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Developing an innovative materials enterprise in China: A nanotechnology small business case study
Abstract
Purpose
– This paper aims to explore pathways and issues of small business technological commercialization in China, probing the particular characteristics of the Chinese context and the ways in which innovation frameworks, institutions and business strategies are embedded.
Design/methodology/approach
– The authors examine in detail the case of an innovative Chinese indigenous small firm engaged in innovative nanotechnology materials development. The strategies and push- and pull factors underlying the company’s innovation practices were investigated. The proposition that the institutional relationships formed to secure access to research expertise and aid business survival also influence the ways in which technology is commercialized was explored.
Findings
– It was found that while technological development is company-driven, it is also highly connected to regional innovation structures and networks. This stimulates a “spin-in” rather than a university-led model of development, as this small firm embeds its technology and business development strategies in conjunction with partner organizations. Broader management and policy implications are discussed.
Originality/value
– While China has rapidly expanded scientific research in emerging technologies such as nanotechnology, commercialization through the development of entrepreneurial technology-oriented small companies faces a series of challenges. New enterprises in the emerging area of nanotechnology encounter problems of technology transfer and intellectual property management, capital acquisition, market uncertainty and constrained access to global markets.
... The interaction of university, industry and government prompts the emergence of neo-institutional policy framework of triple helix, also referred to as UIG model of growth (Leydesdorff, 2013). Though majority of the empirical research on triple helix model has been devoted to developed countries of North American and European Union region (D'Este and Patel, 2007;Leydesdorff and Meyer, 2010), the tripartite model exhibited its efficacy for emerging economies as well (Ikram et al., 2016;Tang et al., 2014). However, caution needs to be observed while applying western validated triple helix model to developing economies and regional dynamics should be taken into consideration (Torres et al., 2011). ...
... However, caution needs to be observed while applying western validated triple helix model to developing economies and regional dynamics should be taken into consideration (Torres et al., 2011). Case study of Chinese nanotechnology firm by Tang et al. (2014) reveals spin-in version of triple helix model whereby enterprise takes initiation and draws in university capabilities to support its technological development. ...
Purpose
The paper highlights the characteristic role of specialized markets and traders in the internationalization of emerging economies by examining the linkages between supply chain management and industrial clustering in China.
Design/methodology/approach
Multi-method approach was employed as primary data was collected from a case study of Shaoxing textile cluster, and was supplemented with secondary data to triangulate the findings. The proposition that competitive advantages of industrial clusters facilitate effective supply chain management was explored.
Findings
The authors reveal that China’s cost advantage is manifested in the entire value chain. The provision of business friendly amenities as a result of synergetic benefits of vertical and horizontal integration of supply clusters promotes competitiveness of SMEs and region as a whole. Moreover, specialized markets and international traders found to play significant role in sustainable cluster development.
Research limitations/implications
As with fieldwork and case studies, generalization should be drawn with care. Systematic synthesis of relevant case studies is recommended.
Practical implications
The study endorses the construction of local supply chains and suggests implementation of cluster strategy by focusing on environment-specific execution of triple helix model.
Originality/value
The article elaborates the linkages between cluster theory and supply chain management both within cluster and between interspersed clusters. It also explains how specialized markets and global players are enabling concentrated supply networks. The paper recommends extension of ‘Triple helix + 1 model’ by making local community part of the underlying framework.
... Scientific organizations are the nodal stakeholders for technology companies [65,66], which can create the environment for the formation of teams for innovative organizations and contribute to the company's scientific part [51]. Lechner and Dowling (2003) [37] found that entrepreneurs initially use their social ties at the universities extensively to build a foundation for a new company. ...
This paper explores the firm's business model-network relationship in two regional innovation systems of China and the USA. A longitudinal analysis was used for this research. Four cases of high-tech enterprises from Zhongguancun (China) and Silicon Valley (USA) were investigated, focusing on how a business model and its ties with the stakeholders in the network interact and evolve over time. Applying Granovetter's network theory, we show that the companies' business model's development depends on the strength of network ties that differ between the two geographical regions. Results reveal that the influence of stakeholders' ties on the business model can vary depending on the regional context. It also shows the network impact value proposition, value capture, and value creation and delivery.
... To achieve massive profits, leveraging intellectual property through professional management is the secondary function (Gassmann et al., 2010). Intellectual property management is an important enabling factor for standardizationoriented innovation (Fang et al., 2016), and usually is one of important problems encountered by new enterprises (Tang et al., 2014). Our case study suggests that an efficient mechanism of managing intellectual property can facilitate the combination of different open innovations. ...
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore how an organization can combine different types of open innovations and what are the key factors that may influence the combination of different open innovations.
Design/methodology/approach
The basic methodology of this paper is the longitudinal inductive analysis within the conceptual framework of the open innovation proposed by Dahlander and Gann (2010). In this case study of Xiaomi Tech Inc., the open innovation combination is investigated through examining 25 new products created between August 2010 and December 2016 in terms of four general types: acquiring, sourcing, selling and revealing open innovation.
