Factors affecting innovation revisited

El propósito de este trabajo es contribuir a un mejor conocimiento de los factores que afectan a la innovación mediante el análisis de los microdatos de la encuesta de innovación de las empresas españolas de 2003. El estudio se aborda desde la elaboración de una taxonomía de sectores combinando las Ventajas Tecnológicas Reveladas de la industria española con el dinamismo tecnológico mundial; además se introduce una clasificación de las empresas en función de la pertenencia o no a un grupo de empresas y de si esos grupos son de nacionalidad española o extranjera. Se utilizan técnicas de Análisis Factorial para reducir y organizar la abundante información disponible en Factores con significado económico que después son empleados como variables explicativas de la innovación de producto y de proceso. Se encuentran diferencias entre ambos tipos de innovación tanto por el número de factores significativos como en la intensidad de su capacidad explicativa. La taxonomía elaborada muestra su importancia al mostrar patrones de comportamiento distintos entre los cuatro tipos de casos construidos.The aim of this paper is to contribute to a better understanding of factors affecting innovation by analysing the Spanish manufacturing sector using microdata of the 2003 Spanish Innovation Survey. To enrich the analysis a self developed sectoral taxonomy is used coming from the combination of both of the sectoral Revealed Technological Advantages (RTA) and worldwide technological dynamism of the sectors; moreover firms are classified according to the type of capital ownership: independent companies, companies belonging to a national group and subsidiaries of multinational enterprises. The abundance and heterogeneity of variables advised us to use Factor analysis to reduce and organise the original variables into a number of consistent and theoretically significant factors. We found differences between product and process innovation, both in number of explicative variables (significant independent variables) and in relative effect of independent variables (even, in some cases, a sign change from product to process innovation). Taxonomy matters because of some differences in explanatory (independent) variables for each sector and model explanatory power differences between sectors, and, on the other hand, because of the “non significance” of some significant variables once we control by sectoral taxonomy.Innovation, Factors affecting innovation, Multinational enterprises, Sectoral taxonomies, Spain.

Technology and the Generation of International Knowledge Spillovers. An Application to Spanish Manufacturing Firms

Technology is among firms ownership advantages explaining their internationalisation as, now for decades, the eclectic approach has highlighted. The debate about the positive versus negative effects that foreign capital generates in the host economy has gained a new relevance today insofar as, on the one hand, the concept of systems of innovation allows us to rethink the interaction with the domestic/recipient economies and, on the other, the increasing internationalisation of the technological activities of multinational companies (MNCs) introduces new forms of that interaction. Therefore, the possibility of generation of external effects by MNCs today demands a new reformulation of the problem. In this vein, one of the strengthening aspects commonly underlined is that foreign knowledge, not completely appropriable by the foreign firms, may spill over into domestic firms. However, since the findings of the empirical evidence are not fully confirmatory of the hypothesis, and taking into account the new conditions, this essay attempts to offer new light with research about the Spanish manufacturing firms. Two main issues are focused on this analysis. First, the importance of dynamics in the assessment of technological spillovers motivated by foreign direct investment (FDI), which is possible thanks to the availability of a panel data for manufacturing firms in Spain in the period 1991-1999. Second, the importance that technology may have for the generation of spillovers and to what extent the Pavitt taxonomy of industries is still useful for in depth analysis of such a learning process.Foreign capital, Foreign direct investment,Spanish manufacturing firms, Knowledge Spillovers

La transferencia de tecnología revisitada: conceptos básicos y nuevas reflexiones a partir de un modelo de gestión de excelencia

This paper deals with the topic of technology transfer from universities and research centres to the productive world. The conceptual framework is to consider technology as a kind of knowledge, so to a considerable extent, we can extend the arguments to a more general context of knowledge transfer. Two are the basis for the analysis: on the one hand, some conceptual and empirical advances of the economic analysis of innovation and technological change and, on the other, the results of the research project Management and output measurement system in R&D centres (SIGRID model). This approach anticipates a new methodological demand consisting of the capacity of improving the theoretical analysis by taking into account contributions based on more empirical and sticky works. They can contribute with interesting complements about the functioning of the creation and transfer of technology and the factors facilitating or hampering those processes.<br><br>El tema que se plantea en estas páginas es el de la transferencia de tecnología desde las universidades y los centros públicos de investigación al mundo productivo. Para ello considera la tecnología como una forma de conocimiento, por lo que aquella transferencia es una forma de transferir conocimiento. Para llevar a cabo este análisis se parte de dos fundamentos: de una parte, algunos avances conceptuales y empíricos en el análisis económico de la innovación y el cambio tecnológico y, de otra, los resultados alcanzados en la elaboración de un Sistema de Gestión y Medida de Rendimiento en Centros de I+D (Modelo SIGRID). Este planteamiento anticipa lo que será una demanda metodológica en este tipo de análisis: las reflexiones de carácter más teórico y generales pueden y deben ser enriquecidas por otras que se sustentan en trabajos de carácter práctico que en su desarrollo pormenorizado y “pegado al terreno” pueden aportar interesantes complementos sobre el funcionamiento de la creación y transferencia de tecnología, y los factores que facilitan o dificultan esos procesos

