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The environmental and social impacts of companies and their processes, products and supply chains are a widespread concern. At the same time, such impacts provide opportunities for firms to engage in sustainability practices, to transform their businesses or to start new ventures contributing to sustainable development. In this context, innovation can be an important supportive vehicle for developing corporate sustainability management and accounting practices to effectively contribute to sustainable development. Based on the six attributes proposed by Baregheh et al. () to characterise innovations, this paper discusses what innovation in accounting for sustainability may encompass. Although significant efforts have been made, a reorientation and more research are needed to develop corporate accounting approaches to address environmental and social challenges more effectively. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The purpose of this study was to explore the perceived benefits and challenges of online distance education and computer‐based testing (CBT) among registered nurses and midwives in a sample of government‐owned health facilities and health training institutions in Ghana. Design: Exploratory descriptive qualitative design. Methods: Individual semi‐structured interviews were conducted with 45 participants (i.e. 25 nurses and 20 midwives). The data were manually processed and analysed using Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis approach (November 2019‐February 2020). Results: Nurses and midwives prefer online distance education for three reasons: convenience, cost‐effectiveness and learning centre proximity to the workplace. The course schedule's flexibility allowed participants to work and study simultaneously. Others acknowledged online distance education as a viable option for overcoming the challenges of obtaining study leave. However, the lack of recognition of certificates by some employers, poor Internet connectivity and perceived excessive course load were noted as deterrents. Regarding the CBT, many of the participants said that it was useful. Among the advantages of CBT are: (1) a decrease in examination malpractices, (2) a decrease in examination costs and (3) a rise in students' interest in information, communication and technology (ICT). This finding emphasizes the necessity of integrating ICT into nursing and midwifery education and examinations, as well as maximizing its benefits. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACT This paper discusses commonalities between two planning-related discourses: sustainable urban development and innovation. It is argued that one common denominator between these discourses is a resource-based view of urban project management. Implementing sustainability and initiating urban innovation both can be reframed as a multilevel governance process of resource management. The paper discusses sustainable urban development and the innovation concept using Berlin-Adlershof, one of Europe's largest urban science and technology parks, as an example. A resource-based view reveals a particular governance-related resource that seems to be underestimated both by the innovation and the sustainability discourse: identity. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we address the relation between Leader‐Member Exchange (LMX; the quality of the relationship between leader and subordinate), employee creativity (the generation of novel and useful ideas), and employee innovation (the promotion and implementation of these ideas). In the current set of studies, we test the competing hypotheses that LMX will either have a direct effect on employee innovation, or an indirect effect through employee creativity. In a field study of leader–subordinate dyads (N = 118), we found that LMX had no direct effect on employee innovation, and that employee creativity fully mediated the relationship between LMX and innovation. In a follow‐up two‐wave field study of employees (N = 398), we found that the LMX dimension professional respect predicted innovation through creativity, while the other dimensions did not. The results of this work indicate that research on LMX and innovation requires a multidimensional perspective, and that it may be valuable to differentiate between creativity and innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Absorbing external knowledge is crucial for innovation within the organization. One way of tapping external knowledge sources is to rely on employees who reach out across the firm's boundary to external stakeholders and address knowledge sets located beyond the organizational boundary. However, such employees are likely to identify with the stakeholders they reach out to which exposes them to potentially conflicting demands—with positive or negative effects for their employing organization. We investigate whether and how their dual identification with the organization and with users, and the potential identity conflicts this engenders, affects their job satisfaction and innovativeness. We study a sample of 243 employees in two industries, revealing that perceived conflict between organizational identification and user identification detracts from job satisfaction if and only if employees are strongly identified with both targets. We find also that identity conflict is indirectly and negatively related to innovative work behavior through job satisfaction. Our paper contributes to the literature on the benefits and risks of employee ties to external stakeholders. We contribute also to research on embedded users by elucidating under what conditions they are most valuable to their employing organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a Cournot oligopoly model with R&D spillovers both within and across industries. The aim is to provide a theoretical foundation for the main hypotheses regarding the effect of the local industry structure on innovation and output. Depending on the spillover rates and the degree of product differentiation between the industries, the firms respond differently to changes in variety and concentration, which can explain the mixed empirical results. Furthermore, innovation and output can react in opposite ways, which makes the choice of the performance measure critical. