Allocation of inventive effort in complex product systems

This paper examines the allocation of inventive effort in complex product systems. I argue that complex product systems, e.g., personal computers (PCs), are distinguished by functional interaction among several components, each guided by a relatively autonomous bundle of technical and economic characteristics. I try to explore whether the dynamics of such interactions between components of complex product systems can help us understand changes in the relative allocation of inventive effort. I advance and empirically test three hypotheses: (1) emergence of component constraints (bottlenecks) in product systems will trigger research and development (R&D) investment to resolve the constraints; (2) slack component firms have a strong incentive to invest in resolving component constraints; and (3) the incentive of slack component firms to invest in resolving component constraints is increasing in their prior sunk R&D investments in slack components. In sum, I argue that interactions between components in a product system conditions the R&D incentives of firms and also that the incentives are increasing in their prior investments or capabilities. Using product reviews from technical journals, I trace the constraint components in the PC from 1981 to 1998 and attempt to predict shifts in the allocation of inventive effort in the subsequent period. The empirical results strongly support all three hypotheses. This study highlights the paradoxical effect of modularity in complex product systems. Modular design architectures, while contributing to accelerating the pace of technical change, also tend to limit the economic benefits of firms' component R&D efforts, especially when different components technologies are progressing at different rates. This often creates an impetus to enlarge the scope of firm R&D activities beyond the component product markets that firms operate in. Other implications for R&D decision making are discussed. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Business R&;D and the Interplay of R&;D Subsidies and Product Market Uncertainty

This paper examines the effect of product market uncertainty and government research and development (R&D) subsidies on firm-level R&D investment. Using a sample of German manufacturing firms, we find that product market uncertainty reduces R&D investment and government R&D subsidies increase R&D investment. Moreover, our results indicate that R&D subsidies mitigate the effect of product market uncertainty on R&D investment. These findings suggest that public policies aimed at increasing business R&D investment can achieve this objective by reducing the degree of uncertainty in the product market.      

Flexibility planning for managing R&D projects under risk

Incorporating managerial flexibility in an innovative R&D project is important, because managers face greater uncertainty in today's competitive and dynamic changing environment. It is essential to bring managerial flexibility into R&D project planning to decrease technical and market risks, while increasing potential market value. The objective of this paper is to develop a flexibility planning methodology based on real option analysis to improve managerial flexibility for R&D projects. The proposed methodology identifies potential risks that may occur during every R&D stage. It also recognizes a cascading option structure to resolve the identified risks, and evaluates and selects adequate options that maximize the potential value of the project. Instead of using a traditional option pricing method, a dynamic programming model that considers multidimensional product performance and market payoff is used to evaluate the R&D project value. Using the proposed methodology, managers can identify future scenarios as a function of their management actions. The proposed flexibility planning methodology can help managers improve managerial flexibility of R&D project and increase the success rate of product launch. A drug development project is used to illustrate the proposed methodology.     

The externalisation of R&D activities and the growing market of product development services

Several authors in recent years have discussed the observed trend towards the externalisation of (part of) a firm's R&D activities. As a consequence, several companies have been created that provide innovators with technical and scientific services such as R&D contracts, laboratory testing services, technology consulting, industrial design, engineering.
The paper is based upon an empirical study which consists of (i) an extensive analysis, in which information has been collected (for about two hundred companies) on size, location and type of services offered; (ii) an intensive analysis, in which one case is studied in depth of a company providing product development services. Some conclusions have been drawn regarding the characteristics of the market of product development services and the management and organisation of companies operating in that market.     

