European Network on the Economics of the Firm (ENEF) 2013 Meeting

Following successful previous ENEF meetings organized in Sheffield, Rotterdam, Nice-Sophia Antipolis, Cambridge, Paris, Amsterdam, Strasbourg and Bologna, we are pleased to announce the 10th ENEF meeting to be held in Madrid at the Spanish National Research Council jointly organised by the Institute for Economics, Geography and Demography and the Institute of Public Goods and Policies. 

 

The acquisition of new technologies has become a crucial factor for firms’ competitiveness. However, in today’s fast-paced, knowledge-intensive environment, innovation is rarely the outcome of firms own internal R&D efforts. 

 

Firms may develop innovations internally (make), purchase R&D services (buy) or engage in hybrid forms, such as R&D subcontracting or cooperation with independent firms or institutions. In today’s fast-paced, knowledge-intensive environment, innovation is rarely the sole outcome of firms own internal R&D efforts. Innovation is increasingly the outcome of interactions among multiple actors and both R&D outsourcing as well as R&D cooperation have become significant features in current innovation management as ways to develop and gain access to new technologies.

 

At the same time, the technology necessary for global competitiveness is often dispersed internationally. In this context, international R&D networks can provide firms with access to country-specific advantages and allow them to tap into the comparative advantages of foreign countries. While technology transfer is now recognized among economists and policymakers as key for economic growth, there is still relatively little knowledge at the firm level on the patterns of technology sourcing and the mechanisms underlying technology transfer. Technology sourcing from sources external to the firm and its entrepreneurial group includes a wide range of arrangements such as research contracts, acquisitions of R&D services and cooperation for innovation. These arrangements may engage partners and providers of technology located in the national and international market.