IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/ebl/ecbull/eb-20-00656.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

International R&D teams: Performance effects and the moderating role of technological competences

Author

Listed:
  • Daniel Sommer

    (University of Hohenheim, Germany)

  • Bernd Ebersberger

    (University of Hohenheim, Germany)

Abstract

Firms increasingly internationalize their R&D teams in order to exploit a broader range of inventor backgrounds and to benefit from local competencies. We analyze the effects of internationality in R&D teams, measured on a complete patent data sample by European firms. We measure team member internationality and include the level of technological competency at the inventors' locations in the relevant fields, through the Revealed Technological Advantage (RTA). With a quantile regression we break down our results for different levels of patent quality, compared to a baseline OLS. Our results indicate that while the effect of team internationality on patent quality changes from negative to positive over the patent quality distribution, the technological competence at the international inventor locations has a positive effect on patent quality at all levels of patent quality. For better performing patents, a high technological competence even strengthens the positive effects of internationalization, whereas in very low performing patents we observe a negative amplification. Therefore, internationalizing a research team does only pay off for medium or high-quality patents, whereas a high technological competence in the countries of inventors is always beneficial.

Suggested Citation

  • Daniel Sommer & Bernd Ebersberger, 2021. "International R&D teams: Performance effects and the moderating role of technological competences," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 41(2), pages 387-397.
  • Handle: RePEc:ebl:ecbull:eb-20-00656
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.accessecon.com/Pubs/EB/2021/Volume41/EB-21-V41-I2-P34.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Frédérique Sachwald, 2008. "Location choices within global innovation networks: the case of Europe," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 33(4), pages 364-378, August.
    2. Giuliani, Elisa & Martinelli, Arianna & Rabellotti, Roberta, 2016. "Is Co-Invention Expediting Technological Catch Up? A Study of Collaboration between Emerging Country Firms and EU Inventors," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 77(C), pages 192-205.
    3. Moshe Buchinsky, 1998. "Recent Advances in Quantile Regression Models: A Practical Guideline for Empirical Research," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 33(1), pages 88-126.
    4. Bas, Christian Le & Sierra, Christophe, 2002. "'Location versus home country advantages' in R&D activities: some further results on multinationals' locational strategies," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(4), pages 589-609, May.
    5. Bagheri, Mahshid & Mitchelmore, Siwan & Bamiatzi, Vassiliki & Nikolopoulos, Konstantinos, 2019. "Internationalization Orientation in SMEs: The Mediating Role of Technological Innovation," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 121-139.
    6. René Belderbos & Boris Lokshin & Bert Sadowski, 2015. "The returns to foreign R&D," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 46(4), pages 491-504, May.
    7. Athukorala, Prema-chandra & Kohpaiboon, Archanun, 2010. "Globalization of R&D by US-based multinational enterprises," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(10), pages 1335-1347, December.
    8. Kafouros, Mario & Wang, Chengqi & Mavroudi, Eva & Hong, Junjie & Katsikeas, Constantine S., 2018. "Geographic dispersion and co-location in global R&D portfolios: Consequences for firm performance," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(7), pages 1243-1255.
    9. Lionel Nesta & Parimal Patel, 2004. "National Patterns of Technology Accumulation: Use of Patent Statistics," SciencePo Working papers Main hal-03610885, HAL.
    10. Bernd Ebersberger & Sverre J. Herstad, 2013. "The relationship between international innovation collaboration, intramural R&D and SMEs’ innovation performance: a quantile regression approach," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 20(7), pages 626-630, May.
    11. Zanfei, Antonello, 2000. "Transnational Firms and the Changing Organisation of Innovative Activities," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 24(5), pages 515-542, September.
    12. Andreas Bausch & Mario Krist, 2007. "The effect of context-related moderators on the internationalization-performance relationship: Evidence from meta-analysis," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 47(3), pages 319-347, June.
