The role of Regional Innovation Systems in a Globalising Economy: Comparing Knowledge Bases and Institutional Frameworks of Nordic Clusters

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The role of Regional Innovation Systems in a
Globalising Economy Comparing Knowledge Bases
and Institutional Frameworks of Nordic Clusters

• Bjørn T. Asheim Lars Coenen
• Based on and financed by project Nordic SMEs and
  Regional Innovation Systems
• (Nordic Innovation Centre)

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CIRCLE

• Centre for Innovation, Research and Competence in
  the Learning Economy
• New centre of excellence in innovation system
  research at Lund University
• One of four centres in Sweden
• Uppsala, Chalmers and KTH

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• Outline of the presentation
• Project Nordic SMEs and Regional Innovation
  Systems
• aim / case studies / final report
• findings / policy recommendations
• Comparing Knowledge Bases and Institutional
  Frameworks of Nordic Clusters

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Project aim To investigate the existence of
similarities and differences vis-à-vis
competitiveness and innovativeness between
clusters of Nordic SMEs in different regions and
sectors and to compare the extent to which
regional factors underlie the success/failure of
clusters in comparison to industry/sector
specific factors
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• Structure of final report
• Introduction
• Conceptual clarification
• Summary of case studies
• Comparative case analysis
• Policy recommendations
• Downloaded from my home page at Lund University

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The case studies
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• Comparative analysis
• SMEs, innovations and innovation systems a broad
  perspective
• Across-the-board innovativeness in high, medium
  and low tech SMEs as a basis for competitiveness
• Multi-scalar SME-innovation systems linkages in
  the light of spatially distributed knowledge
  reservoirs
• Geographical differentiation based on industrial
  knowledge base

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• Comparative analysis
• SMEs, clusters and cluster life-cycles
• Horizontal vs. Vertical collaboration in
  innovation
• Relationships between SMEs and large firms
• Cluster life cycles and the need for different
  policy approaches

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• Comparative analysis
• Social capital and trust cornerstones for
  regional collaboration in innovation
• Understanding innovation as interactive learning
  implies that cooperation is necessary for the
  competitiveness of SMEs
• Social capital is defined as features of social
  organisation that facilitate action and
  cooperation for mutual benefit such as networks,
  shared norms and values and trust
• Initiatives in social networking arrangements
• seem to work well in a Nordic cluster context

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• Comparative analysis
• SMEs and the regional knowledge infrastructure
• Research collaboration between SMEs and knowledge
  infrastructure is not a cure-all
• University spin-offs is a typical high-tech
  phenomenon. Managerial skills are often lacking
• Regional supply of skilled labor most important
  general innovation support that universities can
  provide SMEs

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• Knowledge based versus learning economies Whats
  the difference?
• Most strategic resource ? knowledge
• Most fundamental activity ? learning
• But
• Learning economy innovation across-the-board
• Knowledge based economy focus on high-tech

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Science base vs knowledge base

• Important to distinguish between
• Science base
• Knowledge base
• And between
• RD intensive industries (OECD view)
• Knowledge intensive activities

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Distributed knowledge base

• Transition from an internal knowledge base of a
  firms to a distributed knowledge base of firms
  where the whole value system of a firm or value
  chain of a product must be taken into
  consideration when the knowledge intensity of a
  product is determined
• More and more highly complicated combinations of
  different knowledge types codified (embodied and
  disembodied), artisan and experience based, tacit
  knowledge

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Distributed knowledge base

• The knowledge intensity enters as embodied
  knowledge incorporated into machinery and
  equipment or as intermediate inputs (components
  and materials) into production processes of other
  firms in the value chain/cluster
• This demonstrates that the relevant knowledge
  base for many industries is not internal to the
  industry, but is distributed across a range of
  technologies, actors and industries, making the
  OECD ranking of RD intensive industries less
  relevant

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Theoretical perspectives

• Different types of RIS (systemic linkages and
  relations between regionally dominant production
  structures and knowledge infrastructures)
• Territorially embedded RIS (grassroots RIS)
• Regional networked innovation systems (network
  RIS)
• Regionalised national innovation systems
  (dirigiste RIS)

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Knowledge bases, clusters and RIS

