Acquisition and transfer of knowledge and innovation. Role of international networks Marion Frenz, Birkbeck Grazia Ietto-Gillies LSBU

Theoretical context Different sources of knowledge and innovation Self generation and acquisition Networks allow acquisition via transfer Networks that span several countries allow members higher scope for learning Different countries offer richer knowledge and innovation environments

Transnational companies. Double networks Internal networks External networks Knowledge and innovation spillovers: from locality to subsidiaries and to rest of TNC From TNC to subsidiary and to locality

What the research is about We test whether and how innovation performance is affected by: Different sources Different geographical contexts Different organizational contexts

Performance Innovation performance is assessed by New products New production processes Is performance one off or persistent?

Framework: sources of knowledge

Databases Community Innovation Surveys (CIS 2 and 3) –Information at the enterprise level –First direct measures of innovation and related activities –Breadth and depth of the surveys –Based on the OECD’s Oslo manual Dun and Bradstreet’s Who owns Whom –Company tree data –Internationalisation index and network spread index (Ietto-Gillies, 1998, 2002: Ch4.)

Methodology Cross-sectional regression models to test a set of hypothesis –OLS, Probit, Tobit, Neg binomal, Heckman Use of time lags between sources and innovation performance Use of interaction terms between internal and external sources Set of controls, including size, sector, international market

Multinationality We test for various enterprises positions. Specifically: –Independent enterprise vs group belonging –Uninational vs multinational group –Degree of multinationality –Foreign ownership v domestic MNCs

Results Enterprises that belong to MNCs have higher propensity to innovate, ceteris paribus Access to different national systems of innovation and different environments are likely to affect innovation performance positively. Own and bought-in R&D very relevant External networks less relevant than internal ones