石化企业核心竞争力的分析

研究石化企业的核心竞争力的特征和结构，提出企业发展核心竞争力的战略。中国石化企业面临着国际资源市场资金竞争日益激烈、跨国公司影响力剧增、环保要求越来越高的新形势。要重视研究与开发(R&D)，加强核心竞争力战略研究，在国际竞争中培养成长能力、提升价值能力、发展独有技术，在战略重组和竞争合作中，转变发展方式、发挥优势、调整结构，走上可持续发展和绿色发展之路。     

Managing foreign R&D laboratories in China

This paper focuses on the management of R&D units established by foreign companies in China, investigating R&D missions, site build-up, integration with the parent organization, and overall performance measurement. The research is based on 37 qualitative expert interviews with local R&D directors and managers conducted between 2001 and 2004, using a semi-structured research questionnaire, and semi-quantitative research done on 199 foreign R&D labs in China. Cultural influences on R&D management, location advantages, expatriate involvement, and organizational evolution of local laboratories are discussed. We find that foreign R&D laboratories in China are not only important vehicles for local market development but also increasingly important sources of locally developed technology.     

研发与市场结构:基于成本视角的分析

本文从成本入手，探讨了研发与市场结构的关系。通过对平均成本、固定成本及知识特性的综合分析，认为由于技术复杂度的不断提高及研发带来的规模经济，在多数产业研发会导致市场集中度逐渐提高。通过对研发沉没成本的分析表明，在专利保护与许可证制度下，当研发导致的沉没成本比较小时，厂商数量较多的竞争性市场的福利好于寡占或垄断市场，因为其研发速度更快；反之，寡占或垄断市场的福利更好，因为研发的沉没成本得到了节约。在理论分析的基础上，本文就如何通过优化市场结构，提升我国企业研发能力，应对经济全球化的挑战，提出了三点对策。     

Does international research and development increase patent output? An analysis of Japanese pharmaceutical firms

Internationalizing research and development is often advocated as a strategy for fostering the development of technological capabilities. Although firms conduct international R&D to tap into knowledge bases that reside in foreign countries, we argue that in order to benefit from international R&D investments firms must already possess research capabilities in underlying or complementary technologies. We examine the international R&D expansion activities, research capabilities, and patent output of 65 Japanese pharmaceutical firms from 1980 to 1991. We find that firms benefit from international R&D only when they possess existing research capabilities in the underlying technologies. In addition to refining our understanding of when international R&D enhances firm innovation, our results integrate asset‐seeking and asset‐based theories of foreign direct investment. Internationalizing R&D to tap into foreign knowledge bases is consistent with asset‐seeking theories of foreign direct investment, while the contingent nature by which firms benefit from international R&D is consistent with asset‐based theories of foreign direct investment and the notion of absorptive capacity. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

企业R＆D商业化能力研究

知识经济的飞速发展凸显出技术创新的重要性，企业R＆D商业化能力作为企业技术创新能力的重要组成部分越来越被人们所重视。本文认为，企业R＆D商业化能力的强弱在很大程度上影响着R＆D投入的收益多少．企业可以从多个层次来改善其R＆D商业化的水平．不同的商业化途径对R＆D的盈利水平亦有着显著影响。企业应该重视其R＆D商业化能力的改善．因为．它为企业在技术创新活动中实现真正意义上的自主提供了必要的资源支持．是企业实现自主创新战略的必然选择。     

Entry mode,organizational learning,and R&D in foreign affiliates: evidence from Japanese firms

This paper develops hypotheses concerning the role of entry mode and experience‐based organizational learning as determinants of the R&D intensity of foreign affiliates and tests these hypotheses on a sample of 420 Japanese manufacturing affiliates abroad. Entry mode has a major impact on R&D activities: the R&D intensities of acquired affiliates substantially exceed those in wholly owned greenfield affiliates, while the R&D intensities of minority owned ventures are higher if Japanese parent firms lack strong R&D capabilities at home. For greenfield operations, support is found for an incremental growth pattern of foreign R&D as a function of organizational learning and affiliate capability building. The results are consistent with the view that part of the explanation for Japanese firms' relative lack of involvement in overseas R&D must be sought in their status as ‘latecomers’ in the establishment of overseas manufacturing networks. At the same time, a number of Japanese firms have actively used foreign acquisitions and joint ventures to gain access to overseas technology and to establish overseas R&D capabilities at a faster pace. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