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The research objective of this paper is to develop a storytelling‐based knowledge‐sharing application that enables users to co‐create their own stories for both individuals and groups. To address this, a design science research methodology was applied for elucidating users' requirements. As empirical evidence, a case study was conducted on the children's book industry to synthesize a knowledge‐sharing design application named "StoryWeb". Usability tests were conducted to reconfigure users' feedback and suggestions after two StoryWeb prototypes were developed. This study makes three main contributions. First, it empirically tests individual's or group's creativity and co‐creation by a view of knowledge sharing. Second, it methodologically applies a design thinking approach into a knowledge‐sharing study. Third, it also practically suggests feasible guidelines for the creativity and innovation research community on which features of storytelling‐based applications can be configured. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Past research revealed that social networks play a decisive role for the receipt of new knowledge by engineers and middle‐level managers and, thus, essentially contribute to innovation. However, the question of by which network ties top managers – that is, the key organizational decision‐makers – acquire which kind of innovation‐related knowledge resources has not yet been explored systematically. Our paper addresses this research gap by empirically analyzing knowledge ties of top executives in the European fashion and accessories industry. We draw on the concept of relational embeddedness and focus on knowledge providers and knowledge ties of top managers. Based on this theoretical framework, we conducted 22 semi‐structured interviews with top executives from 11 leading European companies within this industry. We present the main results of this explorative study and identify its important implications from both research and managerial perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2010, the Indian government declared 2010–2020 to be the 'Decade of Innovation' and established the State Innovation Councils and Sectoral Innovation Councils to encourage and facilitate innovation by technological firms. In this paper, we study the relationship between collaboration and innovation in a cross‐section of Indian firms, paying particular attention to the impact of the innovation councils. Our results suggest that domestic collaborations have an important impact on firm innovation, as do the innovation councils, but that the impact of the councils is less for firms that collaborate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses the different effects of foreign venture capital (FVC) and domestic venture capital (DVC) on innovation for IPOs. Using patent counts to measure innovation, the results indicate that FVC‐backed firms are less innovative than DVC‐backed firms. Our findings are robust after controlling for the sample selection bias using a propensity score matching approach. One possible underlying mechanism through which FVCs nurture less innovation is their inferior geographic proximity to investment targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Regional Science Policy & Practice is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Over the last two decades, we have witnessed growing empirical research on the concept of innovation climate at both the team and organizational levels. This article systematically reviews the literature surrounding the concept, focusing on its antecedents and outcomes, and empirical work where it has been treated as a moderator. Based on the review, we propose an agenda for future research that highlights the need to incorporate alternative theoretical perspectives to enhance our understanding of the innovation climate concept and its impact in driving team‐ and organizational‐level outcomes. In addition to theoretical future research strands, we also highlight opportunities for empirical advancement of the field. In particular, we highlight the need to examine the negative influence of innovation climate, adopt a more dynamic approach to examine how innovation climates develops over time, and explore the influence of cultural and institutional factors on the development of innovation climate. Practitioner Points: Innovation is essential for organizations wishing to remain competitive and thrive in the highly competitive global marketplace.This study consolidates the insights from prior research linking leadership and team/demographic/workplace characteristics to both the team innovation climate and the organizational innovation climate.Understanding innovation climate provides practitioners with insight into the levers they may utilize to encourage innovation within the organization.In addition, the outcomes of innovation climate are synthesized in this paper which provides practitioners with insight into the expected benefits of focusing on developing a climate for innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of cities in fostering innovation has for long been taken for granted. Agglomeration and the knowledge spillovers generated in dense urban environments have been considered fundamental drivers of innovation. This view has, however, become challenged by research questioning the returns to physical agglomeration and local networking, placing instead more emphasis on the importance of interregional and international collaboration, and on innovation in peripheral regions. This paper delves into the debate on the role of cities for innovation by examining the interplay between urban location