Findings
In practice, the combination of different types of open innovations can be realized. A firm may combine different open innovations at three levels: a single product level, a related product cluster level and a company level. In addition, different open innovations can be combined in diverse modes. The purpose of combining different types of open innovations is to overcome the disadvantages of each type and to exploit the advantages of all different types. Many factors may affect a firm’s option of how to combine open innovations. At different development stages, a firm may make and implement corresponding strategic direction based on its innovation capacity and internal resource. For a given strategy, the firm needs to create profits and manage intellectual property in the implementation of open innovations. These factors are interacted each other, rather than isolated.
Originality/value
The findings of this paper are helpful for better understanding how and why an organization can combine different types of open innovations. From a managerial point of view, an organization may combine different types of open innovations to leverage advantages and avoid disadvantages of each certain type of open innovation. An appropriate combination of different open innovations can effectively improve new product development.
... Other research confirms the growing return on China's investment. Li et al. (2014), Wang et al. (2012), and Mehta et al. (2012) all find Chinese nanotechnology researchers actively publishing, with a growing number of the publications representing collaborative work with Chinese and other colleagues outside China. Bhattacharya and Shilpa (2012) extend the analysis of China's growing role beyond bibliometric indicators to include innovation. ...
Russia and China both are endeavoring to transform Soviet-style R&D systems characterized by separate education, research and business spheres into something more suited to a knowledge economy supporting innovation. The Triple Helix model is an attractive configuration, derived from the practices of the most successful innovation systems, and suggesting that the three key actors—universities, business, and the state—might in some instances substitute for each other. A model placing the state at the center appeals to non-democratic regimes and countries endeavoring to catch up with OECD nations.
We compare the Chinese and Russian efforts to implement a Triple Helix program by examining institutional change, epistemic communities, funding, and the role of the state, with nanotechnology as a case study. While both nations have introduced major programs and allocated significant funding, we find that China has been vastly more successful than Russia in promoting collaboration among universities, business, and government to advance research and innovation. We attribute the difference to the quality of state policies that provide incentives for agents and epistemic communities to alter their behavior, an outcome facilitated by conditions at the beginning of reforms, which made the Chinese far more open to learning.
Delineating the emergence of nanotechnologies that offer new functionalities is an important element in an anticipatory approach to the governance of nanotechnology and its potential impacts. This paper examines the transition to next generation active nanotechnologies which incorporate functions that respond to the environment or systems concepts that combine devices and structures that are dynamic and which may change their states in use. We develop an approach to identifying these active nanotechnologies and then use bibliometric analysis to examine the extent of research papers and patents involving these concepts. We also examine references to environmental, health, and safety concepts in these papers, given that these next generation nanotechnologies are likely to have risk profiles that are different from those of first-generation passive nanomaterials. Our results show a steady growth overall in focus on active nanotechnologies in the research literature and in patents over the study period of 1990–2010. We also find an increase in consideration given to environmental, health, and safety topics. While gaps are highlighted in our understanding of research and innovation in active nanotechnologies, the results suggest that there is beginning to be a shift to active nanotechnologies, with the implication that governance processes need to be conscious of this shift and to prepare for it.
Innovation underpins competitiveness, is crucial to addressing societal challenges, and its support has become a major public policy goal. But what really works in innovation policy, and why? This Handbook, compiled by leading experts in the field, is the first comprehensive guide to understanding the logic and effects of innovation polices. The Handbook develops a conceptualisation and typology of innovation policies, presents meta-evaluations for 16 key innovation policy instruments and analyses evidence on policy-mix. For each policy instrument, underlying rationales and examples are presented, along with a critical analysis of the available impact evidence. Providing access to primary sources of impact analysis, the book offers an insightful assessment of innovation policy practice and its evaluation.
Research and development is critical in promoting innovation and firm development. While many studies have been discussing how firms’ R&D behaviour is affected by the internal factors and external factors, little has been done to link it to firms’ founding conditions. Using resource-based view theory, this study suggests the firms’ R&D activities in their later stages are partly determined by firms’ starting resource bundle. We propose that the financing structure, entrepreneurs’ education background and intellectual property of the new firms will affect their R&D behaviour. The study examines the performance of a random sample of firms established in 2004 using data from the Kauffman Firm Survey. The result shows a mixing impact of firms’ starting resources. The founders’ education and the ownership of intellectual property have a positive and long-lasting impact, while firms’ financial capital matters mostly in the short term. The study also finds subsequent resource development is highly reliant on the initial resource bundle.
Policy analysis must be broadened beyond the realm of government actions to incorporate the negotiations that take place among university, industry, and government. In this special issue the emergence of trilateral initiatives and their bilateral precursors is identified. The individual contributions provide a method for understanding academic-industry-government relations as a new mode of science-policy making.
