1,721,022 research outputs found
How creative vouchers can allocate public resources for innovation effectively
No full textPurpose: The purpose is to assess the usefulness of creative vouchers, a specific kind of technology and innovation vouchers (small grants usually given to SMEs to acquire external knowledge) where the knowledge suppliers are creative firms such as design agencies. Design/methodology/approach: A multiple case analysis of four EU-funded pilot voucher schemes was carried out through project reports and semi-structured interviews with relevant stakeholders. Findings: The authors show that creative vouchers are effective policy instruments despite the limited amount of money involved because they trigger new innovation trajectories often in a serendipitous way. The authors also show that the quality of projects and satisfaction of the beneficiaries increase when both proposals and suppliers are screened. Research limitations/implications: The authors’ conclusions are based on four pilot projects in a specific region of the world (Western Europe). Though two of them were extended to a much bigger scale, their generalizability may be limited. Moreover, the limited number of cases does not permit an analytical evaluation of all the voucher schemes mechanisms. Practical implications: The findings of this paper can be very useful to policymakers designing voucher schemes and to the companies involved, whether they are providers or beneficiaries. In particular, the voucher allocation mechanisms may have a strong impact on the success of the program. Social implications: The innovation spurred by the collaboration with creative firms is generally neither energy-intensive nor capital intensive, but brain intensive, and this is the best way to leverage on the talent of local creative and make companies create value based on immaterial resources. Originality/value: To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study of creative vouchers after Bakhsi et al., 2015, and the only one involving several schemes in different countries. It shows the innovation potential of such a little known policy instrument for SMEs. Moreover, it provides insight on how to design a voucher scheme in order to improve its effectiveness
Network contracts and firm performance: evidence from matching estimates of a regional program impact
No full textThis paper empirically assesses the stimulating effect of the ERGON1 program issued by the Lombardy Region (Italy). ERGON1 provided economic incentives for creating network contracts among firms, mostly located in the region. A network contract is an innovative policy instrument introduced in Italy in 2009, which fosters the creation of firm aggregations with an ad hoc contract, without resorting to mergers. Network contracts are meant to increase economic efficiency for all firms involved in the contract. A new database has been collected for the analyzes presented. Information is available on firms’ balance sheets, on ERGON1 call participants, and on network contracts existing in Italy as of 2015. Empirical results suggest that firms enjoy an increase in productivity after being financed to create network contracts. Causality issues are tackled by means of Propensity Score Matching Estimates. Estimates suggest that ERGON1 causes a better economic performance of firms in the sample
Walking the tightrope and stirring things up: Exploring the institutional work of sustainable entrepreneurs
No full textSustainable entrepreneurs (SEs) operate under different institutional pressures, but they also aim to provoke changes in their institutional environment in order to advance the goals of sustainability. These changes are not always large-scale, successful transformations. This article adopts the concept of institutional work to explore how SEs engage in purposive, mundane activities to both fit in and influence the prevailing institutional environment. In particular, our findings allow us to introduce and discuss four specific types of work: making sustainability convenient, politicizing economic action, maneuvering around regulation, and relational work. At the end, we suggest that SEs may find themselves in a situation where they aim to transform the prevailing commercial institutional logic in order to promote sustainability goals while also trying to adapt to, and hence reproducing, this same logic they would like to transform
Governance of small consortia for innovation: a multiple-case study analysis
No full textThe diffusion and importance of open and collaborative innovation are widely acknowledged. Generally, policy makers launch programs fostering collaboration without awareness of the factors surrounding the collaborations. Moreover, while linkages between two organisations (dyadic relationships) have been largely explored, collaborative innovation carried out through formal multi-party alliances such as consortia is less well-known. In particular, there is little literature about the role of the administrative committee (i.e., the joint steering committee managing the consortium) and its impact on governance. A multi-case analysis of three small consortia in their initial phases reveals which forms of governance matter, how they interplay with each other and explains the role and boundaries of the administrative committee
INVESTIGATING the INNOVATION IMPACTS of USER-CENTRED and PARTICIPATORY STRATEGIES ADOPTED by EUROPEAN LIVING LABS
Full text linkThe advantages of innovation strategies that are based on collaboration with users have been demonstrated by several studies, which have highlighted emerging shifts from a user-centred approach (in which the user is a subject) to a participatory one (in which the user is a partner). The Living Lab methodology, which is a design research methodology aimed at co-creating innovation through the involvement of aware users in a real-life setting, can provide new perspectives in the passage from user-centred to participatory design. In this paper, answers received by 92 Living Labs belonging to the European Network of Living Labs are used to (i) investigate the strategies adopted by Living Labs to involve users in their innovation processes and (ii) analyse the relationships between strategies and achieved innovation performance outcomes. The user-centred strategy positively impacts all innovation performance outcomes (e.g., time, cost, quality and go to market), but only time performance shows a significant difference between non-adopters and adopters. Observing user behaviors, capturing user insights and receiving user feedback positively impact the efficiency of innovation projects and allow them to be concluded in a timely manner. The participatory strategy shows that adopters are characterised by a significantly higher percentage of projects that are able to reach the market by moving from the research stage to the innovation stage. Practices such as co-design, collaboration through digital platforms and development of experience prototypes allow for the achievement of better results in terms of quality and, consequently, marketability of the project outcome, but reduce the efficiency of the innovation project in terms of time and cost
The adoption of the logical framework in international development projects: a survey of non-governmental organizations
No full textNon-governmental organizations (NGOs) play a fundamental role in International Development but their projects often lack efficiency and effectiveness. A key aspect is the proper use of project management tools and methodologies. The Logical Framework (LF) has been suggested as a key tool in this sector. However, the extent and impact of its use by NGOs is still not known. Based on almost 500 questionnaires collected from project managers working on International Development (ID) projects in NGOs around the world, we show that the LF is broadly adopted, especially for large projects and ‘soft’ projects. Moreover, we demonstrate that when used in the various phases of a project’s life-cycle, the LF contributes significantly to the achievement of superior project impact
Collaborations for innovation: a meta-study of relevant typologies, governance and policies
No full textInnovation is often the result of collaborative efforts, but many firms lack skills and resources to engage in collaborations. Therefore, policy-makers have developed a variety of measures and programmes to increase interaction and favour partnerships between organisations. They range from innovation vouchers, meant to provide SMEs with external knowledge and opportunities for business partnerships (mostly dyadic), to consortia for R&D, marketing or production (small group of participants), to cluster initiatives involving many geographically concentrated organisations. For each of these main forms, we carried out a multiple-case study research. This paper is a meta-study (specifically a meta-synthesis) of previous pieces of research conducted by mostly the same authors. Here, we identify the commonalities of the forms of collaboration that are conducive to innovation, how to govern them and discuss the policy instruments that foster collaboration while reducing opportunistic behaviours
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
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