Fiscal competition and regional differentiation

Regions can benefit by offering infrastructure services that are differentiated. Competition between regions over potential investors is then less direct, allowing them to realize greater benefits from external investors. The two polar cases of full and incomplete information about investors' needs are studied. In both cases, there is regional differentiation. However, fiscal competition is efficient in the former case but not in the latter. Finally, it is shown that free entry in the location market calls for some regulation because of the excessive number of competing regions that would prevail in equilibrium.     

管理创新的"力场"分析

管理创新是在各种力的交互作用下产生的一种不规则性活动,只有当管理创新的动力大于阻力并取得支配地位时,管理创新行为才可能发生.管理创新的动力主要来源于需求拉力、竞争压力、利益内驱力、科技推力及政策激励力五个方面,而管理创新的阻力则主要来源于人的因素、组织的因素以及物质技术条件等.只有明确管理创新的"力场"构成,才能有目的地增强动力、克服阻力,实现增"正"减"负",从而推动管理创新活动的顺利进行.     

Impact of policy distortions on firm-level innovation,productivity dynamics and TFP

A large literature emphasizes that distortions misallocate resources across firms and are a key source of productivity losses. This paper examines the dynamic effects of distortions when they affect not only the allocation of resources but also firm-level incentives to improve productivity. I consider a setting where firms spend on innovation and thereby influence the evolution of productivity. When distortions are tied to productivity, firm-level innovation falls and the distribution over productivity becomes right-skewed. Quantitatively, TFP and average output falls and is amplified through the innovation channel. When distortions are uniform across firms, instead of correlated with productivity, the effects on TFP and average output are dampened.     

Strategic location choice under dynamic oligopolistic competition and spillovers

This paper investigates firms׳ optimal location choices explicitly accounting for the role of inwards and outwards knowledge spillovers in a dynamic Cournot oligopoly with firms that are heterogeneous in their ability to carry out cost-reducing R&D. Firms can either locate in an industrial cluster or in isolation. Technological spillovers are exchanged between the firms located in the cluster. It is shown that a technological leader has an incentive to locate in isolation only if her advantage exceeds a certain threshold, which is increasing in firms׳ discount rate, in industry dispersion, and in the intensity of knowledge spillovers. Scenarios are identified where although it is optimal for the technological leader to locate in isolation, from a welfare perspective it would be desirable that she locates in the cluster.     

Communication channels,innovation tasks and NPD project outcomes in innovation-driven horizontal networks

Inter-organizational collaborations and horizontal networks are increasingly playing a pivotal role in innovations and new product development among firms. In this study, we investigate the link between the innovation task analyzability and the richness of communications channels used in network arrangements and the link between task analyzability and ties and project development time. We investigated the links based on the data collected from 372 respondents representing ninety three different innovation-driven horizontal networks. The results of structural equation modeling reveal a negative link from task analyzability to communication channel richness and a positive link from communication channel richness to ties. Communication channel richness was found to partially mediate the influence that task analyzability has on both NPD project outcomes of ties and development time. The implications of our results for theory and practice are discussed.     

Vertical differentiation,product innovation,and dynamic competition

This paper presents an infinite horizon dynamic model in which two firms compete in a market vertically differentiated by the qualities of their products and consumers have heterogeneous preferences for quality. Given the product qualities offered, the firms engage in price competition that segments the market. In each period each firm can spend on product innovation that if successful increases the quality of its product. Three types of Markov perfect equilibria are identified. A running–coasting equilibrium exhibits increasing quality dominance with one firm undertaking innovation and the other coasting to free ride on the innovation by the first firm. The firm that coasts can have the larger dynamic payoff, so quality dominance does not imply payoff dominance. A second is a leap‐frog equilibrium in which the trailing firm undertakes innovation to leap into the lead. The trailing firm never innovates solely to narrow the gap with the leader, so catch up strategies are never used. In the third both firms undertake innovation, but if both have innovation successes, product differentiation remains the same and profits are reduced by the cost of innovation. The rivalry between Intel and AMD in microprocessors for personal computers provides a motivating example.     

The interaction of multiple champions in orchestrating innovation networks: Conflicts and complementarities

In networked or open innovation processes, so-called innovation communities have been identified in the innovation champion literature, in which innovation champions from different levels in the innovation system supposedly act as a team. It has however not been studied in detail to what extent and how different champions in innovation communities complement each other and act as a team. Applying the concept of innovation network orchestration to analyze the role and position of different kinds of champions as brokers in innovation networks, the purpose of this paper is to unravel the interaction between champions and what this entails in terms of role complementarities and conflicts as regards innovation network orchestration. This is done by using an explorative multiple case study approach in which three innovation journeys are analyzed. The results indicate that a distinction can be made between primary innovation communities, who act as aggregated orchestrators of the overall innovation network, and who in turn orchestrate secondary innovation communities in certain sub-networks. Here different kinds of champions complement each other and act as a team, but these complementarities are not a given: they are negotiated over time in interaction, and lack of reflection on each other’s roles may result in role conflicts. The main conclusion is that an oversimplified notion of innovation communities as a unified team of champions should be avoided: innovation communities themselves need a form of orchestration.     