中国高技术产业研发效率的实证研究

本文利用随机前沿生产函数测算了中国高技术产业的研发效率，并考察了企业规模、市场结构和所有权结构等因素对研发效率的影响。主要研究结论是：中国高技术产业的研发效率整体偏低，但呈现稳步上升状态，行业间效率差异有逐步缩小趋势。企业规模和市场竞争程度与研发效率之间存在着显著的正相关关系．外商投资企业和国有企业比重对研发效率也有正向影响，但外商投资企业对研发效率的贡献程度更高。     

The national innovation system and foreign R&D: the case of Taiwan

R&D internationalization has increasingly involved countries outside the developed world. In addition, there has been a growing trend for countries in East Asia to seek to attract the R&D facilities of multinationals (MNCs). For such countries, they are faced with a fundamental question as to what kinds of impact MNCs' offshore R&D facilities will have on their own countries, especially in terms of technological innovation and industrial development. Set against the above backdrop, this paper sets out to examine a relatively new aspect of R&D internationalization related to global innovation networks and to open up the blackbox of the spillover effect regarding foreign R&D by examining the interplay of foreign R&D and Taiwan's national innovation system. The empirical part of the paper draws mainly upon intensive case studies of four high-profile foreign R&D facilities in the IT industry. The way foreign R&D interplays with Taiwan's NIS is examined in terms of the market & technology linkages.     

Strategy in pharmaceutical R&D: a portfolio risk matrix

The management of any research-intensive company must weigh carefully the expenditure on any particular development product with the sales revenues that are likely to be obtained when the new product is introduced to the market. In particular, the technical risk (whether the development product results in a marketable product) and the market risk (whether the new product can be introduced to a suitable market niche where it will generate the required revenues) have to be scrutinised.
This paper sets out to develop an original model by Drews into a methodology for assessing the risk associated with a company's research portfolio. To test a model they had developed, the authors carried out in-depth interviews with three British pharmaceutical multinational companies, and compared the overall technical/market risk profiles of their respective development portfolios. Some interesting differences between the three were detected in terms of the overall risk profiles, in market risk, and in technical risk. The authors conclude that the matrix described here may be a useful tool in discriminating between the risk levels of the research portfolios of several companies; it may also be useful for plotting the movement of a particular firm's research risk over time.
While this paper concentrates on comparing the portfolios of three pharmaceutical firms at a particular point in time, R&D managers in other industries and other situations may find some evaluative utility in the model.     

Uncertainty and the market valuation of R&D within a real options logic

The aim of this study is to provide new theoretical insights and empirical evidence on the effect of market and technological uncertainty on the market valuation of a firm's R&D capital. A set of hypotheses is developed adopting a real options logic and tested on a panel dataset of 290 manufacturing firms traded in the UK. Consistently with our theoretical model, we show that market and technological uncertainty have distinct effects on the valuation of R&D investments. The results have several important implications for resource allocation to R&D under uncertainty, which we discuss in the concluding section. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

R&D spending,domestic competition,and export performance of Japanese manufacturing firms

This paper examines three factors influencing the export performances of Japanese manufacturing firms: R&D spending, domestic competitive position, and firm size. Export sales are positively associated with (1) R&D expenditures, (2) size of a firm, and (3) average R&D intensity of an industry. A firm's export ratio is related to the size of the firm, but not to the firm's and the industry's R&D intensities. Follower firms are characterized by higher export ratios than market leaders. The results indicate a relationship between the patterns of domestic competition and the international competitiveness of Japanese firms.     

