The effect of external KISA on innovation in manufacturing firms

Abstract

Manufacturing firms increasingly rely on externally supplied knowledge and services, which motivate many of them to pay increased attention to external knowledge-intensive service activities (KISA). This article aims to increase understandings of how and through which mechanisms external KISA can facilitate the generation of innovations by manufacturing firms. Results from this study of Chinese manufacturing firms and KISA suggest that knowledge integration (including knowledge combination and knowledge allocation) mediates between external KISA and innovation.