Focus Group on Innovative Firms and Networks

Lead countries: Austria and Australia

Contact persons:

• Wolfgang Polt

  , Joanneum, Austria (innovative networks)

• Andreas Schibany

  , Joanneum, Austria

• David J. Brown

  , Arthur D. Little (innovative firms)

Objective:

To define characteristics of firms and networks of firms that hamper or promote innovative activities, with a view to determining how government policy can directly or indirectly increase the stock of innovative firms. The work will devote special attention to three themes:

• The dynamics of networks, including in the service sector

• Policies to enhance innovative capacities of firms

• The role of policy in stimulating co-operation and networking

Andreas Schibany, Timo J. Hämäläinen and Gerd Schienstock, Interfirm Co-operation and Networking: Concepts, Evidence and Policy.

Case studies of network policies

• Austria
• Denmark
• Finland
• Greece
• Hungary
• Italy
• Switzerland
• Chinese Taipei

Additional papers

• Michel Dumont and Aggelos Tsakanikas, Knowledge Spillovers through R&D Networking
  

Focus group meeting, 2-3 October 2000, Rome

Minutes of meeting

Presentations by participants:

• Collaboration between Manufacturing Firms and Knowledge Institutions on Product Development

  : Evidence from Harmonised Surveys in Australia, Denmark, Austria, Norway and Spain

• Innovation Modes in the Swiss Service Sector

  : A Cluster Analysis Based on Firm-level Data

• Technology and Market Orientation in Company Participation in the EU Framework Programme
• Knowledge Spillovers through R&D Co-operation
• An Empirical Study of University-Industry Research Co-operation: The Case of Taiwan
• Regional Differences of Innovation

  : Firms' Organization, Regional Institutions and Innovative Performance

Focus group meeting, 16-18 February 2000, Vienna

Minutes of meeting

Presentations by participants:

• Innovation Networks and Network Policies
• Interfirm Networks in the EU Framework Programme

  - Powerpoint presentation

• Innovative Activity and Firm Characteristics

  : A Cluster Analysis with Firm-level Data of Swiss Manufacturing - Powerpoint presentation

Kick-off workshop, 18-19 November 1999, Vienna

Minutes of the meeting

Presentations by participants:

• Bibliometric Network Analysis

  (Bib TechMon) of the Fourth Framework Programme of the European Union (based on CORDIS data)

• Further Elaboration of a Graph-theoretical Analysis of R&D Collaboration

• Networks: Organisation Alternative to Markets, Hierarchies and Governments

See also Results of Phase II ...