    13. Hall, Bronwyn H., 2011. "The internationalization of R&D," MERIT Working Papers 2011-049, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    14. Alisson Maxwell Ferreira De Andrade & Simone Vasconcelos Ribeiro Galina & Evandro Marcos Saidel Ribeiro, 2015. "Effects of internationalisation on performance of BRICS multinationals moderated by organisational slack and R%D intensity," International Journal of Business and Emerging Markets, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 7(4), pages 336-360.
    15. Chen, Chung-Jen & Huang, Yi-Fen & Lin, Bou-Wen, 2012. "How firms innovate through R&D internationalization? An S-curve hypothesis," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 41(9), pages 1544-1554.
    16. Dunning, John H, 1973. "The Determinants of International Production," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 25(3), pages 289-336, November.
    17. Patel, Pari & Vega, Modesto, 1999. "Patterns of internationalisation of corporate technology: location vs. home country advantages1," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 28(2-3), pages 145-155, March.
    18. Christophe Boone & Boris Lokshin & Hannes Guenter & René Belderbos, 2019. "Top management team nationality diversity, corporate entrepreneurship, and innovation in multinational firms," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 40(2), pages 277-302, February.
    19. Pietro Moncada-Paternò-Castello & Marco Vivarelli & Peter Voigt, 2011. "Drivers and impacts in the globalization of corporate R&D: an introduction based on the European experience," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 20(2), pages 585-603, April.
    20. Snehal Awate & Marcus M Larsen & Ram Mudambi, 2015. "Accessing vs sourcing knowledge: A comparative study of R&D internationalization between emerging and advanced economy firms," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 46(1), pages 63-86, January.
    21. Erdener, Carolyn & Shapiro, Daniel M., 2005. "The Internationalization of Chinese Family Enterprises and Dunning's Eclectic MNE Paradigm," Management and Organization Review, Cambridge University Press, vol. 1(3), pages 411-436, November.
    22. Blanc, Helene & Sierra, Christophe, 1999. "The Internationalisation of R&D by Multinationals: A Trade-off between External and Internal Proximity," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 23(2), pages 187-206, March.
    23. Xiang, Xi-Yao & Cai, Hong & Lam, Shui & Pei, Yun-Long, 2013. "International knowledge spillover through co-inventors: An empirical study using Chinese assignees' patent data," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 80(1), pages 161-174.
    24. Criscuolo, Chiara & Haskel, Jonathan E. & Slaughter, Matthew J., 2010. "Global engagement and the innovation activities of firms," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 28(2), pages 191-202, March.
    25. Guellec, Dominique & Pottelsberghe de la Potterie, Bruno v., 2001. "The internationalisation of technology analysed with patent data," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 30(8), pages 1253-1266, October.
    26. Fu, Xiaolan & Pietrobelli, Carlo & Soete, Luc, 2011. "The Role of Foreign Technology and Indigenous Innovation in the Emerging Economies: Technological Change and Catching-up," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 39(7), pages 1204-1212, July.
    27. Koenker, Roger W & Bassett, Gilbert, Jr, 1978. "Regression Quantiles," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 46(1), pages 33-50, January.
    28. Hsu, Chia-Wen & Lien, Yung-Chih & Chen, Homin, 2015. "R&D internationalization and innovation performance," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 24(2), pages 187-195.
    29. von Zedtwitz, Maximilian & Gassmann, Oliver, 2002. "Market versus technology drive in R&D internationalization: four different patterns of managing research and development," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(4), pages 569-588, May.
    30. John H Dunning, 1988. "The Eclectic Paradigm of International Production: A Restatement and Some Possible Extensions," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 19(1), pages 1-31, March.
    31. Jean O. Lanjouw & Mark Schankerman, 2004. "Patent Quality and Research Productivity: Measuring Innovation with Multiple Indicators," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 114(495), pages 441-465, April.
    32. Carolyn Erdener & Daniel M. Shapiro, 2005. "The Internationalization of Chinese Family Enterprises and Dunning's Eclectic MNE Paradigm," Management and Organization Review, International Association of Chinese Management Research, vol. 1(3), pages 411-436, November.
    33. Poon, Jessie P.H. & MacPherson, Alan, 2005. "Technology acquisition among Korean and Taiwanese firms in the United States," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 14(5), pages 559-575, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sommer, Daniel & Bhandari, Krishna Raj, 2022. "Internationalization of R&D and Innovation Performance in the Pharma Industry," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 28(3).