The development of academic research capacities carries within itself the seeds of future economic and social development in the form of human capital, tacit knowledge and intellectual property. Channelling knowledge flows into new sources of technological innovation has become an academic task, changing the structure and function of the university. Realizing the benefits of this potential resource occurs through organizational innovations such as technology transfer offices, incubator facilities and research centers with industrial participation. The change in emphasis from a sole concentration on the production and dissemination of knowledge to technology transfer and firm-formation places the university in a new alignment with the productive sector. The new social contract between the university and the larger society is being negotiated in much more specific terms than the old one. The former contract was based on a linear model of innovation, presuming only long term contributions of academic knowledge to the economy. Now both long and short term contributions are seen to be possible, based on examples of firm formation and research contracts in fields such as biotechnology and computer science.
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to explore a cooperation‐driven stage in the traditional framework of country competitiveness development and also suggest an approach to address pragmatic issues related to cooperation in the context, particularly, competitiveness evaluation and choice of partner country.
Design/methodology/approach
The objectives of the research were achieved by a research design that leveraged quantitative tools with strength of case study research. Quantitative data for benchmarking were obtained from a carefully selected Country Competitiveness Report. For identifying criteria of competitiveness for success of a country (aka critical success factors CSF), content analysis of strategic reports from competitive countries was employed.
Findings
Cooperative strategies and flagship firms emerged to be CSFs that can drive investment needed for innovation and technology development, the later stages in country competitiveness development framework. Evaluation of competitiveness can be quite difficult and resource‐intensive process, but can be improved with innovative mix of different approaches and tools. With quite consistent and effective results in one more international context and a new industry, the assets‐processes‐performance (APP) framework of competitiveness can provide a simple, yet valuable approach with flexibility to adapt across levels and contexts, a vital need.
Practical implications
Competitiveness leaders should review cooperation processes and performance. They should evolve strategies to leverage cooperation on relevant dimensions.
Originality/value
A key contribution of this paper is proposing a vital cooperation‐driven stage for country competitiveness and operationlizing it using three major frameworks of competitiveness in a practical and useful context of nanotechnology, when many countries are evolving their strategies for such industries. An approach is tested to simplify evaluation of competitiveness in a difficult context of emerging industries. It can help leadership take more informed critical decisions about competitiveness and assess their impact for enhancing desired impacts of the decisions. For the purpose, comparing three alternatives, the author extends the APP framework with strategy concept of CSF to enhance its flexibility, thus contributing to needs of effectiveness and simplicity of emerging country context.
Purpose
– The study aims at disclosing the evolution process to an entrepreneurial university in the government‐pulled triple helix in China through the analysis of MIT and Stanford model of “university‐pushed triple helix” in which academic institutions take the lead in regional innovation.
Design/methodology/approach
– The paper is based on a case study of the Northeastern University (NEU), which is located in the Northeast China where there is a dominant government‐pulled triple helix and with the establishment of China's first science park in which a highly successful software company (Neusoft) was created.
Findings
– The pathway to an entrepreneurial university begins with government‐pulled + industry‐university collaboration, to university‐industry collaboration + interaction triple helix. This may be followed by a gradually developing “university‐industry collaboration” in which companies fund academic research with potential industrial use, the beginnings of a university‐pushed triple helix.
Originality/value
– The analysis of NEU exemplifies the emergence of the entrepreneurial university in China and provides strategic implications for policy makers in terms of designing the appropriate policy to support university enterprising strategy.
This paper contributes to the developing literature on complementarities in organizational design. We test for the existence of complementarities in the use of external networking between stages of the innovation process in a sample of UK and German manufacturing plants. Our evidence suggests some differences between the UK and Germany in terms of the optimal combination of innovation activities in which to implement external networking. Broadly, there is more evidence of complementarities in the case of Germany, with the exception of the product engineering stage. By contrast, the UK exhibits generally strong evidence of substitutability in external networking in different stages, except between the identification of new products and product design and development stages. These findings suggest that previous studies indicating strong complementarity between internal and external knowledge sources have provided only part of the picture of the strategic dilemmas facing firms.
The Triple Helix of university–industry–government relations is compared with alternative models for explaining the current research system in its social contexts. Communications and negotiations between institutional partners generate an overlay that increasingly reorganizes the underlying arrangements. The institutional layer can be considered as the retention mechanism of a developing system. For example, the national organization of the system of innovation has historically been important in determining competition. Reorganizations across industrial sectors and nation states, however, are induced by new technologies (biotechnology, ICT). The consequent transformations can be analyzed in terms of (neo-)evolutionary mechanisms. University research may function increasingly as a locus in the “laboratory” of such knowledge-intensive network transitions.