International R&D partnerships and intrafirm R&D–marketing–production integration of manufacturing firms in emerging economies

Although cross-functional integration is important for research and development (R&D), research about implications of cross-functional integration has been rather sparse. In new product development (NPD), no study to date has examined intrafirm as well as interfirm integration of key functions such as intrafirm R&D–marketing–production together with interfirm integration of host R&D–partner R&D. Such marketing and operations interface contributes to a better understanding of how operational and marketing activities impact on competitiveness and firm performance. This study collected data from 202 electronics manufacturing firms operating in an emerging economy, mainland China and Hong Kong with international R&D partnerships. The findings indicate that a high level of R&D integration between firms improved NPD performance when cross-functional integration is based on existing rather than new product configurations and key technologies. Interestingly, in high distance situations, cross-functional integration in the production validation stage generated NPD success. The findings show that high environmental uncertainties lead to a high level of host and partner firms R&D integration. However, product newness has no significant effects on R&D integration in any of the NPD stages.     

软件企业R＆D治理边界与结构

软件企业R&D人力资本价值升值及其产权的认可与实现,导致传统的公司治理活动由企业高层向下延伸到了企业的R&D活动中。本文通过探讨“公司治理”的本质及其与“公司经营管理”的区别,较为科学地界定了软件企业R&D治理的概念及其内涵,提出并论证了软件企业R&D治理的边界,在此基础之上,初步构造了软件企业R&D治理的结构要素,并对其进行了特征分析。     

Right person in the right place: How the host country IPR influences the distribution of inventors in offshore R&D projects of multinational enterprises

Research summary : Prior work has shown that the strength of the intellectual property regime (IPR) in a host country influences offshore R&D to that country. Building on this work we propose that the strength of the IPR in a host country differentially influences the threat of knowledge leakage on projects that are produced for the location where the multinational firm is headquartered (home) versus the offshore location to which the R&D project is sent (host). We argue and show that when the host location has a weak IPR, fewer host inventors are involved in host R&D projects when compared to home R&D projects. We test our hypotheses using a dataset of patents held by US assignees, but coinvented in 43 host locations with differing IPR strength. Managerial summary : Multinational enterprises often cite the weak IPRs at emerging economy host destinations as a significant impediment to offshore R&D activities in those countries, despite the abundant supply of inexpensive scientific talent there. We find that the weak IPR at the host destination is a greater impediment to offshore R&D that is aimed for end use at the host market than for R&D that is aimed for end use globally or in the home market. Since IPRs are local, a weaker IPR at the host location does not protect IP that is relevant to the host market. Since the IPR at the home country is more relevant for technologies aimed at the home market, the IPR at the host country is irrelevant for such R&D projects. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Does R&D offshoring lead to SME growth? Different governance modes and the mediating role of innovation

Research summary : In this article, we address the role of R&D offshoring strategies in the sales growth of small‐ and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs). We propose that different governance modes of R&D offshoring—insourcing versus outsourcing—may lead to growth, but that they differ in their effects. In turn, we argue that innovation mediates the relation between international R&D sourcing strategies and sales growth. Based on a large database of SME manufacturing enterprises in Spain, we find that offshore outsourcing positively affects sales growth both directly and indirectly, while offshore insourcing only affects sales growth indirectly via innovation results. The analysis reveals different contributions of each governance mode to sales growth and the mediating role of innovation in the relation between R&D offshoring and firm growth. Managerial summary : We analyze how different governance modes of international R&D sourcing—offshore insourcing and outsourcing—may contribute to growth in SMEs. Modes of offshore R&D outsourcing positively affect the growth of sales in two ways. One effect is direct, produced by improved efficiency, flexibility, enhanced resources, and access to new markets. And the other effect is indirect as offshore R&D outsourcing favors the achievement of innovations, and this in turn, positively affects firm growth. For their part, captive modes only exert an indirect effect. Offshore R&D insourcing contributes to the achievement of innovations, and thus, ultimately to firm growth in so far as these innovations enable SMEs to increase sales. Therefore, innovation results perform a mediating role in the relation between R&D offshoring and sales growth. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.