The Geography of Knowledge Sourcing—A Case Study of Polish Manufacturing Enterprises

The assumption that geographic proximity between innovating partners is of great importance is widely unquestioned and it has been documented by studies of high-tech areas in advanced countries. Until now, the pattern of cooperation among firms in low- and medium-tech industry in more peripheral locations has not been a subject of study to the same degree. This article sets out to question the rationales behind the territorial innovation theories, and, in particular, their views on the role of the region in the era of globalization. It is found that the regional focus is less fruitful when it comes to explaining the innovation pattern of individual firms today. Notions of proximity are particularly suited for identifying the spatial variety of inter-firm relations, in combination with notions of firm capabilities. Against this background, the article detects the pattern and role of knowledge sourcing of low- and medium-tech firms in a peripheral context of Poland. It sheds light on the capability of firms to source useful knowledge for innovation, and particularly, on the geography of their knowledge sourcing. The analysis shows that the firms are capable of sourcing knowledge in a flexible and complex way, and that a division of labour exists between regional, global and national knowledge sources. Global sources are seen as the most important sources of innovation, while the regional level basically provides a labour market and entrepreneurship. Thus, the research of this article does not support ideas of clustering or local buzz or of perceiving the region as mediator. On the contrary, the research suggests that knowledge sourcing for innovation is global. The theoretical part of the paper is rooted in a critical assessment of the ongoing debate on “proximity”. (A more detailed assessment can be found in a paper by the author presented at the ESF exploratory workshop on “The governance of networks as a determinant of local economic development”, San Sebastian, 16--18 November 2005, and at the Regional Studies International conference on ‘Regional Growth Agendas’ on 28--31 May 2005 in Aalborg University, Denmark.) The empirical focus of the paper is knowledge sourcing strategies at firm level. The empirical part of the paper is based on the analysis of interviews performed at 23 companies in two Polish cities in 2000, 2001 and 2002 (Lorentzen, 2005).