This paper explains and evaluates the evolution of the UREs (University-run Enterprises) in China by building a new theoretical framework on the university–industry relationship. Unlike the Triple Helix or the New Economics of Science that advocates a certain type (integration or separation) of university–industry relationship, we take a contingent or context-specific perspective on the relationship, having the context of developing countries in mind. The framework developed in this paper explains in what condition universities would keep distance from industry or become entrepreneurial to take a part in the functions of industry (i.e. setting up and running their own business enterprises). In this typology the basic determinants are internal resources of university, absorptive capacity of industrial firms and existence of intermediary institutions, as well as the propensity of university for UREs. The paper has argued that the Chinese universities since the market-oriented reform had strong propensity to pursue economic gains and strong internal (R&D and other) resources to launch start-ups, and thus established their own firms (i.e. UREs), given the low absorptive capacity of industrial firms and the underdeveloped intermediary institutions. The recent adjustment of the UREs in China can also be understood in terms of changes in the above three factors, such as universities’ weakened propensity to pursue economic gains, relative decline of superiority of university resources, and improved external environment.
The purpose of the paper is to determine the similarities and differences between the innovative economies of The Netherlands and South Korea. A Triple Helix model is used to study network linkages between industry, academia, and government, the institutional "knowledge infrastructure." Three domains: science, technology, and innovation serve as indicators. Data on innovation were collected using a webometric approach withkeywords "university," "industry," and "government" in the national domains of South Korea and The Netherlands. Data on science indicators were collected via corporate addresses in the Science Citation Index 2002, and 14,931 records from South Korea and 17,865 records from The Netherlands were captured. Lastly, the data on technology were obtained from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), identifying 4,200 Korean patents and 2,827 Dutch patents. Results indicate that the Dutch knowledge base is clearly oriented toward biotechnology, while South Korea has a stronger patent portfolio. The South Korean portfolio is not heavily reliant on traditional industrial structures, but the Dutch portfolio is. The large service sector in the Netherlands means its Internet economy is more oriented toward on global trends than in South Korea.(SRY)
In this paper, the agricultural innovation systems of two Northeast Asian countries—Korea and China—are investigated and compared from the perspective of triple helix innovation. Specifically, the current study examines the nature of agricultural innovation of the two countries and considers agricultural R&D investments and activities as well as the roles of university, industry, and government (UIG), which are the three units comprising the triple helix. As an empirical extension of the qualitative analysis, we collected bibliometric information of agricultural scientific publications from 1990 to 2010 and patent information from 1980 to 2010. By calculating transmission of uncertainty, which indicates collaboration among UIG, this paper tracks the relationship dynamics of the units comprising the triple helix. In addition, we analyze topics in scientific publications and patents in order to observe and compare the subareas that are the focus in the two countries. The findings reveal both commonalities and differences between the two countries, thus providing knowledge of and insights into the agricultural sector.
Nanotechnology is emerging as one of the key technologies of the 21st Century and is
expected to enable developments across a wide range of sectors that can benefit citizens and
improve industrial competitiveness. Worldwide public investment in research and
development in nanotechnology (R&D) has risen fromaround €400 million in 1997 to some
€3 billion today. However, there are concerns that someaspects of nanotechnology may
introduce new health, environmental and societal risks, which need to be addressed.
In May 2004 the European Commission published the Communication “Towards a European
Strategy for Nanotechnology” in which an integrated and responsible approach was
advocated. This Communication has been discussed at thepoliticallevel in the European
Council under the Irish and Dutch Presidencies. The aim of the survey conducted by
Nanoforumwas to assess the wider response to the Commission’s proposed strategy and
provide input to shape future European initiatives.
A total of 720 people participated in this survey via an online questionnaire at
www.nanoforum.org, and an additional 29 wrote directly to the European Commission,
bringing the total response to 749. The majority of the respondents were based in Europe
(93%), with one third fromGermany or the UK.From the respondents who filled in the online
questionnaire, most respondents work in research (39%), or in a management role (29%) but a
significant number of experts/consultants (13%) and journalists (12%) also participated.
SME’s and large companies were also well represented (33%).
Most respondents are very much involved in nanotechnology either in R&D, the issues, or
both. For many of the technical questions, the participants could choose not to reply.In those
cases, we have excludedthemfromthe total suchthat the percentages given in this executive
summary reflect only those who expressed an opinion. The results not only represent the
personal opinions of individuals, but also the views of 107 organisations (see annex I).
There is a large consensus that nanotechnology will have a strong impact on European
industry (90%), and on Europeancitizens (80%), within ten years. In terms of sectors,
respondents expect the greatest impact on chemistry and materials (94%), followed by
biotechnology (88%), information and communication technologies, ICT (79%), healthcare
(77%) andsecurity/defence (58%). Energy, environment, equipment engineering and
consumer products are expected to have a moderate to high impact.
North America is perceived tobe the world leader bothinnanosciences (76%) and the
transfer of nanotechnology to industry (77%), with Europe and Asia falling far behind. Most
respondents believe that investment in nanotechnology in Europe R&D is lower (80%) than in
the USA and Japan. In terms of R&D areas in nanotechnology, the EU should reinforce
support for sensor applications, information and communication technologies,and health,
safety, environment and societal issues.
