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Formal and informal external linkages and firms’ innovative strategies. A cross-country comparison

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  • Isabel Freitas
  • Tommy Clausen
  • Roberto Fontana
  • Bart Verspagen

Abstract

Firms increasingly rely upon external actors for their innovation process. Interaction with these actors may occur formally (i.e. through a collaboration agreement) or informally (i.e. external actors acts as sources of information). We analyze the reasons why firms consider it to be important to develop formal and informal external linkages in the innovation process by looking at the role played by firms' innovative strategies and by taking into account the possibility that a complementarity or substitutive relationship might exist between formal and informal linkages. Data are from the Third Community Innovation Survey (CIS 3), where we have access to firm level micro-data from Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands and the UK.
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  • Isabel Freitas & Tommy Clausen & Roberto Fontana & Bart Verspagen, 2011. "Formal and informal external linkages and firms’ innovative strategies. A cross-country comparison," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 21(1), pages 91-119, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:joevec:v:21:y:2011:i:1:p:91-119
    DOI: 10.1007/s00191-010-0188-y
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    Cited by:

    1. Andræs Barge-Gil, 2013. "Open Strategies and Innovation Performance," Industry and Innovation, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 20(7), pages 585-610, October.
    2. Biagia De Devitiis & Antonio Lopolito & Ornella Wanda Maietta & Roberta Sisto, 2009. "Adozione di Innovazioni e Variabili Relazionali nelle Imprese del Comparto Biologico," Quaderni DSEMS 18-2009, Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche, Matematiche e Statistiche, Universita' di Foggia.
    3. Geuna Aldo & Bodas Freitas Isabel Maria & Rossi Federica, 2010. "The Governance of University-Industry Knowledge Transfer:Why small firms do (not) develop institutional collaborations?," Department of Economics and Statistics Cognetti de Martiis LEI & BRICK - Laboratory of Economics of Innovation "Franco Momigliano", Bureau of Research in Innovation, Complexity and Knowledge, Collegio 201013, University of Turin.
    4. Goedhuys, Micheline & Veugelers, Reinhilde, 2012. "Innovation strategies, process and product innovations and growth: Firm-level evidence from Brazil," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 23(4), pages 516-529.
    5. Chiara Franco & Manuela Gussoni, 2014. "The role of firm and national level factors in fostering R&D cooperation: a cross country comparison," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 39(6), pages 945-976, December.
    6. Abiodun A. Egbetokun, 2012. "Cooperation behaviour and innovation performance in the Nigerian manufacturing industry," Jena Economics Research Papers 2012-037, Friedrich-Schiller-University Jena.
    7. Schøtt, Thomas & Jensen, Kent Wickstrøm, 2016. "Firms’ innovation benefiting from networking and institutional support: A global analysis of national and firm effects," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(6), pages 1233-1246.
    8. Andrea M. Herrmann & Cornelia Storz & Lukas Held, 2022. "Whom do nascent ventures search for? Resource scarcity and linkage formation activities during new product development processes," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 58(1), pages 475-496, January.
    9. Bodas Freitas Isabel Maria & Geuna Aldo & Rossi Federica, 2011. "Patterns of Collaborations between Regional Firms and Universities: Evidence from the Piedmont region in Italy," Department of Economics and Statistics Cognetti de Martiis LEI & BRICK - Laboratory of Economics of Innovation "Franco Momigliano", Bureau of Research in Innovation, Complexity and Knowledge, Collegio 201105, University of Turin.
    10. Dominique Lepore & Sabrina Dubbini & Alessandra Micozzi & Francesca Spigarelli, 2022. "Knowledge Sharing Opportunities for Industry 4.0 Firms," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 13(1), pages 501-520, March.
    11. Haji Ali Beigi, Maryam, 2021. "Organizational innovation: Interactive role of external knowledge strategies and market dynamisms," Ilmenau Economics Discussion Papers 159, Ilmenau University of Technology, Institute of Economics.
    12. Bodas Freitas, Isabel Maria & Geuna, Aldo & Rossi, Federica, 2013. "Finding the right partners: Institutional and personal modes of governance of university–industry interactions," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 42(1), pages 50-62.
    13. Josep Tomàs-Porres & Agustí Segarra-Blasco & Mercedes Teruel, 2023. "Export and variability in the innovative status," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 13(2), pages 257-279, June.
    14. Egbetokun, Abiodun A., 2015. "Interactive learning and firm-level capabilities in latecomer settings: The Nigerian manufacturing industry," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 99(C), pages 231-241.
    15. Waheed, Abdul, 2011. "Size, competition, and innovative activities: a developing world perspective," MERIT Working Papers 2011-052, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    16. George Paily, 2018. "Innovation Strategies, Outcomes and Firm Performance: An Analysis of Firm Behaviour in India's Manufacturing Sector," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 38(4), pages 1769-1786.
    17. Isabel Maria Bodas Freitas & Aldo Geuna & Federica Rossi, 2011. "University–Industry Interactions: The Unresolved Puzzle," Chapters, in: Cristiano Antonelli (ed.), Handbook on the Economic Complexity of Technological Change, chapter 11, Edward Elgar Publishing.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    External information sources; Innovation strategy; Formal cooperation; Multivariate Probit; O31; O33; O38;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O31 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
    • O38 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Government Policy

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