Territory and entrepreneurial performance An exercise on some industrial Portuguese regions

The present paper was motivated by the recent interest put on the regional context as having a major role tracing economic agents behaviours and inducing productive activity. Three main goals have been defined: to emphasise the relation between favourable regional factors for development and firm performance in the case of the most industrialised Portuguese regions; to distinguish in each region its own propensity for sustainable development and to evaluate if the region may be considered as intrinsic co-operative or resistant to co-operation. Methodologically, the analysis followed three major steps: 1) selection of regions with industrial characteristics; 2) creation and use of the endogenous growth capacity indicators; 3) consequent analysis of the SMEs (small and medium size firms) behaviour’s evolution. Based on Multivariate Analysis, the following regions were selected: Ave, Entre Douro e Vouga, Baixo Vouga, Pinhal Litoral and Península de Setúbal. Basically, they represent the areas where industrial activity is predominant in Portugal. When comparing the observed local environmental conditions of these regions with the results for the performance of their small firms, some conclusions could be achieved, regarding to three major issues: the relation between regional development factors development and firm performance; the regional propensity for sustainable development and the regional adequacy to networking. Key words: territorial systems of production; local endogenous capacities; SMEs performance.

Ways to open innovation: main agents and sources in the Portuguese case

Facing increasing open innovation trends, Portuguese enterprises are considering the related processes and impacts. Thus, this work aims to identify the sectors whose enterprises most engage in open innovation (such as cooperation on this issue) and which sources/agents are most used. This is analyzed by sector and type of innovation as an interesting way of differentiation for better open innovation strategy delineation. Using the data from the Community Innovation Survey (CIS-2012), it first appraises the nature of the innovation process, either cooperative or firm-based, as the starting level of analysis. Then, it differentiates the results by sector illustrating which cooperation sources/agents are most used (scope) and relative intensity of use (scale). This is important to assess levels of openness and related factors. Results show that main innovating sectors in Portugal are of three types: research-based, knowledge-based and service-based. They reveal an increasing focus on knowledge and services, trends that have been leading to more active openness towards innovation. For instance, health and construction are increasing their openness for innovating and internationalizing processes. However, Portuguese innovation is still more firm-based (in-house) than cooperation-based, especially concerning new products' launching. This work and future analyzes around it can contribute to encourage the open innovation strategy in more sectors of the economy as an easy and effective way to cope with rapid trends and changes. (C) 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

The use of design as a strategic tool for innovation: an analysis for different firms' networking behaviours

Current research indicates that the use of design strategy in companies is related to innovation and leads to competitiveness. This research aims empirically to analyse the relationship between firms' networking behaviours and their propensity to engage in design activities. Although much of the literature on networks focuses on the relationship between the development of external linkages and innovation, we argue that small and medium-sized enterprises’ (SMEs)' relationships with different agents and intermediaries, on diverse geographic scales, play an important role for how companies use design as an element of innovation. Using the Community Innovation Survey (CIS 2012) database for Portugal, a logistic regression was performed using the ‘strategic use of design’ as a binary dependent variable. We found that firms' engagement in informal relationships with heterogeneous agents, such as public customers, consultants or conference partners, is positively associated with the strategic use of design. The use of firms' internal assets as information sources also proved to be significant. Regarding market relations, the results indicate that a geographic scaling-up contributes to increasing the odds of a firm recognizing the strategic role of design for competitiveness

Sources of Innovation: The Case of Portuguese Consultancy Sector

This study addresses the effects of external environments on types of innovation introduced by Portuguese consultancy firms (PCs) in computer, technical, and management areas. It distinguishes the most determinant factors for innovation regarding product, process, organization, and marketing. The assessment framework followed three steps: 1) evaluation of propensity to use external sources of information and cooperation with agents, 2) identification of factors used most often during innovation, and 3) derivation of profiles of firms under study. The method generated tree-based classification models that segmented the sample into innovative and non-innovative firms, and distinct profiles that emphasized specificities concerning use of external sources and agents for innovation