Broad support was expressed for a significant increase in funding for nanotechnology in the
next EU Framework Programmecompared tothe current one (79%). Somerespondents
(25%) wanted to see a doubling ofthe budget or more, while only 12% wanted the same
budget or less. Divided opinions were expressed as to whether the EU Framework programme
should be oriented more towards basic or more applied R&D – it depends upon whether the
respondent is coming from a university,research organisation or industry.
4
Europe appears to be lacking a coherent systemof infrastructure andthe need for a critical
mass was identified as the most critical issue (90%). The responses indicate that there is a
need toraise awarenessand exploitationof existing infrastructure. At the sametime, the
majority of respondents highlighted the need for new large infrastructure at European (64%)
and national/regional level (34%). Anumber of suggestions were also received stressing the
need for cross-disciplinary infrastructure in fields such as nanomedicine,nanomaterials and
information technology/nanoelectronics.
Human resourceswas identifiedasa prioritywith almost one-halfofparticipants inthe
survey indicating that there islikely to be a shortage of skilled personnel for nanotechnology
within ten years and another quarterof participants in even five years. There is also an urgent
need for development of nanotechnology education and training with 90%of participants
indicating that interdisciplinarity is considered tobe crucial. The EU policy aimsof‘mobility
for researchers’; ‘further training opportunities’ and ‘equal opportunities for women’ are
supported by a majority of respondents.
Consensus emerged that the EU needs an integrated strategyto becompetitiveinrelation to
other countries (85%),and that established industries must recognise the potential of
nanotechnology early (70%). Almosthalf of the respondents feel that the EU, or international
bodies, should regulate nanotechnology within 5 years (46%) or10 years (25%). SME’s and
start-ups arecrucial as the main source for new jobs and innovation but face many difficulties
including a lack of highly skilled personnel,effective cooperation with universities and
research centres, a lack of public or private funding.
Many respondents agree that Europe needs totake account of risks and societal impact of
nanotechnology froman early stage (75%),which requires communication and dialogue with
the public.All parties involved must engage in informing the public including
national/regional governments, the media and the European Commission. The importance of
establishinga dialogue and the need to take into account the disruptive character of
nanotechnology was also highlighted.
With regard to public health,safety, environmental and consumer protection,over 75% of
respondents agreed that risk assessment must beintegrated as early as possible in the R&D
process and that such assessments should be carried out at EU level (61%). The priorities for
more R&D to address knowledge gaps include free manufactures nanoparticles. Human
exposure to these is deemed most important (72%), followed by environmental release (56%).
Many respondents highlighted that nanoparticles are already present innature through e.g.
high-temperature combustion processes.
International cooperation with industrialised countriesis important (96%). The majority of
respondents are in favour of an international ‘code of conduct’ for the responsible
development of nanotechnology (87%). Over three quarters of respondents are also in favour
of collaborations with less developed countries, in particular to help thembuild research
capacity and ensure an equitable transfer of knowledge.
This paper aims to contribute to a better understanding of the drivers and modes of university-industry interaction in latecomer firms. Based on a survey conducted in 2008 and using a sample of Mexican manufacturing firms, technological and innovative effort (TIE) related factors and structural characteristics have been introduced in a set of logistic models. The results confirm that there is a positive relationship between the TIE, measured as the intensity of in-house R&D and the innovative profile of the firm, and the firm's propensity to establish linkages with higher education institutes and public research centers. TIE was also found to be significant in determining the likelihood of specific channels of university-industry linkages.
University patenting has been heralded as a symbol of changing relations between universities and their social environments. The Bayh-Dole Act of 1980 in the USA was eagerly promoted by the OECD as a recipe for the commercialization of university research, and the law was imitated by a number of national governments. However, since the 2000s university patenting in the most advanced economies has been on the decline both as a percentage and in absolute terms. We suggest that the institutional incentives for university patenting have disappeared with the new regime of university ranking. Patents and spin-offs are not counted in university rankings. In the new arrangements of university-industry-government relations, universities have become very responsive to changes in their relevant environments.
Nanotechnology is expected by many to be one of the next drivers of technology-based business and economic growth. China has emerged as a global player in nanotechnology development, and now ranks second (after the United States) in nanotechnology scientific publications produced annually. The study of nanotechnology offers a lens to examine China's capabilities to move closer to the frontier of technology-led economic development, explore the evolving Chinese innovation system, and assess the effectiveness of policy strategies to modernize and add-value to research and industry in China. Supported by new policy initiatives and funding, hundreds of institutions and thousands of researchers in China are engaged in nanotechnology R&D. Yet, although Chinese nanotechnology research has scale, the pathways from laboratory research to successful commercialization remain problematic. Chinese performance in nanotechnology patenting and product development is weak relative to its research strength, suggesting a significant gap between the research base and industrial development. Drawing on bibliometric research and field interviews with Chinese nanotechnology policymakers, researchers and business representatives, we analyze this gap, explore the factors contributing to it and assess future commercialization trajectories.