and local collaboration in Norway. It uses data from the Community Innovation Survey for 2006–2010 to map out the geographical dimension of R&D collaboration in Norwegian firms with a view to assessing whether different types of R&D collaboration in urban and rural locations affect firms' propensity to innovate. The results show that local collaboration is associated with increased process and organisational innovation, while it does not produce higher levels of product or marketing innovation. Conversely, international collaboration is connected with higher probabilities of product, new‐to‐market and marketing innovations. Furthermore, location in urban or rural areas makes no difference for most innovation outcomes in Norway when other characteristics are controlled for. Location in cities also does not shape the returns to local R&D collaboration. Hence, the role of cities for innovation in Norway, whether in themselves or as sites for dense local interaction, is less relevant than the urban innovation literature would predict. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the theoretical and empirical relevance of motivation crowding theory for owner–managers' motivation towards sustainable development. Motivation crowding theory has argued that external pressures enforce (crowd in) moral motivation if these pressures are perceived as supportive. On the basis of this theory, we conjecture that a competitive environment that is characterized by a high intensity of competition on innovation will crowd in moral motivation towards sustainable development if owner–managers believe that environmental policy practices increase the innovative capability of their company. Test results on survey data filled out by 650 owner–managers support this hypothesis. These results imply that policy makers, who aim at stimulating innovation as well as sustainable development, should inform managers about the innovation‐enhancing effects of environmental policy practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines innovation responses of a panel of Japanese firms to the intensified import competition from China in the period 1995–2005. We build a comprehensive firm‐level dataset linking patents and R&D merged to cross‐industry measures of Chinese import competition. Accounting for a simultaneity bias between innovation and importing and the possible heterogeneous effects across firms, we found that patenting has increased in response to an influx of Chinese imports, but it has adversely affected the quality of innovation, measured by forward citations received. These effects are only observed for globally engaged firms, not for firms focusing on the domestic market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The capability to establish boundary-spanning practices within and across organizations has for long been recognized as a key strategic resource. As organizations are becoming distributed and dynamic, they will be increasingly populated by multiple functional, geographical, hierarchical and professional boundaries. The inherent complexity of such settings makes it difficult for organizations to leverage their boundary-spanning practices. Information technology (IT) systems have been hailed as a critical enabler of boundary spanning. However, there is little knowledge on how organizations are affected by the introduction of different types of IT systems. Building on an interpretive case study of Swedish transport organizations, this paper explores consequences of sensor technology for boundary spanning. The paper contributes with an understanding of what coexisting use contexts mean for boundary-spanning practices. A theoretical implication is that such multi-contextuality requires an integrative view on boundary spanning that combines insights from the organizational innovation and work practice literatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides evidence on factors driving productivity growth in the new EU member states, focusing on Polish manufacturing industries. The results obtained indicate that companies in Poland benefit significantly from transfer of technologies accumulated in more developed economies. No strong evidence is found on immediate technology transfer. The significant effect of domestic innovation activity is mainly due to its impact on the speed of convergence and is particularly strong in high-tech industries, relatively privatized industries and industries initially further from the technological frontier. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper studies the impact of the diversity of domestic and international innovation partnerships on the innovation outcomes of South African firms. A number of competing hypotheses are formulated and tested empirically using a sample of South African firms in manufacturing and services by applying Ordinary Least Squares regression analyses. Results show that having an innovation partnership, particularly an international partnership, is beneficial to innovation outcomes. However, it also emerges that too diverse a set of international partnerships is detrimental to innovation outcomes. The paper concludes with a discussion and a number of proposals for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The complexity and rapid pace of social life stress our ability to make sound and timely group decisions. The cult of the all-wise absolute manager is a relic of the feudal and mechanical ages that works only in routine and not-too-complicated situations. The organizational pyramid was satisfactory for the linear pace of the mechanical age, but moves too slowly today. Efforts to get everyone involved and hear all points of view can take so much exertion and time—and produce so little result that managers hesitate to try them and workers/citizens grow weary of them. A rational solution to this bleak situation is a dialogue process that efficiently enlists broad participation and produces timely results. This paper describes methods for facilitating dialogic decisions as employed in Structured Dialogic Design. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Regional Science Policy & Practice is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper fills theoretical gaps in the scholarly discourse of organisational ambidexterity (OA) by focusing on the concepts of balanced dimension (BD) and combined dimension (CD) of OA. Through a qualitative cross‐comparative case study method it investigates BD/CD at corporate level within the dynamic and competitive UK financial services sector. The study brings greater clarity on the construct of OA and its use in real practice. It shows that forms of OA, CD and BD, are influenced by the firm's strategic choice in specific market segments. Niche players pursuing focused differentiation attain a CD, whereas large players pursuing cost leadership attain a BD of ambidexterity. Exploitation‐exploration efforts are triggered by sets of firm's contingencies that are distinctive to each dimension. Resource flexibility moderates the attainment of desirable ambidexterity's dimensions in contexts of munificent resources. At the corporate level, managers' long tenure facilitates OA. Theoretical and practical implications are offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Few studies have researched how the linkages of tourist firms are related to the types of tourism innovation. Therefore, an organizational information processing theory perspective, a case study approach, and a focus group method were adopted in the Pearl River Delta area (China) to discover how different types of firm linkages influence tourism innovation. The findings reveal that tourist firms have four main forms of linkages and that they have differentiated impacts on innovations. Intracompany linkages are beneficial for institutional, managerial, and product innovations; both intercompany and intrasectoral linkages encourage marketing and product innovations, whereas intersectoral linkages facilitate process innovation and product innovation. These findings fill a research gap in the knowledge of firm‐based innovative linkages and explore the importance of linkages between tourism services and tourism manufacturing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our world has changed radically over the last several decades. Almost every domain of our lives is affected by disruptions in technology—our economy, culture, and education, as well as social lives. We are living in an environment that is characterized by high levels of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity ("VUCA world"). These changes bring about completely new challenges on an individual, an organizational, and a global level. Whereas classical approaches to design and innovation are based on the assumption that we can "solve" these challenges by applying techniques and methods of "problem solving," of (social) collaboration, co‐creation, or co‐design, this paper challenges this "classical" understanding of "together" and "co‐." We will develop and take a closer look at three forms of "together" and "co‐," investigating the relationship between the designer/innovator, his or her material and environment, and the involved stakeholders and their being embedded in ecosystems, as well as the future he or she is designing for: (a) being/working together and collaborating with others (socio‐epistemic dimension); (b) being together, interacting and corresponding with the material/world (co‐becoming dimension); and (c) being together and co‐developing with the future as "learning from the future as it emerges." It will be shown how these forms of together are related to design and innovation, and we will develop implications concerning new skills and mind‐sets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: This paper reports a literature review to synthesize the evidence on day surgery, demonstrating its usefulness for innovative nurses. Background: Day surgery growth has developed rapidly in recent years. Such a rapid growth has triggered a shift in nursing roles and interventions. Nursing roles are taking shape within modern day surgical units but have not been widely reviewed in developing countries. Methods: The RCN library, BNI, CINAHL and Medline databases were searched using the terms ‘day surgery and technological advantages’, ‘financial/economic benefits’, ‘patient experiences/satisfaction’, ‘day surgery/international comparisons’, ‘day surgery and developing countries’. Only papers in the English language from 1990 to 2005 were reviewed, with a predominantly adult focus. The papers examined mainly used research techniques and some opinion papers, policy documents and textbooks were examined for additional information. Findings: The key strengths of day surgery are cost-effectiveness, increased patient satisfaction and low infection rates. Patients indicated that effective information provision and psychological preparation helped them cope with the experience. The use of music, story telling and distraction reduced pre-operative anxiety. Contrastingly, the deficits included poor information giving and psychological preparation resulting in high anxiety levels. Many patients encountered variable pain and nausea management and education strategies. Conclusion: This review highlights the importance of adequate preparation and continuous psychological support for patients undergoing day surgery. The challenges faced by practitioners involved with innovation are also emphasized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper provides a new point of view regarding the knowledge management of new product and service development (NPSD), a high-tech field requiring the merging and integration of different technologies and business models. As case studies, we examine the dynamism of the knowledge creation process in NPSD at traditional Japanese telecommunication companies, as they merge and integrate the different elements of broadband wired and wireless network technologies and business models, and we analyse the new knowledge creation process of NPSD in two cases. In a short period of time, strategic teams at the companies formed strategic communities outside the company including customers, and then formed a network that transcended the strategic communities' boundaries. The synthesizing capability of the leadership-based strategic communities comprising community leaders inside the networked strategic communities enabled strategic teams to build new business models aimed at customers and achieved successful NPSD ahead of other competitors. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is the first of three related papers exploring the ways in which the principles of Learning Organizations (LOs) could be applied in Primary Care settings at the point of service delivery. Here we introduce the notion of the Learning Practice (LP) and outline the characteristics and nature of an LP, exploring cultural and structural factors in detail. Drawing upon both theoretical concepts and empirical research into LOs in health care settings, the format, focus and feasibility of an LP is explored. Characteristics of LPs include flatter team-based structures that prioritize learning and empowered change, involve staff and are open to suggestions and innovation. Potential benefits include: timely changes in service provision that are realistic, acceptable, sustainable, and owned at practitioner level; smoother interprofessional working; and fast flowing informal communication backed up by records of key decisions to facilitate permanent learning. Critical comment on potential pitfalls and practical difficulties highlights features of the present system that hinder development: tightly defined roles; political behaviours and individual-oriented support systems; plus the ongoing difficulties involved in tolerating errors (whilst people learn). This paper contributes to the wider quality improvement debate in the area in three main ways. First, by locating Government's desires to create health systems capable of learning within the theoretical and empirical evidence on LOs. Second, it suggests what an LP could be like and how its culture and structures might benefit both staff and patients in addition to meeting externally driven reforms and health priorities. Third, it extends the application of LO concepts to the health care sector locating the principles in bottom-up change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is the second of three related papers exploring the ways in which the principles of Learning Organizations (LOs) could be applied in Primary Care settings at the point of service delivery. Based on a theoretical and empirical review of available evidence, here we introduce the process by which a Practice can start to become a Learning Practice (LP). Steps taken to enhance both individual and organizational learning begin the process of moving towards a learning culture. Attention is given to the routines that can be established within the practice to make learning systematically an integral part of what the practice does. This involves focusing on all three of single-, double- and triple-loop learning. Within the paper, a distinction is made between individual, collective and organizational learning. We argue that individual and collective learning may be easier to achieve than organizational learning as processes and systems already exist within the Health Service to facilitate personal learning and development with some opportunities for collective and integrated learning and working. However, although organizational learning needs to spread beyond the LP to the wider Health Service to inform future training courses, policy and decision-making, there currently seem to be few processes by which this might be achieved. This paper contributes to the wider quality improvement debate in three main ways. First, by reviewing existing theoretical and empirical material on LOs in health care settings it provides both an informed vision and a set of practical guidelines on the ways in which a Practice could start to effect its own regime of learning, innovation and change. Second, it highlights the paucity of opportunities individual general practitioner practices have to share their learning more widely. Thirdly, it adds to the evidence base on how to apply LO theory and activate learning cultures in health care settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is the third of three related papers exploring the ways in which the principles of Learning Organizations (LOs) could be applied in Primary Care settings at the point of service delivery. Here we provide a systematic literature review of contextual factors that either play a key role in providing a facilitative context for a Learning Practice or manifest themselves as barriers to any Practice's attempts to develop a learning culture. Core contextual conditions are identified as, first, the requirement for strong and visionary leadership. Leaders who support and develop others, ask challenging questions, are willing to be learners themselves, see possibilities and make things happen, facilitate learning environments. The second core condition is the involvement and empowerment of staff where changes grow from the willing participation of all concerned. The third prerequisite is the setting-aside of times and places for learning and reflection. This paper contributes to the wider quality improvement debate in three main ways. First, by highlighting the local contextual issues that are most likely to impact on the success or failure of a Practice's attempts to work towards a learning culture. Second, by demonstrating that the very same factors can either help or hinder depending on how they are manifest and played out in context. Third, it adds to the evidence available to support the case for LOs in health care settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates how human resources are managed in firms of different ownership forms in India and the extent to which strategic human resource management (hereafter strategic HRM) techniques have been adopted to support an innovation-oriented business strategy. Based on a qualitative study of 54 Indian managers from different firms, this study highlights the Indian institutional context for strategic HRM. It reveals the extent to which the Western approach to and configuration of high-commitment/performance models of HR practices may differ from those found in Indian firms. This study also has a number of practical implications for HR professionals, HR practices, and organizations in the global context. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this paper is to test how human resources management (HRM) practices and employees' knowledge influence the development of innovative capabilities and, by extension, a firm's performance. Results confirm that HRM practices are not directly associated with innovation unless they take into account employees' knowledge. Specifically, our analyses establish a mediating role for the uniqueness of knowledge between collaborative HRM practices and innovative activity, a positive influence of knowledge-based HRM practices on valuable knowledge, and a positive contribution of innovations to the company's profit. We tested hypotheses in a sample of firms from the most innovative Spanish industries through structural equation modeling. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper draws on the social and behavioral sciences in an endeavor to specify the nature and microfoundations of the capabilities necessary to sustain superior enterprise performance in an open economy with rapid innovation and globally dispersed sources of invention, innovation, and manufacturing capability. Dynamic capabilities enable business enterprises to create, deploy, and protect the intangible assets that support superior long- run business performance. The microfoundations of dynamic capabilities—the distinct skills, processes, procedures, organizational structures, decision rules, and disciplines—which undergird enterprise-level sensing, seizing, and reconfiguring capacities are difficult to develop and deploy. Enterprises with strong dynamic capabilities are intensely entrepreneurial. They not only adapt to business ecosystems, but also shape them through innovation and through collaboration with other enterprises, entities, and institutions. The framework advanced can help scholars understand the foundations of long-run enterprise success while helping managers delineate relevant strategic considerations and the priorities they must adopt to enhance enterprise performance and escape the zero profit tendency associated with operating in markets open to global competition. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we examine the emergence of resources. Our analysis of technological capability acquisition by global U.S.-based chemical firms shows that the emergence of resources is inherently evolutionary We find that path-creating search that generates resource heterogeneity is a response to idiosyncratic situations faced by firms in their local searches. Two such idiosyncratic situations--technology exhaustion and expansion beyond national markets--trigger firms in our sample to create unique innovation search paths. We also find that along a given path firms experiment in order to find the correct investment--in fact, some organizations seem to take a step backward for two steps forward--further demonstrating the evolutionary nature of the resource creation process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates how firms' decisions to outsource or internalize production affect their technological performance. While several popular arguments and some anecdotal evidence suggest a direct association between outsourcing and technological performance, the effects of firms' governance decisions are likely to be contingent upon several specific attributes underlying a given exchange. This paper first demonstrates how standard performance models can improperly suggest a positive relationship between firms' outsourcing decisions and their technological performance. Models that account for firm- and transaction-specific features are then presented, which indicate that neither outsourcing nor internalization per se result in superior performance; rather, a firm's technological performance is contingent upon the alignment between firms' governance decisions and the degree of contractual hazards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates the relationship between intercorporate technology alliances and firm performance. It argues that alliances are access relationships, and therefore that the advantages which a focal firm derives from a portfolio of strategic coalitions depend upon the resource profiles of its alliance partners. In particular, large firms and those that possess leading-edge technological resources are posited to be the most valuable associates. The paper also argues that alliances are both pathways for the exchange of resources and signals that convey social status and recognition. Particularly when one of the firms in an alliance is a young or small organization or, more generally, an organization of equivocal quality, alliances can act as endorsements: they build public confidence in the value of an organization's products and services and thereby facilitate the firm's efforts to attract customers and other corporate partners. The findings from models of sales growth and innovation rates in a large sample of semiconductor producers confirm that organizations with large and innovative alliance partners perform better than otherwise comparable firms that lack such partners. Consistent with the status-transfer arguments, the findings also demonstrate that young and small firms benefit more from large and innovative strategic alliance partners than do old and large organizations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Papers in Regional Science is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The