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on Knowledge Management and Knowledge Economy |
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Issue of 2019‒10‒21
seven papers chosen by Laura Ştefănescu Centrul European de Studii Manageriale în Administrarea Afacerilor |
| By: | Sara Amoroso (European Commission - JRC); Simone Vannuccini |
| Abstract: | The participation of top R&D players to publicly funded research collaborations is a common yet unexplored phenomenon. If, on the one hand, including top R&D firms creates opportunities for knowledge spillovers and increases the chance for a project to be funded, on the other hand, the uneven nature of such partnerships and the asymmetry in knowledge appropriation capabilities could hinder the overall performance of such collaborations. In this paper, we study the role of top R&D investors in the performance of publicly funded R&D consortia (in terms of number of patents and publications). Using a unique dataset that matches information on R&D collaborative projects and proposals with data on international top R&D firms, we find that indeed teaming up with leading R&D firms increases the probability to obtain funds. However, the participation of such R&D leaders hinders the innovative performance of the funded projects, both in terms of patents and publications. In light of this evidence, the benefits of mobilizing top R&D players should be carefully leveraged in the evaluation and design of innovation policies aimed at R&D collaboration and technology diffusion. |
| Keywords: | Collaboration, public funding, innovation performance, appropriability, top R&D investor |
| Date: | 2019–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:wpaper:201905&r=all |
| By: | Simplice A. Asongu (Yaoundé/Cameroon); Nicholas M. Odhiambo (Pretoria, South Africa) |
| Abstract: | Compared to other regions of the world, Africa is lagging in its drive toward knowledge-based economies. This study systematically reviews the literature in order to highlight the policies and strategies with which African countries can accelerate their current drive towards building knowledge-based economies. These are discussed in terms of three pillars of the World Bank’s knowledge economy framework. They are the indices for: (i) education and skilled population, (ii) information and communication technology and (iii) economic incentives and institutional regime. |
| Keywords: | Knowledge economy; Development; Africa |
| JEL: | O10 O30 O38 O55 O57 |
| Date: | 2019–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:agd:wpaper:19/072&r=all |
| By: | Johan Miorner; Gabriel Rissola (European Commission - JRC); Jens Sorvik; Joakim Wernberg |
| Abstract: | While digitalisation is oftentimes thought of as a global megatrend and something that transcends national borders and geographical distances, it is at the same time a very tangible process exhibiting considerable regional and sectoral variation. Against this backdrop, Digital Innovation Hubs (DIHs) (a policy initiative in the context of the Digitising European Industry (DEI) strategy of the EU) constitute an important complementary and regionally anchored policy, whose impact can be boosted if combined with other EU-wide innovation supporting initiatives (i.e. regional/national innovation strategies). After three years of the launch and successful deployment of the DIHs initiative, a survey has been conducted among DIH managers and regional policy managers working with Smart Specialisation Strategies all over the EU28. The survey provided a useful insight of the digital maturity level of the regional contexts in which DIHs operate and what role they have undertaken in their respective regions, as well as the DIHs' characteristics and activities in their regional context and other important aspects such as collaboration, strategies and funding. This report consists of a thorough analysis of the collected answers. Delivered together with a case study analysis of six (6) regional DIHs in different socio-economic contexts (separate report), they aim at providing useful evidence on current strengths, weaknesses and variations of DIHs also in view of the planning for the upcoming Digital Europe Programme (DEP) and its funding priorities. |
| Keywords: | Digital Innovation Hubs, DIH, Smart Specialisation Strategies, S3, RIS3, digital growth, digital transformation, digitisation, industry, SME, regional policy, survey |
| Date: | 2019–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:iptwpa:jrc117910&r=all |
| By: | Alan Paic (OECD); Camille Viros (OECD) |
| Abstract: | This document provides learnings from 13 case studies on governance mechanisms of national and supranational science, technology and innovation initiatives. As countries strive to resolve societal challenges, “mission-oriented” approaches complement traditional ones centred on national competitiveness, specific industrial sectors or technologies. Governance settings contribute overall to a more inclusive, transparent and responsible STI system, in particular through a whole-of-government approach, the consultation of academia, the private sector and civil society, the implementation of strategies by professional agencies, and the increasingly common use of evaluation. Several critical dimensions facilitate the success of STI policies. They include a commitment at the highest level of government, strong public-private collaboration in R&D, continuous evaluation and improvement, a “mission-oriented” approach, coherence of policies and flexibility in setting priorities, as well as overall harmonisation and rationalisation of programmes in order to maximise efficiency and reduce duplication. |
| Date: | 2019–10–17 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:stiaac:84-en&r=all |
| By: | Robert S. Gibbons; Manuel Grieder; Holger Herz; Christian Zehnder |
| Abstract: | Effective organizations are able not only to coordinate their members on efficient strategies but also to adapt members’ strategies to unforeseen change in an efficient manner. We explore whether part of organizational culture - namely, relational contracts that facilitate both coordi-nation and adaptation - enable organizations to achieve these ends. In a novel experiment, we explore how parties establish such relational contracts, whether they achieve efficient coopera-tion, and how they adapt to exogenous shocks. Specifically, we test the hypothesis that basing a relational contract on general principles rather than specific rules is more successful in achieving efficient adaptation. In our Baseline condition, we observe that pairs who articulate general principles achieve significantly higher performance than those who rely on specific rules. The mechanism underlying this correlation is that pairs with principle-based agreements are more likely to expect their pair to take actions that are consistent with what their relational contract prescribes. To investigate whether there is a causal link between principle-based agreements and performance, we implement a “Nudge” intervention to foster principle-based relational con-tracts. The Nudge succeeds in motivating more pairs to formulate principles and in making pairs significantly more likely to select efficient initial choices. However, the intervention fails to increase performance in the long run. Our results suggest that principle-based relational con-tracts may improve organizational performance, but our results also illustrate the difficulty of building such an organizational culture, which is consistent with the idea that high-performing relational contracts constitute a competitive advantage only if they are difficult to imitate. |
| Keywords: | organization economics, adaptation, relational contracts |
| JEL: | D02 D23 L14 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7871&r=all |
| By: | Fredrick Wamalwa; Justine Burns |
| Abstract: | Evidence gathered over the past 40 years demonstrates that education is important, both at the micro and macro level. Education has been associated with increase in workers’ productivity, higher economic growth, improved health status and reduced crime among other non-monetary outcomes. |
| Date: | 2018–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:rza:wpaper:722&r=all |
| By: | Goel, Rajeev K.; Nelson, Michael A. |
| Abstract: | Using data on 135 countries, this paper studies the determinants of process innovation introduction, focusing on the impacts of economic and political uncertainties. Greater uncertainty, on the one hand, can lower potential benefits from innovation introductions, while on the other hand, the introduction of innovations might enable firms to hedge against uncertainty. The empirical literature has mostly considered uncertainty-investment nexus, and this study uniquely considers uncertainty-innovation introductions. Employing two different measures of economic and political uncertainty across different time lags, results are consistent with the hedging story - greater economic and political uncertainties induce firms to introduce process innovations to the market. With regard to firms' attributes, sole proprietorships and R&D-performing firms were more likely to introduce innovations, while firms located in island nations were less likely to do so. Firms' size and vintage did not have an appreciable influence on the incentives to introduce innovations. Some policy implications of these findings are discussed. |
| Keywords: | economic uncertainty,political uncertainty,stability,innovation,hedging,R&D,sole proprietorship,inflation,state fragility |
| JEL: | O33 O31 O57 L29 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:ifwkwp:2142&r=all |