Modern innovation challenges to firms and cities: The case of Portugal

Modern competition is tough due to emergent information systems and technologies. Managers must cope with these challenges continuously to keep their businesses sustainable. An important step is to employ strategies based on open innovation. This work analyses where Portugal stands in terms of innovation in general, propensity for open innovation and innovation sustainability. An HJ-Biplot methodology was applied to a valid sample from CIS 2012 (Community Innovation Survey). It suggests that Portuguese firms must cut back on activities that are not leading to the outcomes needed. Also, with the right partners they can have more ideas executed and diffused

Innovation for resilience

Last decade is characterized by different types of crises and shocs in the socioeconomic systems, creating a turbulent context and calling for a better understanding of what the dynamic perspective of change is. For countries, regions and cities a better understanding of governance urges and calls for action

Information Technology and the Need for Clear Communication for Effective User’s Approach

The present study addresses the communication between professionals of information technology (IT) and its users in the corporate environment of Curitiba (Brazil). The main aim was to analyze communication problems and implications for management and marketing. Empirical research examined responses from a sample of IT professionals with some professional experience in the area and academic level, as well as responses from a sample of IT users (making use of technology in that corporate environment). The questionnaires were available online, and the SPSS software was used for data processing. Results allow us to infer that, in the sample studied, problems in communication between IT professionals and the services’ users do exist. Data obtained reflect a need for formal training by the professionals to serve customers, manage their careers and use technology on behalf of users in order to improve business management practice. Professionals must be clear with users, to create confidence. Also, it was evident that respondent users consider technology as a basic tool, and they expect professionals to share and explain their actions toward the machine or system. This research makes some implications obvious in relation to communication processes in the IT field for management and marketing

Pull attributes of the Algarve: the tourists' view

The Algarve is an internationally recognized tourist destination. The identification by tourists of the most valued attributes of this destination helps to explain the touristic demand for the Algarve. As such, the aim of this paper is twofold: to understand how tourists' socio-demographic profile influences their assessment of the main pull attributes of the Algarve, and to understand how such assessment affects the length of stay. Data were collected using a face-to-face questionnaire survey of 554 recently arrived tourists. Our results generally support previous findings. However, two results are unexpected: (1) despite "sun and beach" being the most valued attribute of the Algarve, more educated tourists value the attribute in a complementary manner with other attributes; and (2) first-time tourists from northern European countries are less impressed with the attributes of the Algarve, and, consequently, stay for shorter periods of time compared with other tourists.Fundacao para a Ciencia e a Tecnologia [UID/SOC/04020/2013]info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Sources of Innovation: The Case of Portuguese Consultancy Sector

This study addresses the effects of external environments on types of innovation introduced by Portuguese consultancy firms (PCs) in computer, technical, and management areas. It distinguishes the most determinant factors for innovation regarding product, process, organization, and marketing. The assessment framework followed three steps: 1) evaluation of propensity to use external sources of information and cooperation with agents, 2) identification of factors used most often during innovation, and 3) derivation of profiles of firms under study. The method generated tree-based classification models that segmented the sample into innovative and non-innovative firms, and distinct profiles that emphasized specificities concerning use of external sources and agents for innovation

Cooperation for innovation in services: learning from consultancy in Portugal

This study addresses the effects of different sources on types of innovation introduced by the Portuguese consultancy firms. It distinguishes the most influent factors in product, process, organisational and marketing innovations. The assessment framework incorporated three steps: 1) evaluating the propensity to use information sources and cooperate with external agents; 2) identifying the sources used most often during innovation; 3) deriving profiles of the sampled firms. The underlying methodology consisted of logistic regressions which have identified predictors and emphasised disparities concerning the use of internal/external sources and agents. Results suggest the potential of complementing internal sources with external knowledge for innovation purposes. Due to the economic crisis, investments tend to postpone product/service innovation type. Nevertheless, effective innovation drivers can come from customers, as sources for more tailored products/services, and from certain processes that can contribute to firms' integration and internationalisation