Great Britain, and then the USA and Germany, became world industrial leaders by generating pioneering technology. They either invented new products and processes or were the first to commercialize them on a large scale. By contrast, late-industrializing countries in the twentieth century have evolved as ‘learners’, by borrowing and improving technology that had already been commercialized by experienced firms from more advanced economies.
Few observers are unimpressed by the economic ambition of China or by the nation's remarkable rate of growth. But what does the future hold? This meticulously researched book closely examines the strengths and weaknesses of the Chinese economic system to discover where the nation may be headed and what the Chinese experience reveals about emerging market economies. The authors find that contrary to popular belief, cutting edge innovation is not a prerequisite for sustained economic vitality-and that China is a perfect case in point. © 2011 by Dan Breznitz and Michael Murphree. All rights reserved.
This research was conducted with a sample of 215 Chinese companies from the electronics industry. It shows that the different technological innovation capabilities have a positive impact on product innovation, beginning with the linkage capability, and then moving to the production capability, and ending with the investment capability. The research also shows that product innovation has a mediating effect on the relationship between different technological innovation capabilities and firm performance. Copyright © 2013 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
La recherche a été conduite sur un échantillon de 215 entreprises chinoises de l'électronique. Elle montre que les différentes capacités d'innovation technologique ont un impact positif direct sur l'innovation produit,en commençant par la capacité de réseautage,puis la capacité de production etfinalement la capacité d'investissement. Elle montre également que l'innovation produit joue un rôle médiateur entre les différentes capacités d'innovation technologique et la performance de l'entreprise. Copyright © 2013 ASAC. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Interactions between public research organizations and industry can be conceptualized as having three main stages: drivers of interaction, channels of interaction, and the perceived benefits from collaboration. Both of the agents differ in terms of the incentives they have to collaborate and the behaviors they adopt during the collaboration process. Following a three-stage model based on Crépon et al. (1998), this paper discusses the impact of drivers of collaboration on channels of interaction, and the impact of these channels on the perceived benefits by researchers and firms. The methodology also allows firm-level benefits from interaction to be connected with researchers’ characteristics via the analysis of four common channels of interaction for firms and researchers. The study is based on original data collected through two surveys, carried out in Mexico during 2008, of R&D and product-development managers of firms and of academic researchers. Our results show that all channels of interaction play an important role in determining benefits; however, they differ in terms of their impact on short- or long-term benefits for firms. The channels related to joint and contract R&D, property rights, and human resources are the best, as they have a higher impact on long-term benefits for firms. Policy implications derived from this study focus on specific actions that enhance those researchers’ characteristics related to the best channels for fostering long-term benefits for firms.
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to suggest an emerging paradigm by synthesizing what is presented at an Asian Productivity Organization (APO) study meeting. The meeting focuses on business strategy development. The author acts as the Chief Facilitator during the meeting. The paradigm is intended to help CEOs of firms in Asia to re‐model their businesses in light of rising, innovative China.
Design/methodology/approach
The APO (Japan) and China Productivity Center (Taipei, Taiwan) recently organized a Taipei study meeting. The theme of the meeting was on “post‐global financial crisis, (small, medium sized enterprises) SMEs' business development strategy”. In‐depth, rich experiences were shared during the discussion following the presentations. Founding CEOs, Presidents and senior leaders from industry were involved from the following countries: India, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. Reflecting upon the materials presented, the author develops, through synthesis, an emerging Asian paradigm for evolving newer business models as part of organizational strategy development.
Findings
People always compete in the future. For businesses, besides keeping old customers, it is about the winning of contracts. For example, in the telecom industry, there is intense competition to produce newer, more innovative hand‐held devices. In the coming years, products using Chinese innovation will actively compete in the global marketplace. This pan‐Asia paradigm is useful for CEOs to begin to think about re‐shaping their business model to compete in the next wave.
Originality/value
Since the industrial age and up to very recently, ideas, concepts, methods, techniques, inventions, innovations and business models have been “borrowed” from the West by Asians and adapted to local environments. With the global crisis and consequently a deep weakening of Europe and the USA, there is a growing consensus among top management in Asia: that new thinking on management, for example in business modeling, ought to be drawn from the East. Thus, it is timely for the APO to be organizing such a study meeting.
Much innovation research views catch-up as a process that at low levels of development starts with imitation, and whose end point is innovation; and it posits that different stages require different frameworks to explain what is going on. In its more extreme versions it adds a horizontal to the over-time differentiation and demands that individual or groups of countries be appreciated for their contextual dissimilarities, requiring in each case yet another tailor-made model. The purpose of this review essay is to argue that to derive and justify different sui-generis frameworks from differential catch-up experiences is a non-sequitur, theoretically unsatisfactory, empirically unhelpful and not constructive for policy.
Conceptually, all the pieces for a more unified approach are in place. We know how firms gain competitiveness through dynamic capabilities and complementary assets. We also know that firm-level technological capabilities are related to national (and perhaps regional) technological capabilities. Finally, we know that governing and supporting institutions matter in addressing the uncertainty resulting from problems of information, coordination, and so forth. This provides an opportunity to apply insights from theories of firm behaviour and new evolutionary thinking on technologies and institutions to historically informed, comparative studies of firm-based catch-up over the last decade or so.