Organizational complexity and participatory innovation: participatory budgeting in local government

ABSTRACT

In this study, we examined the relationship between organizational complexity and the adoption of participatory innovation in German municipal government. We proposed that organizations with more complex organizational structures are more likely to adopt participatory innovation. We investigated municipalities (N = 394) of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and used participatory budgeting as an indicator for innovation. Our results indicate that organizational complexity expressed by functional differentiation has a positive relationship with the occurrence of participatory innovation. The results inform a debate about the value trade-offs that are inherent to the structural design of public organizations.     

The innovation decision: An economic analysis

Studies of the determinants and effects of innovation commonly make an assumption about the way in which firms make the decision to innovate, but rarely test this assumption. Using a panel of Irish manufacturing firms we test the performance of two alternative models of the innovation decision, and find that a two-stage model (the firm decides whether to innovate, then whether to perform product only, process only or both) outperforms a one-stage, simultaneous model. We also find that external knowledge sourcing affects the innovation decision and the type of innovation undertaken in a way not previously recognised in the literature.     

Improvisation for innovation: The contingent role of resource and structural factors in explaining innovation capability

This paper focuses on resource and structural factors to explore the relationship between organizational improvisation and innovation capability. Although the role of improvisation has attracted increasing academic attention in fast-changing environments, little is known about the conditions under which firms benefit from improvisation. This paper addresses this gap using an organizational learning perspective that explains the role of a firm's organizational structure and organizational resources for improvisation and innovation. A large-scale survey in China finds that firms vary in their levels of (I) centralization and formalization of decision making and (II) resource slack and investment irreversibility and that these factors moderate the relationship between improvisation and innovation capability in distinct ways. Consistent with our theorizing, improvisation enhances innovation capability when firms have a decentralized but formalized structure or pursue the dual goals of maximizing resource slack and minimizing investment irreversibility.     

Mapping the benefits and costs associated with process innovation: The case of RFID adoption

The successful implementation of any innovation requires an understanding of its benefits and costs. This study examines the changes in the magnitude of costs and benefits associated with technology process innovation adoption as the innovation diffuses across different industries. Using RFID as an exemplar technology, the study shows that the magnitude of benefits and costs associated with technological process innovation adoption within different industries varies as technology diffuses beyond early adopters to the early majority. During the early stages of technology evolution, the development cost, the cost of capital, ethical costs and simple direct implementation costs (in the form of the cost of tags) predominate. As a dominant design emerges the profile of costs changes with the emphasis on initiation costs, more holistic direct implementation costs and indirect implementation costs. A similar change in the emphasis of benefits is observed, with a shift from direct to indirect benefits being noticeable as the technology moves from early adopters to early majority adopters. Our findings help to explain the difficulties in consistently measuring innovation outcomes observed in the innovation implementation literature, and emphasize the need to take into consideration the stage of technology development as a significant factor that influences the realised outcomes from innovation implementation.     

The direct and indirect impact of culture on innovation

Innovationʼs centrality and importance in international operations has been a subject of enduring debate in the age of globalization. Cross-border knowledge spillovers and the race between nations for increased innovativeness only underscore the importance of innovation. One aspect of this discussion concerns the effect of national culture on the ability to be innovative. Following Shane, 1992. Journal of Business Venturing. 7, 29–46; Shane, 1993. Journal of Business Venturing 8, 59–73 research, the present study aims to examine the impact, both direct and indirect, of culture on the motivation to innovate at the national level over a period of time. The findings support the claim that although some change had occurred in this impact, most cultural aspects still demonstrate strong and lasting impact on the tendency to innovate at the national level.     

Types of innovation and inter-firm co-operation

The paper presents the results of an empirical study that aims to investigate the impact of interfirm co-operation over innovation on four different types of innovation: product, process, incremental and radical innovation. Drawing on the innovative milieu literature, the impact on the above four types of innovation was tested for both external and internal factors of innovation such as inter-firm co-operation over innovation, production networking, as well as R&D investment and R&D personnel. Four probit models were run by using a unique data set compiled as part of the Regional Innovation Strategy for the West Midlands (UK) Project. The main findings of the paper seem to provide substantial evidence that, for any of the four types of innovation considered, firms' capacity to innovate could greatly improve if they co-operated with other firms over innovation in addition to or instead of investing in R&D. Innovation policy should not overlook, therefore, the systemic component of innovation and ought to attempt to initiate and support inter-firm co-operation. This would mean a renewed and more focused analysis of firms' clusters as part of a multi-faceted approach to innovation policy.     