    2. Marina Papanastassiou & Robert Pearce & Antonello Zanfei, 2020. "Changing perspectives on the internationalization of R&D and innovation by multinational enterprises: A review of the literature," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 51(4), pages 623-664, June.
    3. Jérôme Danguy, 2017. "Globalization of innovation production: A patent-based industry analysis," Science and Public Policy, Oxford University Press, vol. 44(1), pages 75-94.
    4. Zhong, Xi & Chen, Weihong & Ren, Ge, 2022. "The effects of performance shortfalls on firms’ exploitation and exploration R&D internationalization decisions: Does industry environmental matter?," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 112(C).
    5. Dachs, Bernhard, 2017. "Internationalisation of R&D: A Review of Drivers, Impacts, and new Lines of Research," MPRA Paper 83367, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    6. Jaana Rahko, 2016. "Internationalization of corporate R&D activities and innovation performance," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 25(6), pages 1019-1038.
    7. Liu, Yang, 2019. "The Processes of New Product Development Recentralization towards a Transnational Emphasis in Multinational Corporations," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 25(1), pages 19-36.
    8. Hurtado-Torres, Nuria E. & Aragón-Correa, J. Alberto & Ortiz-de-Mandojana, Natalia, 2018. "How does R&D internationalization in multinational firms affect their innovative performance? The moderating role of international collaboration in the energy industry," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 27(3), pages 514-527.
    9. Andrea Coveri & Antonello Zanfei, 2023. "Who wins the race for knowledge-based competitiveness? Comparing European and North American FDI patterns," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 48(1), pages 292-330, February.
    10. Patricia Laurens & Christian Le Bas & Antoine Schoen, 2019. "Worldwide IP coverage of patented inventions in large pharma firms: to what extent do the internationalisation of R&D and firm strategy matter?," Post-Print hal-01725229, HAL.
    11. Heike Belitz, 2014. "Motive der Internationalisierung von Forschung und Entwicklung," DIW Roundup: Politik im Fokus 29, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    12. Cozza, Claudio & Franco, Chiara & Perani, Giulio, 2018. "R&D endowments at home driving R&D internationalisation: Evidence from the Italian business R&D survey," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 134(C), pages 277-289.
    13. David Schulzmann & Evis Sinani & Bersant Hobdari & Bent Petersen, . "Drivers of R&D greenfield investment projects in the communications, software and IT service industries in developing countries," UNCTAD Transnational Corporations Journal, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
    14. Castellani, Davide & Pieri, Fabio, 2013. "R&D offshoring and the productivity growth of European regions," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 42(9), pages 1581-1594.
    15. Schmiele, Anja, 2009. "Drivers for international innovation activities in developed and emerging countries," ZEW Discussion Papers 09-064, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    16. Lorena D’Agostino, 2015. "The neglected effects of R&D captive offshoring in emerging countries on the creation of knowledge at home," Economia e Politica Industriale: Journal of Industrial and Business Economics, Springer;Associazione Amici di Economia e Politica Industriale, vol. 42(1), pages 61-91, March.
    17. Anja Schmiele, 2012. "Drivers for international innovation activities in developed and emerging countries," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 37(1), pages 98-123, February.
    18. Tang, Chunhui & Tang, Yaojia & Su, Shengwei, 2019. "R&D internationalization, product diversification and international performance for emerging market enterprises: An empirical study on Chinese enterprises," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 37(4), pages 529-539.
    19. Piscitello, Lucia & Thakur-Wernz, Pooja, 2023. "Impact of domestic and foreign knowledge mechanisms on the innovation performance of Indian firms," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 32(4).
    20. Bathelt, Harald & Li, Pengfei, 2020. "Processes of building cross-border knowledge pipelines," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(3).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    patent citation; MNC; patent quality; RTA; quantile regression; OECD REGPAT;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O3 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights
    • F2 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ebl:ecbull:eb-20-00656. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: John P. Conley (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.