Purpose
Recent studies report that China is becoming a leading nation in the quantity of scientific output, including in the emerging field of nanotechnology. In nanotechnology, bibliometric measures based on citations also indicate improvements in the research impacts of Chinese scientific papers. The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of international collaboration, including the role of knowledge moderation through Chinese researchers who collaborate in both domestic and international scientific cooperation, on the impacts of Chinese nanotechnology research publications.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a nanotechnology publication dataset, bibliometric analysis and statistical testing are adopted to explore the issues raised in the study.
Findings
International collaboration, through direct collaboration and indirectly through Chinese knowledge moderators, has a positive impact on the quality of Chinese research, controlling for language, discipline, research capacity, and other factors.
Originality/value
The concept of a Chinese knowledge moderator is introduced to identify Chinese researchers who bridge scientific worlds by publishing scientific papers with both domestic and international colleagues. This concept is operationalized to capture the indirect impacts in China of international knowledge linkages and spillovers including those associated with overseas Chinese researchers and with overseas returnees.
All countries face challenges in commercialising scientific advances in emerging technology domains. As an emerging economy, China is rapidly evolving its innovation system, but still faces many issues in linking scientific development with industrial applications. While research and development (R&D) investment in Chinese science has increased significantly in recent years, there are substantial lags and barriers in the deployment of new technology knowledge by business, including by small and medium-sized enterprises. Yet, there are important signs of change within research organisations and in the policy support structures for research commercialisation in China. To explore these developments, this study examines a specific case within the domain of nanotechnology, an emerging technology domain where China is now among the world's biggest R&D performers. We investigate an example in China of science-driven entrepreneurship in a new technology for producing nano-pigment inks for digital inkjet textile printing. The contextual conditions and the development and commercialisation processes of this focal technology are analysed, as we examine the strategies used by the research team to spin-off their research towards commercialisation. We identify key factors in the Chinese innovation system that respectively facilitated and hindered this research commercialisation example, and consider managerial and policy implications raised by the case.
We analyze the nanotechnology patent applications filed in China from 1998 to 2008 and find that the extraordinary nanotechnology development in China has been primarily promoted by the public sector but not driven by industry and market force. This finding implies that developing countries such as China with public research capacity and commitment to technological development can make rapid progress in basic research of emerging technologies, but it remains uncertain whether and when local industry can benefit from public R&D investment to actively develop indigenous innovation.
This paper examines the debate about whether early entrants/pioneers to an industry enjoy long–term advantage over their successors. While most of the research suggests that pioneers are advantaged, there are methodological problems with these studies that tend to enhance the likelihood that pioneers will be found to be more successful. Through a case study of the US animation industry, it is shown that being a late entrant was almost certainly advantageous to some of the companies concerned. The paper explores the reasons why some late entrants prevailed over others and some of the mechanisms that allowed late entrants to overcome pioneers. The factors involved in survival relative to pioneers include the limited protection of patents, complacency, the mobility of staff with expertise in a new technology (in this case cel animation), and the neglected importance of managerial and organizational factors. It is shown that the findings also have implications for the population ecology approach.
This paper outlines China’s progress in developing endogenous capacity for knowledge diffusion and commercialization in the
higher education sector. Despite a promising start in the 1980s and early 1990s, academic technology transfer has not kept
pace with rapid growth of the country’s overall technological endeavors. But there is evidence of institutional evolution
in that university-industry linkages are moving from more hierarchical and rigid forms established under the centrally planned
economy into more flexible and market-based arrangements. After probing what underscores the stalling of universities’ new
found mission, the paper offers layered policy suggestions on what can be done to overcome the conundrum.
KeywordsUniversity-industry linkages (UILs)–Technology transfer–R&D–Innovation–Higher education reform–China
Providing a complete portal to the world of case study research, the Fourth Edition of Robert K. Yin's bestselling text Case Study Research offers comprehensive coverage of the design and use of the case study method as a valid research tool. This thoroughly revised text now covers more than 50 case studies (approximately 25% new), gives fresh attention to quantitative analyses, discusses more fully the use of mixed methods research designs, and includes new methodological insights. The book's coverage of case study research and how it is applied in practice gives readers access to exemplary case studies drawn from a wide variety of academic and applied fields.Key Features of the Fourth Edition Highlights each specific research feature through 44 boxed vignettes that feature previously published case studies Provides methodological insights to show the similarities between case studies and other social science methods Suggests a three-stage approach to help readers define the initial questions they will consider in their own case study research Covers new material on human subjects protection, the role of Institutional Review Boards, and the interplay between obtaining IRB approval and the final development of the case study protocol and conduct of a pilot case Includes an overall graphic of the entire case study research process at the beginning of the book, then highlights the steps in the process through graphics that appear at the outset of all the chapters that follow Offers in-text learning aids including 'tips' that pose key questions and answers at the beginning of each chapter, practical exercises, endnotes, and a new cross-referencing tableCase Study Research, Fourth Edition is ideal for courses in departments of Education, Business and Management, Nursing and Public Health, Public Administration, Anthropology, Sociology, and Political Science.
