INTRA-FIRM AND INTER-FIRM KNOWLEDGE TRANSFERS AND PRODUCTIVITY IN RETAILING Dolores Añon Higon (Aston) Jeremy Clegg (Leeds) Irena Grugulis (Bradford) Allan Williams (Exeter) Cecelia Lam, Ödül Boszkurt, +

AIM To investigate how, and to what extent, inter and intra-firm knowledge transfer contribute to productivity and productivity growth differences in the retailing sector in the UK.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS 1. What factors influence the observed variation in productivity within the retailing sector, and how strong are the relationships? 2. How does domestic versus foreign ownership mediate the relationships between knowledge transfer and productivity? 3. How do different knowledge transfer channels contribute to these relationships ?

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK PRODUCTIVITY IN RETAILING Real time quality control Quality measurement Localised competition and prices Regulation Diversity

CF contd. RETAILING AND KNOWLEDGE Employment, skills and job design Customer management Inter-intra transfers: transaction costs

CF Contd. KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT Ownership advantages; MNEs v national Explicit versus tacit Channels (Clusters, communities, mobility, internal controls)

METHODOLOGY MULTI-DISCIPLINARY MULTI METHOD Secondary data Firm level questionnaires Case studies

METHODOLOGY contd SECONDARY DATA: NATIONAL ARD (ownership, location + kt proxy variables) Links to AFDI, BERD FAME (Productivity, individual enterprises) MV analysis

METHODOLOGY contd FIRM LEVEL SURVEY Sub sector: food Questionnaire survey (Level, postal?, response rate) Focus: ownership, kt channels Analysis: MV, BV + secondary

METHODOLOGY contd FIRM LEVEL INTERVIEWS Desirable but not in original research proposal !!

4 CASE STUDIES Ownership versus productivity Participant obsv. + multi-level interviews Meaning, management, contested Analysis: qualitative

Theoretical Underpinning Ownership (MNE, non-MNE) Basis of competition (cost/quality) Processes of transferring knowledge and skills Appropriateness of processes

Questionnaire Survey Link between other two parts of project, partic for ownership data Discussions with team one (combine?) Delay start, telephone interviews Change to smaller number of head office interviews

Supply chains Regulation Key issues that will be covered but in brief (constraints of research)

Multiple measures of performance and productivity FAME Branch level data (case studies) Intended and unintended consequences (case studies)

The next six months Cecilia Lam (Aston), literature review, begin econometric study Odul Boskurt (Bradford/Leeds), literature review, negotiate access, initial interviews and observations Exeter researcher – now or delay?

The next six months (cont.) Meetings between team members and key contacts Team meeting (January) Meeting with Sheffield team (before Christmas?)