Towards a Taxonomy of Firms Engaged in International R&D Cooperation Programs: The Case of Spain in Eureka

El proceso innovador enfrenta una serie de fallos de mercado y por esta razón – y por ser considerado uno de los principales agentes del crecimiento económico en el mundo – un significativo número de políticas gubernamentales y supra-nacionales son diseñadas para promover el progreso tecnológico. En Europa la situación no podría ser diferente y la “Paradoja Europea” es utilizada como principal argumento para la implementación de iniciativas relacionadas a la innovación. Junto con estas políticas hay una creciente preocupación con su continua evaluación, teniendo como objetivo proveer feedbacks para la adaptación y adecuación de estos programas con las necesidades de los agentes involucrados. En este sentido, el presente paper desarrolla una evaluación de los impactos del Programa Eureka para el caso de las empresas españolas participantes en esta iniciativa y con proyectos concluidos entre los años 2000-2005 (a través de análisis de los informes finales de los proyectos). Un total de 77 empresas fueron abordadas con métodos cuantitativos (correlaciones, testes chi-cuadrado, análisis discriminante y análisis de cluster). Los resultados demuestran que la participación española en Eureka suele tener altos niveles de logros tecnológicos. Los logros comerciales parecen estar definidos por la calidad del funcionamiento del proyecto y por la capacidad de las empresas en explotar sus resultados en el mercado ya antes del fin del proyecto. Una tipología introductoria de los participantes es propuesta en 3 conglomerados: (1) Risky Innovators; (2) Inventors; y (3) Consistent Innovators.Innovation is a process that faces several “market failure” situations and for this reason – and for being considered one of the main drivers of economic growth throughout the world – a large number of governmental and supranational policies are designed to foster technological progress. In Europe this situation could not be any different and the “European Paradox” is used as the main argument for the implementation of innovation related initiatives. Along with these policies, there is an increasing concern with their continuous evaluation aiming at providing valuable feedback for these program’s adaptation and adequacy to the player’s needs. In this sense, this paper develops an evaluation of Eureka Programme’s impact for the case of Spanish companies participating in this initiative and that had projects finished in the period 2000-2005 (analysis performed through the information contained in Eureka’s Final Reports). A total of 77 firms were assessed through quantitative methods, namely correlations, chi-square tests, discriminant models and cluster analysis. Findings show that Spain participates in Eureka mainly through SMEs, and that the overall rate of technological achievements is impressively good. Commercial achievements seem to be influenced mainly by the quality of the project’s functioning and the capacity of firm’s exploiting results in the industry by the end of the project. A basic typology of participants is offered in which three clusters are built: (1) Risky Innovators; (2) Inventors; and (3) Consistent Innovators.Innovation Policy; Eureka Programme; Spanish Innovation System; R&D Collaboration, Políticas de Innovación; Programa Eureka; Sistema de Innovación Español; Colaboración en I+D.

Foreign technology and local innovation : some lessons from spanish defense industry experience

The subject to be dealt with here technology imports as against local production is a question open to debate within the recent industrial experience of countries such as Spain, with a medium level of development. Placed in the general framework of this volume, this subject takes shape through the simultaneous discussion of two problems

La internacionalización de la industria española y el cambio tecnológico.

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Multinational and national firms in the process of technology internatzionalization : Spain as an intermediate case

Estudio sobre la posición de los países de tamaño intermedio en el actual proceso de internacionalización de las actividades innovadoras, liderado por las empresas multinacionales, particularmente se centra en conocer mejor las repercusiones que tienen las actividades tecnológicas e innovadoras de las filiales de las empresas multinacionales establecidas en España. Abstracts: The aim of this chapter is to contribute to a better understanding of the way in which other countries different from what has been called the "triad" and other firms different from large MNCs participate in the internationalization of technological innovation. To achieve that goal we are going to analyse the Spanish case. Spain is undoubtedly a significant case in that group because it is still today a country with a low level of technological effort among European nations. Moreover, for a long period of time, Spain has been a net receiver of important amounts of foreign direct investment (FDI), with less developed outward flows. This analysis will be carried out by studying the technological behaviour of MNCs’ s subsidiaries located in Spain and its repercussions for the National System of Innovation (NSI). Through a systematic comparison with domestic companies, we shall show in which aspects MNCs act like comparable national firms, and in which others they behave differently. The weight of the sector of activity and size of the firms will be taken into account as two critical features of the group of MNCs. In the conclusions we shall comment on the repercussions the former has for designing and implementing technological policies

The exhibition The Ancient Oriental Book

Sin resume