Multinational Enterprises And Innovation

This volume explores the extent to which multinational enterprises (MNEs) are decentralizing the creation of new technological capabilities to various countries. The book contends that technological strategies and innovation activities undertaken by firms are a critical part of the increasing internationalization of economic activity and that MNEs are the main actors for these changes. It goes on to explain that MNEs must now effectively manage new technological assets in order to cope with the extensive changes in the nature of international competition.

The chapters in this book provide detailed analyses of a range of issues that feed into an overview of the strategic development of the MNE over the past 40 years. This modeled as the evolution of the MNE from a multidomestic hierarchy to a network hierarchy to the contemporary strategic diversity of the heterarchy. The extensive range of empirical and conceptual analysis covers the strategic roles and competitive evolution of subsidiaries; the positioning of R&D labs of MNEs; how MNEs' R&D and product development programmes relate to, and affect the performance of, countries' national systems of innovation; the ways in which dispersed subsidiaries and labs now work to support both the effective use of current competitive technologies and the generation of new sources of competitiveness for global firms. An underlying theme of the book, that is also developed conceptually, is how the global operations of MNEs involve selective involvement with national economies and the implications of this for globalization and economic development.

The crucial actors of a global knowledge-based economy are multinational enterprises (MNEs). MNEs depend on the embeddedness in an institutional framework; their competitive advantage depends on the cross-border utilisation of regional and national capabilities. The innovativeness of a company is therefore based also on regional innovation systems. Multinational Enterprises and Innovation contributes to a better understanding of the interconnectedness between organisational and regional learning. On the basis of case studies in Germany and France, this volume investigates how MNEs cope with technical, economic and institutional uncertainties by drawing upon the complementary strengths of organisational and regional networks in national and European contexts. The book links two theoretical debates which are currently still largely disconnected -- the debate on learning processes in MNEs and the debate on the regional bases of innovativeness and competitiveness -- answering the question of how the internationalisation of R&D is reconciled with regional competences.

The book assumes an original place in the literature. . . Castellani and Zanfei show that the economic impact of MNEs on innovation and productivity depends on evolutionary features of firms and industries, particularly on the heterogeneity of firm strategies and behaviours. . . this volume contains high-quality, well-written research. . . Simona Iammarino, Research Policy . . . this book offers the reader a well-written and very comprehensive analysis on the link between innovation and internalization which leads to insights into firm heterogeneity. The authors have succeeded in synthesizing the vast body of theoretical and empirical research and given an up-to-date overview of the various issues involved. This is then complemented with their own research findings. . . The book will undoubtedly enrich the debate on the behavior and impact of MNEs. Yama Temouri, Journal of International Business Studies Davide Castellani and Antonello Zanfei, two well-known Italian economists, have brought forth an excellent new book. . . I think this book will serve as a starting-point for many interesting studies, both because of its findings and because of its empirical and theoretical rigour. . . the book lays an excellent and empirically well founded foundation that opens the way for what we need most in research on the international innovatory activities and R&D configurations of MNCs: intrafirm data and the study of intrafirm processes, configurations and specific interactions with the host country environment. The book to me is an important step in moving innovation research forward in this direction. . . I am sure that this book will serve as a thought-provoking starting point for many future studies on firms international innovatory activities and therefore recommend it without any reservation. Marcus M. Keupp, Creativity and Innovation Management Castellani and Zanfei have developed an original and comprehensive analysis of the role of multinational firms in the transfer, creation and diffusion of technology. By developing their view of the multinationals as double network institutions , the authors provide new insights on a variety of key issues at the frontier of economics of international production and innovation. This book is thought-provoking, incisive and topical, and should be required reading for both economists and policymakers alike. Rajneesh Narula, University of Reading, UK Castellani and Zanfei present an in-depth theoretical and empirical analysis of the key issues underpinning the relationship between innovation and multinationality. This book is strongly-recommended reading for any researcher working on innovation or multinationality or the interface between the two. Grazia Ietto-Gillies, London South Bank University, UK This book gets to the root of how and why multinational firms differ in the cross-border creation, transfer and diffusion of technology, and provides fresh evidence on the effects that these differences have on productivity and innovation in the economic systems in which they are active. Davide Castellani and Antonello Zanfei consider multinationals as heterogeneous institutions that combine internal networks of subsidiaries with external networks of collaborative linkages, to bridge different economic and innovation systems. They examine heterogeneity in productivity and innovative behaviour between multinational and national firms, as well as across and within multinationals. The authors argue that not every foreign firm is a good source of externality, and not every domestic firm is equally well placed to benefit from multinationals. It is shown that spillovers from multinationals differ according to the technological profiles, embeddedness and linkage creation of both foreign and domestic firms active in local markets. The book supports this view with empirical evidence based on illustrative case studies, and on econometric analysis using extensive firm-level datasets on multinati

Innovation Spaces in Asia provides insight into how and why Asia is poised to impact global innovation. Asia is undergoing rapid developments in markets, sources of technology and user preferences. A key characteristic of the book is the rich empirical

In globalising economies, particularly those going through a process of economic integration such as those economies within the EU, regions forge an increasing number of linkages with other locations within and across national borders. This is largely carried out by the technological efforts of Multinational Corporations (MNCs). This book explores the regional dimension of Europe in terms of localised technological comparative advantages and the location of innovative activities by MNCs. Using an empirical analysis John Cantwell and Simona Iammarino cover such important themes as: *MNC technological activities and economic wealth *MNCs and the regional systems of innovation in Italy, UK, Germany and France *the geographical hierarchy across European national borders.

This study deals with the organisation of innovation projects of multinational companies. The focus is on learning processes which occur within the company group as well as those taking place between the company and its regional environment. This work establishes a bridge between organisational and regional learning. Three dilemmas of innovation can thereby be identified: the dilemma between formalisation and flexibilisation mirrors that organisations are defined as stable and structured entities whilst innovation is a process of renewal and change. The configuration dilemma reflects the choice between a concentrated setting and international dispersal of innovation activities. The dilemma of regional (dis)embeddedness points at the tension between exploiting available resources and pursuing a regionally detached strategy. Qualitative case-studies of specific innovation projects provide empirical in-depth insights. This book was awarded the first prize in the catagory Dissertations of the Weser-Ems-Wissenschaftspreis 2011.

In the changing geography of innovation, multinational corporations play a key role as creators of knowledge. Innovation and the Multinational Firm investigates how innovation is managed within these firms by focusing particularly on subsidiaries and host-locations.