Organizing Product Innovation: Hierarchy, Market or Triple Helix Networks

21 Pages Posted: 5 Jul 2016

See all articles by Martin Gjelsvik

Martin Gjelsvik

NORCE Norwegian Research Centre AS

Rune Dahl Fitjar

International Research Institute of Stavanger

Andres Rodriguez-Pose

London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE)

Date Written: 2014

Abstract

This paper assesses the extent to which the organization of the innovation effort in firms, as well as the geographical scale at which this effort is pursued, affects the capacity to benefit from product innovations. Three alternative modes of organization are studied: hierarchy, market and triple-helix-type networks. Furthermore, we consider triple-helix networks at three geographical scales: local, national and international. These relationships are tested on a random sample of 763 firms located in five urban regions of Norway which reported having introduced new products or services during the preceding 3 years. The analysis shows that firms exploiting internal hierarchy or triple-helix networks with a wide range of partners managed to derive a significantly higher share of their income from new products, compared to those that mainly relied on outsourcing within the market. In addition, the analysis shows that the geographical scale of cooperation in networks, as well as the type of partner used, matters for the capacity of firms to benefit from product innovation. In particular, firms that collaborate in international triple-helix-type networks involving suppliers, customers and R&D institutions extract a higher share of their income from product innovations, regardless of whether they organize the processes internally or through the network.

Keywords: Organization; Markets; Networks; Triple helix; Outsourcing; Firms; Norway

JEL Classification: D21, M13, O31

Suggested Citation

Gjelsvik, Martin and Fitjar, Rune Dahl and Rodriguez-Pose, Andres, Organizing Product Innovation: Hierarchy, Market or Triple Helix Networks (2014). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2804525 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2804525

Martin Gjelsvik (Contact Author)

NORCE Norwegian Research Centre AS ( email )

PO Box 8046
Stavanger, 4068
Norway

Rune Dahl Fitjar

International Research Institute of Stavanger ( email )

PO Box 8046
Stavanger, 4068
Norway

HOME PAGE: http://www.iris.no

Andres Rodriguez-Pose

London School of Economics & Political Science (LSE)

Houghton Street
London, WC2A 2AE
United Kingdom

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