Persistence of innovation and firm’s growth: evidence from a panel of SME and large Spanish manufacturing firms

This paper estimates the effect of persistence of innovation on employment in Spanish manufacturing firms during the period 1990–2008. Using GMM-system estimations, we study the importance of persistence of product and process innovation on employment growth according to the size of the firms. The results support that process innovation shows a positive effect on employment, especially for SMEs, while the effect of product innovation is not significant. The study also distinguishes that this effect appears in the contemporaneous year but it increases with the number of lags. This result confirms that compensation effects of process innovation may appear with a certain delay justifying the importance for SMEs of being persistent in innovation strategies to make them compatible with employment growth.     

HEURISTICS,THE NON‐MAXIMIZING FIRM AND EFFICIENT ALLOCATION

It has been suggested that the theory of the firm can be modified and improved by shifting to a (non‐maximizing) heuristic approach that is able to explain how relatively efficient outcomes can be brought about by the use of ‘fast and frugal’ decision rules. The paper argues, however, that certain heuristic mechanisms, which may have great appeal to entrepreneurs in practice, tend to lead firms to worse solutions than those that could be achieved in a neoinstitutional system with the use of other methods. Moreover, competition cannot be relied upon to eliminate such misallocation, and may even serve to promote the problem.     

The impact of social norms on entrepreneurial action: Evidence from the environmental entrepreneurship context

Using insights from institutional theory, sociology, and entrepreneurship we develop and test a model of the relationship between centralized and decentralized institutions on entrepreneurial activity. We suggest that both decentralized institutions that are socially determined as well as centralized institutions that are designed by governmental authorities are important in promoting firm foundings in the environmental context. In a sample of the U.S. solar energy sector we find that state-sponsored incentives, environmental consumption norms, and norms of family interdependence are related to new firm entry in this sector. Our findings also suggest that the efficacy of state-level policies in the sponsoring of entrepreneurial growth is dependent upon the social norms that prevail in the entrepreneur's environment. We expand entrepreneurship theory and the study of institutions and the natural environment by demonstrating the integral role that social norms play in influencing the creation of new firms and by illustrating the potential effect social norms have on the effect of policy that seeks to encourage environmentally responsible economic activity.     

An Examination of Entrepreneurship Centers in the United States: A National Survey

This study fills a gap in previous research by performing an in-depth analysis of 146 entrepreneurship centers in the United States. This two-part study looks at the characteristics of the entire sample of entrepreneurship centers and then examines the differences between top-ranked centers and nonranked centers. The findings indicate that top-ranked centers have three times as many endowed chairs as nonranked centers. Top-ranked centers also offer more comprehensive graduate programs. Overall, top-ranked centers have more resources and personnel. The findings of this study will assist students, faculty, staff, administrators, directors, and other stakeholders of entrepreneurship centers.     

The cluster approach in the innovation development strategy of foreign countries

Foreign experience in carrying out cluster policy and the scales of distribution and the variety of cluster structure types abroad are considered and generalized. The main attention is given to innovation directivity as the key factor of increasing regional and national economic competitiveness. The important role of the state in formation of effective cluster policy providing substantial improvement in the business climate and stimulating the priority development of high-tech fields is placed in strong relief. The next issue of the journal will contain an article about the situation in Russia (Ed.).     

Equity and efficiency considerations in area versus individual yield insurance

Equity and efficiency considerations in area versus individual crop insurance are investigated for 609 Ontario cash crop farms. Results show that the relationship between individual and area premiums and risk reduction are explained by systematic and non-systematic yield risk relationships. On average, area insurance premiums are much lower than individual yield insurance premiums, and in terms of efficiency in risk-reduction individual plans are superior to area plans. As it turns out arguments of asymmetric information which has lead some researchers to investigate area vs. individual yield insurance is not totally resolved. Inequities in the benefits of area plans across farmers are not equitably distributed, favouring high-risk producers. Adverse selection causes instability in the pooled contracts which will ultimately cause area insurance plans to fail.     

The impact of capital transfer tax on agriculture a preliminary assessment

Abstract

This paper aims to measure and compare technical efficiencies in the England and Wales dairy sector from stochastic production functions in the immediate post‐quota period. Milk Marketing Board data for a stratified random sample of dairy farms for 1984/85, 1985/86 and 1986/87 are used. The results show that average levels of efficiency have initially fallen and then stabilized over this period. Moreover, there is a high degree of correlation between the rankings of the efficiency measures.