• The relevance of different types of RIS must also
  be placed in a context of the knowledge base of
  various industries
• Innovation processes of firms are strongly shaped
  by their specific knowledge base
• Distinguish between two types of knowledge base
• a) analytical (science based)
• b) synthetic (engineering based)

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Analytic versus synthetic knowledge base Whats
the difference?
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Clusters - RIS

• The different knowledge bases of industries have
  implications for the relations between clusters
  and RIS as well as for the definition of a
  cluster
• Distinction between
• - The existence of pure regional clusters
  where relations to RIS are established at a later
  stage of a clusters life cycle in order to
  support localised learning and innovation in the
  cluster (auxiliary), and
• - The existence of relations between clusters
  and RIS from the emergence of the cluster as a
  necessary input in the development of the cluster
  (integrated)

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Clusters - RIS

• The traditional constellation of industrial
  clusters surrounded by innovation supporting
  organisations in a RIS is normally found in
  contexts of industries with a synthetic knowledge
  base
• The existence of RIS as a necessary part of the
  development of an emerging cluster will normally
  be the case of industries based on an analytical
  knowledge base

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• Relationship RIS-cluster
• synthetic knowledge base tendency for loose
  coupling, auxiliary configuration
• analytic knowledge base tendency for necessary
  coupling, integral configuration

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Clusters and localisation economies
(specialisation)

• Sectoral specialised clusters exploit
  localisation economies
• Sectoral specialisation can be the result of
  different industrial development paths
• In traditional cluster-RIS relations, based on
  industries with a synthetic knowledge base, the
  logic behind building RIS is to support and
  strengthen localised learning of existing
  industrial specialisations in a region, i.e. to
  promote historical technological trajectories
  based on sticky knowledge in the region

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Clusters and localisation economies

• In contexts of relations between clusters and RIS
  as a necessary condition for the emergence and
  growth of the clusters it is a question of
  promoting new and emerging economic activity
  based on industries with an analytical knowlegde
  base, requiring close and systemic
  industry-university cooperation and interaction
  in e.g. science parks, located in proximity of
  knowledge creating organisations (e.g.
  (technical) universities

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Clusters and urbanization economies (diversity)

• Clusters can also be found in regions exploiting
  urbanization economies
• Such regions, constituted by an urban
  agglomeration, are characterised by a diversified
  industrial base in contrast to the specialised
  base of e.g. industrial districts type of
  clusters
• I.e. Different historical and emerging
  technological trajectories co-exist

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Clusters and urbanization economies

• Within urban agglomerations one can identify the
  existence of relations between clusters and RIS
  as a necessary condition for cluster development
  as well as traditional clusters which established
  links with the RIS at a later stage in their life
  cycle. However, one can argue that the diversity
  of urbanization economies is especially important
  in the promotion of radical innovations (cities
  as creative nodes/geography of talent), and,
  thus, of great significance for industries based
  on an analytical knowledge base

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Institutional frameworks ((Soskice) Peck, 2003)
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• Varieties of capitalism/varieties of regional
  innovation systems
• Useful in comparative analysis of countries, no
  focus on regions
• Strong dichotomization
• Inert and inherited institutional landscape
  (policy learning)
• Application in regional context thus far
• Entrepreneurial Regional Innovation Systems
  (ERIS) versus Institutional Regional Innovation
  Systems (IRIS) (Asheim Gertler, 2004 Cooke,
  2004)

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IRIS (Cooke 2001/2004)(associated with
coordinated market economies)

• RD driven
• User-producer relations
• Technology focused
• Incremental innovation
• Bank borrowing
• External supply-chain networks
• Science park

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ERIS/New economy innovation system(associated
with liberal market economies)

• Venture capital driven
• Serial start-ups
• Market-focused
• Incremental and disruptive
• Initial public offerings
• Incubators (university industry relations)

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Knowledge bases institutional frameworks

• Synthetic knowledge base - IRIS
• Analytical knowledge base - ERIS
• ) Regional differentiation of innovation
  policies (US/European blend) at intra- and
  interregional levels within countries,
  representing different degrees of efficiency with
  respect to knowledge exploration, examination and
  exploitation
• ) Regionalisation of regional policies
  (innovation, entrepreneurship and talent are
  increasingly important) in many countries