origins of quality engineering are in manufacturing, where quality engineers apply basic statistical methodologies to improve the quality and productivity of products and processes. In the past decade, people have discovered that these methodologies are effective for improving almost any type of system or process, such as financial, health care, and supply chains. This paper begins with a review of key advances and trends within quality engineering over the past decade. The second part uses the first part as a foundation to outline new application areas for the field. It also discusses how quality engineering needs to evolve in order to make significant contributions to these new areas. © 2015 The Authors Quality and Reliability Engineering International Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Utilization of fibre placements in flexible light weight structures For the World Expo 2020 in Dubai, Werner Sobek developed innovative shading systems that connect all the country pavilions on the exhibition grounds. These structures span an area of around 96,000 m2. Three different shading systems were developed on the basic principle of a wide‐span steel frame structure. This paper presents one of the three shading systems, which was designed with a fibre scrim. It was adapted to the harsh climatic conditions of the site by specifically integrating innovations in filament scrim technology into the design. An important design goal was to provide shading and air circulation to improve the microclimate in the public space. The ambient temperature under the shading elements was thus to be naturally reduced by 5 °K. Other important objectives were to minimise CO2 emissions and grey energy as well as to design and build in a way that is suitable for recycling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how internationalization spurs corporate innovation. Internationalization heightens the competitive environment of firms, while increasing financial flexibility. The increased competition reduces agency problems and motivates innovation projects which are supported by improved financial flexibility. We obtain robust evidence with the difference‐in‐differences and instrumental variable approaches. The passage of antitakeover laws and the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake are treated as exogenous variations to corporate governance; shocks on firm capital supply measured by mutual fund redemptions are also considered. A less positive finding is that internationalization motivates firms to focus on the appropriability of innovation rather than on basic research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Investment by energy firms in innovation can have substantial economic and environmental impacts and benefits. Firms engage in innovation for different reasons. The main objective of this paper is to analyse the role that the different innovation objectives have on firms' decisions to invest in each of three types of innovation activity: namely, internal R&D, external R&D, and the acquisition of advanced machinery, equipment, or software. We consider four objectives: process innovation, product innovation, reducing environmental impact, and meeting regulatory requirements. With this approach, we examine how energy firms innovate to reduce their environmental impact in comparison with other innovation objectives. In carrying out the empirical analysis, we draw on data for private energy firms included in the Spanish Technological Innovation Panel for the period 2004–2016. In the empirical analysis, we take the potential persistence of innovation activities into account and we use multivariate probit models to control for possible complementarities between the different R&D and innovation investments. Our results show that internal and external R&D are undertaken to address environmental objectives and to meet regulatory requirements whereas the acquisition of advanced machinery has the purpose of developing process innovations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Technological innovation is essential to achieve simultaneously economic, environmental and social goals (i.e., the green growth). Indeed, many studies found that environmental innovation spurs overall innovation. However, this topic has not been investigated by taking into account the geographical context. Therefore, our paper seeks to investigate whether 'green regions', with an increased public and private commitment in environmental issues, are related to innovation of local firms. Using data on Spanish manufacturing firms and regions, we find that environmental technologies (especially in green energy), environmental investments, and environmental management at the level of regions are positively associated to local firms' innovation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a dearth of systematic evidence concerning the extent to which being located in economically advantaged regions assists firms in accessing knowledge from global sources. This paper explores the issue by utilizing data from a survey of firms in the UK. It shows that local knowledge sourcing widely assists firms in economically advantaged regions by acting as a springboard for international knowledge sourcing, whilst this is not the case for their counterparts in disadvantaged regions. The analysis suggests that the springboard effect and the geography of external knowledge networks are associated with regional economic context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Regional Science Policy & Practice is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This paper identifies the extent to which cultural diversity induced by internal migration affects urban innovation in China. We measure cultural diversity by an index of "plurality" of provinces of origin. Using the 2000 and 2005 population census data, we find that innovative activities are higher in cities with a higher degree of cultural diversity. Further heterogeneity analysis shows that cultural