The blind spots of collaborative innovation

In discussing some of the core claims of collaborative innovation, this article uses the notion of ‘blind spots’ in a double meaning. On the one hand, it points at some blind spots in the debate on collaborative innovation, i.e. potential weaknesses, risks, and unintended effects of public sector innovation strategies resting on principles of collaborative innovation. Second, the paper considers collaborative innovation as a counter-strategy against blind spots and attention biases of public organizations. Drawing on this perspective helps to critically discuss some of the key assumptions supporting the promise of collaborative innovation to deliver benefits critical for public governance.     

Dynamic capabilities,creativity and innovation capability and their impact on competitive advantage and firm performance: The moderating role of entrepreneurial orientation

Some scholars hold that dynamic capability (hereinafter DC) is one of the keys to achieving competitive advantage (hereinafter CA) and consequently, performance in strategic management. However, the definition and effects of DCs and the role of environmental dynamism are still under discussion. In the context of a Portuguese-like economy and from a strategic process perspective, this study defines dynamic capability as the potential to systematically solve problems, enabled by its propensity to sense opportunities and threats, to make timely decisions, and to implement strategic decisions and changes efficiently, thereby ensuring the right direction. Moreover, the ambidexterity view, exploring the indirect impact of exploitative and explorative capabilities, mediated by creativity and innovation competences (hereinafter IC) gives evidence of the influence on CA and firm's performance. Using an empirical study of 387 enterprises in Portugal, it was found that DCs, creativity and IC do significantly, positively, affect performance, while entrepreneurial orientation (hereinafter EO) is a moderator.     

中国城市居住分异的演化与特征

在对中国城市居住分异进行阶段梳理的基础上,分析现阶段城市居住分异的特点,认为居住分异在空间上已经由大尺度的分异转向大尺度混合、中等尺度的分异,即在城市尤其大城市的内城或近郊区都呈现各类收入阶层居住社区混合现象,楼盘(小区)成为当今城市新的居住分异单元;同时,中国居住空间分异的形成、演变与住房供给方式的发展、演变直接相关。     

Regional innovation disparities in Italy: The role of governance

This paper analyses the link between institutional quality and innovation for 103 Italian NUTS-3 provinces during the 2004–2012 period, providing fresh evidence for a country with great disparities in both aspects. Results suggest that institutional quality largely drives innovation performance across provinces, and to some extent it contributes to explain the great North-South Italian divide in terms of innovation. The findings are robust to the inclusion of spatial spillovers and to the control of potential endogeneity. Moreover, we find uneven effects for different levels of institutional quality and for its distinct pillars. These results can be useful for the design of more specific innovation policies.     

The Organizational Innovation System: A systemic framework for radical innovation at the organizational level

Most research on innovation management at the organizational level has typically been focused on one specific innovation project phase or innovation management concept. This has resulted in many valuable insights, though scattered in different (innovation) research fields and studies. With the development of the Organizational Innovation System (OIS), we bring together important insights from the Innovation Systems, Open Innovation and other related fields into a guiding concept useful for both innovation managers developing (radical) innovations and innovation scholars. In this paper, we define the OIS and its key structural components, and discuss the identified functions and categories of potential imperfections. With the OIS, we provide a holistic, hands-on concept currently lacking in the open innovation approach. From the conceptualization, a framework for analysis is put forward which provides structure to the study of ongoing and finished innovation processes. Additionally, the development of the OIS is a first step in the development of a currently underdeveloped micro-level within the innovation systems perspective. The insights in OISs and the future insights derived from analytical efforts, will not only be beneficial for the performance of innovating organizations and organizational innovation systems but also for the performance of the higher, interconnected system levels.     

The timing of trademark application in innovation processes

An emerging stream of literature is studying the extent to which trademarks can be used to measure innovation. The picture of the usefulness of trademarks for innovation studies, however, is far from complete. Starting with cues from the patent literature, this paper studies the relationship between the timing of trademark applications and innovation. The trademark literature provides competing predictions on whether companies apply for trademarks early or late in the innovation process. Using a large sample of trademarks referring to innovation, we undertake a first empirical test of these predictions. Our findings suggest that in many instances reality is not as clear cut as the predictions suggest. However, when trademark data is combined with data on firm age, sector and size it is possible to predict whether a trademark refers to early or late-stage innovation.     

Location, innovation and trade: The role of localization and nation-based externalities

This paper models locales that produce goods for trade outside their boundaries. We use a model that assumes monopolistic competition in both service and traded goods sectors; and, influenced by Porter (The Competitive Advantage of Nations, The Free Press, New York, 1990), we study the impact of both a localization externality and a nation-based externality. The localization externality is related to innovation that occurs because of agglomeration in the locale. The nation-based externality reflects the idea that some nations promote competitive industries more successfully than do others. We identify two types of comparative statics effects related to two distinct results of innovation.