, culture and language

Industrial strategy in practice: innovation and management best practices in the automobile, energy and aerospace clusters in Bizkaia

This paper presents research undertaken in Bizkaia in the Basque region that ‘peels the organisational layers’ to assess the management practices of 10 firms. These firms are drawn from the automotive, energy and aerospace clusters that have achieved international recognition, positioning Bizkaia as a prominent region for innovation and production. Firms were assessed using leading methodology developed by the LSE with McKinsey and Co that quantifies management practices and provides a comparison with comparable firms globally..

Toughening bimodal vinyl ester blends using bio-rubber monomers

Vinyl ester (VE) resins are commonly used as matrix materials in the manufacture of polymer matrix composites (PMC). However, most commercial VE resins are brittle and contain considerable amounts of styrene (ST) which is a hazardous air pollutant (HAP) as well as a potential carcinogen. VE resins formulated using bimodal blends of vinyl ester monomers offer both an increase in fracture performance while maintaining low viscosities without the addition of extra styrene or other additives. In this work, bio-based rubber modifiers were synthesized and combined with selected bimodal blends of VE. It was found that the addition of bio-rubbers (BR) to bimodal VE systems results in significant fracture toughness improvement by the generation of a rubbery dispersed second phase with characteristic dimensions less than 500 nm. For example, the G1c of a selected VE bimodal blend initially containing 35 wt % styrene increased from 286 J/m2 to 773 J/m2 with the addition of 15 wt% BR. Negligible effects on the resin viscosity (~ 2300) cP were observed, the Tg remained above 100°C and styrene content was reduced to 30%. Addition of a small amount of styrene was found to reduce the viscosity of the resin to levels acceptable for liquid molding applications with minimal effects on toughness and Tg.M.S., Chemical Engineering -- Drexel University, 201