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Corporate R&D and firm efficiency: Evidence from Europe’s top R&D investors

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Listed:
  • Subal C. Kumbhakar

    () (State University of New York at Binghamton)

  • Raquel Ortega-Argilés

    () (IN+ Centre for Innovation, Technology and Policy Research, Instituto Superior Técnico)

  • Lesley Potters

    () (Utrecht School of Economics)

  • Marco Vivarelli

    () (Università Cattolica, Milano-Piacenza)

  • Peter Voigt

    () (European Commission - JRC)

Abstract

The main objective of this study is to investigate the impact of corporate R&D activities on firm performance, measured by labour productivity. To this end, the stochastic frontier technique is used on a unique unbalanced longitudinal dataset on top European R&D investors over the period 2000–2005. The study quantifies technical inefficiency of individual firms. From a policy perspective, the results of this study suggest that – if the aim is to leverage firms’ productivity – emphasis should be put on supporting corporate R&D in high-tech sectors and, to some ex-tent, in medium-tech sectors. On the other hand, corporate R&D in the low-tech sector is found to have a minor effect in explaining productivity. Instead, encouraging investment in fixed assets appears important for the productivity of low-tech industries. Hence, the allocation of support for corporate R&D seems to be as important as its overall increase and an ‘erga omnes’ approach across all sectors appears inappropriate. However, with regard to technical efficiency, R&D intensity is found to be a pivotal factor in explaining firm efficiency. This is true for all industries.

Suggested Citation

  • Subal C. Kumbhakar & Raquel Ortega-Argilés & Lesley Potters & Marco Vivarelli & Peter Voigt, 2010. "Corporate R&D and firm efficiency: Evidence from Europe’s top R&D investors," JRC Working Papers on Corporate R&D and Innovation 2010-11, Joint Research Centre (Seville site).
    • Handle: RePEc:ipt:wpaper:201011
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    Cited by:

    1. Letizia Montinari & Michael Rochlitz, 2012. "Absorptive Capacity and Efficiency: A Comparative Stochastic Frontier Approach Using Sectoral Data," Working Papers 4/2012, IMT Institute for Advanced Studies Lucca, revised Jun 2012.
    2. Fındık, Derya & Tansel, Aysit, 2013. "Intangible investment and technical efficiency: The case of software-intensive manufacturing firms in Turkey," MPRA Paper 66165, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 05 Aug 2014.
    3. Kancs, d’Artis & Siliverstovs, Boriss, 2016. "R&D and non-linear productivity growth," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(3), pages 634-646.
    4. Derya Findik & Aysit Tansel, 2015. "​ Intangible Investment and Technical Efficiency: The Case of Software-Intensive Manufacturing Firms in Turkey," Working Papers 2015/11, Turkish Economic Association.
    5. Sara Amoroso & Pietro Moncada-Paternò-Castello & Antonio Vezzani, 2017. "R&D profitability: the role of risk and Knightian uncertainty," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 48(2), pages 331-343, February.
    6. Piva, Mariacristina & Tani, Massimiliano & Vivarelli, Marco, 2017. "Labour mobility through business visits as a way to foster productivity," MERIT Working Papers 004, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    7. Montresor, Sandro & Vezzani, Antonio, 2015. "The production function of top R&D investors: Accounting for size and sector heterogeneity with quantile estimations," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 44(2), pages 381-393.
    8. Piva, Mariacristina & Tani, Massimiliano & Vivarelli, Marco, 2017. "The Productivity Impact of Business Mobility: International Evidence," GLO Discussion Paper Series 14, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    9. Paul Wakke & Knut Blind & Florian Ramel, 2016. "The impact of participation within formal standardization on firm performance," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 45(3), pages 317-330, June.
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    11. Michele Cincera & Claudio Cozza & Alexander Tübke, 2014. "Main drivers for local and global R&D sourcing of European Multinational Enterprises," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 4(2), pages 227-245, December.
    12. Subal Kumbhakar & Raquel Ortega-Argilés & Lesley Potters & Marco Vivarelli & Peter Voigt, 2012. "Corporate R&D and firm efficiency: evidence from Europe’s top R&D investors," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 37(2), pages 125-140, April.
    13. Mabel Pisa & Rosario Sánchez, 2016. "Work Incentive and Productivity in Spain," Prague Economic Papers, University of Economics, Prague, vol. 2016(1), pages 99-111.
    14. Sara Amoroso, 2015. "Profits, R&D and labour: Breaking the law of diminishing returns to labour," JRC Working Papers on Corporate R&D and Innovation 2015-10, Joint Research Centre (Seville site).
    15. Rosario Sanchez & Angeles Díaz, 2014. "Innovation, exports and technical efficiency in Spain," EcoMod2014 6783, EcoMod.
    16. Maria Angeles Diaz Mayans & Rosario Sánchez, 2012. "Are large innovative firms more efficient?," EcoMod2012 4454, EcoMod.
    17. Paulo Nunes & Marco Gonçalves & Zélia Serrasqueiro, 2013. "The influence of age on SMEs’ growth determinants: empirical evidence," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 40(2), pages 249-272, February.
    18. repec:taf:ecsysr:v:29:y:2017:i:3:p:385-417 is not listed on IDEAS
    19. Piva, Mariacristina & Tani, Massimiliano & Vivarelli, Marco, 2016. "Business Visits, Knowledge Diffusion and Productivity," IZA Discussion Papers 10421, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).
    20. Pietro Moncada-Paterno-Castello & Peter Voigt, 2013. "The effect of innovative SMEs' growth to the structural renewal of the EU economy - A projection to the year 2020 –," JRC Working Papers JRC83400, Joint Research Centre (Seville site).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Corporate R&D; productivity; technical efficiency; stochastic frontier analysis;

    JEL classification:

    • L2 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior
    • O3 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights

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