This article examines some of the main issues affecting knowledge production in Latin America. The focus is on universities, because they are the principal regional producers of knowledge up to now. The paper compares changes and continuities concerning academic values and attitudes, governmental policies, university–industry relations and endogenous knowledge generation, analysing also the connection between the ‘structurally unachieved’ National Systems of Innovation (NSI) in Latin America and the social ‘loneliness’ of universities. The article finishes by sketching alternative scenarios for the future interaction between knowledge generation and university transformation.
China is transforming itself into the workshop of the world, building an export-oriented national production system linked by global value chains to the world's leading economies. But to what extent is it laying the foundations for moving from imitation to innovation? In this first study of China's national innovative capacity, we extend earlier work conducted on the East Asian Tiger economies, and bring it up to the year 2005. We demonstrate a surge in patenting activity by Chinese firms and organizations since 2001, and analyze the drivers behind this, as well as the quality characteristics of the patenting – in terms of intensity, impact and links with the science base. We have some striking findings to report, including the strong role played by universities in the building of China's national innovative capacity over the last 15 years, and the puzzling apparent lack of contribution of the public sector in reinforcing China's national innovative capacity. On the latter point we suggest that the role of public sector institutions has been mixed, and only exerts its effects after reforms streamlined the system and brought many of the institutions into the private sector.
This paper examines the different channels through which academic researchers interact with industry and the factors that influence the researchers’ engagement in a variety of interactions. This study is based on a large scale survey of UK academic researchers. The results show that university researchers interact with industry using a wide variety of channels, and engage more frequently in the majority of the channels examined – such as consultancy & contract research, joint research, or training – as compared to patenting or spin-out activities. In explaining the variety and frequency of interactions, we find that individual characteristics of researchers have a stronger impact than the characteristics of their departments or universities. Finally, we argue that by paying greater attention to the broad range of knowledge transfer mechanisms (in addition to patenting and spin-outs), policy initiatives could contribute to building the researchers’ skills necessary to integrate the worlds of scientific research and application.
The Swedish innovation system is analysed in terms of the interaction between academia, government and the private sector. For each of 21 Swedish regions we analyse the distribution of research activities, doctoral employment, and publication output, as well as the flow of doctoral graduates and the distribution of co-authorship links across regions and sectors. The three main urban regions have about 75 percent of all R&D activities and outputs. They also have a more balanced supply of academic, governmental and private research activities than the smaller regions, and the interactions among sectors within these regions are more intense. The inter-regional flow of PhDs is also to the advantage of the big regions. So far, decentralization of the academic sector does not seem to have had as similar decentralizing effect on private R&D. Unless this imbalance changes, smaller regions will continue to be net exporters of skill and knowledge to the big regions.
This paper addresses four questions: What is the extent of the collaboration between the natural sciences and engineering
researchers in Canadian universities and government agencies and industry? What are the determinants of this collaboration?
Which factors explain the barriers to collaboration between the university, industry and government? Are there similarities
and differences between the factors that explain collaboration and the barriers to collaboration? Based on a survey of 1554
researchers funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the results of the multivariate
regressions indicate that various factors explain the decision of whether or not to collaborate with industry and the government.
The results also differed according to the studied fields. Overall, the results show that the variables that relate to the
researcher’s strategic positioning, to the set-up of strategic networks, to the costs related to the production of the transferred
knowledge and transactions explain in large part the researcher’s collaboration. The results of the linear regression pointed
to various factors that affect collaboration with researchers: research budget, university localization, radicalness of research,
degree of risk-taking culture and researcher’s publications. Finally, the last part of the paper presents the results, and
what they imply for future research and theory building.
This comprehensive Handbook explores the interactions between the practice, policy, and theory of innovation. The goal is twofold: to increase insight into this dynamic process, searching for options to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of both policy and innovative practice, and to identify conceptual or empirical lacunae and questions that can guide future research. The Handbook is a joint project from 24 prominent scholars in the field, and although each chapter reveals the insights of its respective authors, two overarching theoretical perspectives provide unique coherence and consistency throughout
What was the impact of the nanotechnology funding boom of the past ten
years? Philip Shapira and Jue Wang have scrutinized the literature to
find out.
Incl. bibliographical references, index
Universities are increasingly emphasizing the creation of new companies as a mechanism for commercialization of intellectual
property. This special issue provides a timely opportunity to assess the rise of entrepreneurial activity at universities
and its organizational and societal implications. In this introductory article, we summarize the papers from the special issue
and frame them in the context of the literature. In the concluding section, we discuss some organizational and societal issues
that arise from these papers.
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The Political Economy of Science
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An introduction of the triple helix model and its application in China
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