diversity, not only of the highly skilled, but also of the low skilled, has a positive effect on innovation. Our study contributes to the scarce evidence on the effect of cultural diversity on innovation in developing countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyzes the development of spatial concentration of various innovation activities in China from 2000 to 2015 by using a generalized Theil index based on a balanced provincial dataset. It tracks concentration development back to the developing heterogeneity within and between regions in general and the mega‐economic zones in particular. Results show that innovation activities tend to be distributed unequally across provinces in China, with more pronounced unequal distribution of innovation outcomes than innovation inputs. Over the research period, the innovation activities considered became more and more equally distributed across provinces. The between‐region inequality of innovation activities has, however, not yet significantly improved, despite the implementation of Chinese regional policies to encourage more equal regional development. Instead, more equal distribution of innovation activities within mega‐economic zones is observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in emergent countries have been motivated to implement corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices, whereas innovation is needed or even necessary to gain performance. This paper develops a conceptual model to explore if three types of innovation (technology, management, and marketing) have moderation and mediation effects on relationships between CSR practices and performance. Using 494 samples collected from Chinese SMEs, hierarchical regression analysis results show that technology innovation can improve environmental performance together with employee efforts, and it can also improve social image together with environmental practices and community involvement. Management innovation is necessary to improve stakeholders' satisfaction, and it can also help bring environmental performance through employees' efforts and improve social image through organizational governance. Marketing innovation is necessary to gain economic performance. Meanwhile, marketing innovation can improve stakeholders' satisfaction together with organizational governance, and it can help to improve environmental performance through community involvement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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This paper proposes a simple framework to examine organizational methods of knowledge protection. The framework highlights a basic trade‐off between improving decision‐making and innovation through communication and mitigating security risks by imposing restrictions on communication flows. The trade‐off is mediated by factors such as the sensitivity of information, the degree to which employees can be trusted to handle sensitive information appropriately, and firms' investments in legal protection mechanisms. Evidence from HP Labs supports the basic predictions of the model, in particular the importance of employee trustworthiness and internalized codes of behavior in promoting open communication. Our interviews also suggest a potential conflict between two of the most important appropriability mechanisms: secrecy and lead‐time advantage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Uncertainty is expected to enter into our grant allocation processes at many points, not limited to those directly involving assessment by peers. The selection of grants for funding is thus prodigiously low in statistical power and will remain so. The replacement of current systems with some form of lottery, as has been proposed, seriously risks weakening the quality of applications. Opportunities exist for agencies to encourage and reward greater clarity and innovation in research outcomes. Recent papers have shown that peer review of grant applications is little better than random selection. Attention here is drawn to additional sources of uncertainty and the inherent low statistical power of our adjudication systems. Suggestions are made for improved focus on outcomes and the encouragement and reward of novel proposals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the innovation and development literature, natural resources ( NR) are generally viewed as a curse for developing nations and NR-based industries as having little potential to innovate and drive long-term growth. This has led policy and development experts to opt for strategies to induce a shift in the pattern of specialization towards other sectors. This paper proposes a different approach. By exploring recent evidence from the Argentinean agricultural sector and the mining industry in Chile, it points to the window of opportunity that NR industries offer as a platform to develop knowledge intensive industries with which to support economic development in resource-endowed countries. The lessons drawn from these findings suggest that development strategies can also promote more innovative knowledge intensive NR-based industries rather than moving away from them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Entrepreneurs have started relying on crowdfunding to fund their investments. This paper surveys the literature linking crowdfunding with innovation in entrepreneurial firms. Two distinct areas are discussed. First, crowdfunding has the potential to foster innovation by offering new sources of capital to innovation‐driven firms and thereby reduce the funding gap for innovative startups. Second, crowdfunding offers a way for the crowd to participate in the innovation process by providing feedback to the entrepreneur. This feedback can take various forms, including providing ideas on the development of the product during and after the campaign (in the spirit of crowdsourcing), and providing valuable information on the future demand for the new product. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]