scholarly journals Internal and External Sources of Knowledge in Manufacturing and Service Enterprises. A Comparative Analysis of European Union Countries

2020 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 21-39 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna Wyszkowska-Kuna

Along with the development of economies based on knowledge, the importance of knowledge input in production processes has been increasing. Enterprises may acquire knowledge input by developing their internal knowledge base and/or purchasing knowledge from external entities. Their internal knowledge base may be developed mainly by employing highly qualified specialists and their own research. The aim of the paper is to examine the importance of all these knowledge sources in manufacturing and services enterprises, as well as to compare their changing role with productivity performance in EU countries. It is based on data from the World Input-Output Database, Eurostat, OECD and EU KLEMS. Thanks to the availability of relevant data, the analysed period covers the years 1995–2018. The study demonstrates that knowledge base, developed through both internal and external sources, played a significantly more important role in the EU-15 than in the EU-12, with a tendency to decrease these disparities (most visible with respect to KIBS input). The growing importance of an external knowledge base was more visible and stable in the EU-12 countries. R&D expenditures were an exception. The recent financial crisis heavily affected only external R&D expenditures.

2014 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 430-446 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nieves L. Díaz-Díaz ◽  
Petra de Saá Pérez

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to study the external sources of knowledge that better exploit internal knowledge in order to innovate. Design/methodology/approach – A balanced panel of 1,266 firms that respond to the Survey of Business Strategies for a five-year period was used, which represents a total of 6,330 observations. Findings – The influence of the absorptive capacity on new products is significant, with an inverted U-shaped relationship. The interaction between external sources of knowledge and firm ' s absorptive capacity has a negative effect on innovation up to a certain level (substitution effect), after which that interaction improves the innovation of firms, displaying a complementary effect. Practical implications – Firms with excess of internal sources of knowledge do not obtain better innovative results because overtime firms tend to inertia and need external sources of knowledge to obtain new knowledge. Firms must be conscious that the effect on innovation of using a strategy of external knowledge acquisition could be different depending on their internal knowledge base level. Thus, those firms that select their strategies to combine knowledge appropriately will have better results. Originality/value – This paper reveals that the positive effect of internal sources of knowledge on innovation decline after it reaches a high level because those firms with strong absorptive capacity may enter a state of organizational inertia that reduces their innovation. This research enhances the importance of identifying each of the external knowledge sources likely to be used, since their influence on innovation differs depending on the level of internal knowledge. Finally, this study is based on panel data models, which allows us to control unobservable heterogeneity improving earlier studies that had to rely on cross-sectional data.


Author(s):  
Sergio Ricardo Mazini ◽  
José Alcides Gobbo

Organizations are inserted into a competitive environment in which innovation is an essential factor in gaining temporary competitive advantages. The search for external sources of knowledge, which can contribute to the innovation process, has become a constant among the organizations. One of the actors involved in this search is users, who often play an important role in the development of new products. This chapter develops a framework for the analysis of users’ involvement in the innovation process through Web 2.0. The research method used a unique case study conducted in a Brazilian automotive company that developed a project of a concept car involving users through Web 2.0. The presented study case was analyzed according to the framework. The obtained result shows that users can contribute not only with idea generation, but also with involvement in the innovation process, depending on which steps of the New Product Development (NPD) process they take part in. Moreover, increasingly users’ development, participation, and collaboration are essential factors in this process.


2014 ◽  
pp. 1363-1388
Author(s):  
Sergio Ricardo Mazini ◽  
José Alcides Gobbo Jr.

Organizations are inserted into a competitive environment in which innovation is an essential factor in gaining temporary competitive advantages. The search for external sources of knowledge, which can contribute to the innovation process, has become a constant among the organizations. One of the actors involved in this search is users, who often play an important role in the development of new products. This chapter develops a framework for the analysis of users' involvement in the innovation process through Web 2.0. The research method used a unique case study conducted in a Brazilian automotive company that developed a project of a concept car involving users through Web 2.0. The presented study case was analyzed according to the framework. The obtained result shows that users can contribute not only with idea generation, but also with involvement in the innovation process, depending on which steps of the New Product Development (NPD) process they take part in. Moreover, increasingly users' development, participation, and collaboration are essential factors in this process.


2014 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Rathwell ◽  
Gordon A. Bloom ◽  
Todd M. Loughead

The purpose of the study was to gain an in-depth understanding of the characteristics head coaches looked for when hiring their head assistant coach, the main roles and responsibilities assigned to assistants, and the techniques and behaviors used to develop them. Data were obtained through interviews with six accomplished Canadian University head football coaches. Results indicated head coaches hired loyal assistants who possessed extensive football knowledge that complimented their own skill sets. Once hired, head coaches had their assistant coaches help them with recruiting, managing a major team unit, and developing athletes. They helped advance their assistants’ careers through personal mentorships which included exposure to external sources of knowledge such as football camps and coaching conferences. These results represent one of the first empirical accounts of head coaches’ perceptions on hiring and developing head assistant coaches.


Economics ◽  
2015 ◽  
pp. 536-561
Author(s):  
Sergio Ricardo Mazini ◽  
José Alcides Gobbo Jr.

Organizations are inserted into a competitive environment in which innovation is an essential factor in gaining temporary competitive advantages. The search for external sources of knowledge, which can contribute to the innovation process, has become a constant among the organizations. One of the actors involved in this search is users, who often play an important role in the development of new products. This chapter develops a framework for the analysis of users' involvement in the innovation process through Web 2.0. The research method used a unique case study conducted in a Brazilian automotive company that developed a project of a concept car involving users through Web 2.0. The presented study case was analyzed according to the framework. The obtained result shows that users can contribute not only with idea generation, but also with involvement in the innovation process, depending on which steps of the New Product Development (NPD) process they take part in. Moreover, increasingly users' development, participation, and collaboration are essential factors in this process.


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