Constructing Regional Advantage Research Articles

Understanding the strategic ‘black hole’ in regional innovation coalitions: reflections from the Twente region, eastern Netherlands

ABSTRACTActive coalitions of regional stakeholders are at the heart of contemporary regional economic development policies, such as Smart Specialisation or Constructing Regional Advantage. These coalitions consist of actors from various organizations such as regional authorities, companies and higher education institutions that come together to achieve common agendas and advance their region. Accordingly, the numerous stakeholders are expected to work together seamlessly, build and implement strategies and thereby deliver regional development. However, by assuming that strategy formulation and implementation is straightforward, the challenges that lie within partnerships and the tensions that may arise between stakeholders can become neglected. Therefore, it is vital to understand tensions that drive towards situations in which strategy-building is not successful and ‘black holes’ of strategy-building emerge. By identifying the tensions between regional partners in the Twente region of the Netherlands, the aim is to understand how such stakeholder tensions affect regional development. It is assumed that by easing or resolving these tensions, stakeholder partnerships can contribute to the successful advancement of their region. The data for this qualitative case study are drawn from both research interviews and secondary sources.

미국 위스콘신주 매디슨시 바이오산업의 지역우위 구축 과정: 줄기세포 분야를 중심으로

미국 위스콘신주 매디슨시 바이오산업의 지역우위 구축 과정: 줄기세포 분야를 중심으로

Constructing regional advantage in branding the cross-border Euroregion Galicia–northern Portugal

This paper employs a constructing regional advantage (CRA) approach in respect of examining the potential of joint branding strategies intended to position and give visibility to cross-border regions. The CRA concept is introduced here to improve understanding about the empirical significance of a branding strategy through cross-border relatedness, differentiated knowledge bases and policy platforms. It also aims to contribute to the academic debate on region branding. The case study focuses on the Euroregion composed of Galicia in north-west Spain and northern Portugal (GNP). Findings show that the combination of the key economic domains in which GNP excels will echo the cross-border advantage and strengthen a joint region branding strategy.

Constructing Regional Advantage and Smart Specialisation: Comparison of Two European Policy Concepts

This paper discusses two influential policy concepts at the European level that aim to promote economic diversification of regions, that is the Constructing Regional Advantage concept (CRA) and the Smart Specialisation concept (SS). Both policy frameworks identify and prioritise ‘promising’ targets for policy intervention, but they do so differently. The SS concept organizes this identification process through entrepreneurial discovery in which entrepreneurs select the domains of future specialisation. The CRA concept focuses on identifying related variety and bottlenecks that prevent related industries in regions to connect and interact. The paper argues that the two policy concepts can provide useful inputs to develop a smart and comprehensive policy design that focuses on true economic renewal in regions. Questo lavoro discute due concetti di policy utilizzati a livello comunitario per promuovere la crescita economica delle regioni, il concetto di Costruzione di un Vantaggio Regionale (CVR) e quello di Specializzazione Intelligente (SI). Entrambi, sebbene in maniera diversa, identificano ed assegnano una priorita a obiettivi ‘promettenti’ di policy. Questo lavoro illustra come entrambi i concetti possano fornire un utile contributo allo sviluppo di politiche intelligenti e generali focalizzate sul reale rinnovamento economico a livello regionale.

Can small regions construct regional advantages? The case of four Norwegian regions

The conceptual framework of constructing regional advantage (CRA) is implicitly relevant for large, well-off regions that have strong regional innovation systems, a diversity of industrial sectors and resourceful firms that can partake in global knowledge networks. This paper discusses the extent to which small regions, with less developed regional innovation systems, may also constitute the basis for developing regional advantage. Four cases of regional industries dominated by different innovation modes make up the empirical test bed in the paper. The innovation modes are STI (science, technology, innovation), CCI (complex, combined innovation) and DUI (doing, using, interacting). With some reformulations, the CRA framework also is found to represent a useful conceptual construct for small regions. Adapting the CRA framework to small regions involves focusing more on increasing the innovation capabilities at the level of the firm – placing less emphasis on the endogenous capacity of regional innovation systems, but emphasising the importance of experience-based knowledge in local labour markets – and concentrating more on the need for a diversity of knowledge bases at the regional level. Policy lessons for constructing regional advantages in small regions should, in general, consider the upgrading of DUI firms and stimulating extra-regional links.

Regional Innovation Policy Processes: Linking Learning to Action

The starting point for this paper is the concept of constructing regional advantage (CRA). In the future, it will not be practical to assume that competitive advantage can be created by simply having the relevant actors in place. On the contrary, it will need to be consciously and proactively constructed. This implies a new, more dynamic role for the public sector in general, and for government and governance in particular in terms of interaction with the private sector. The paper approaches the regional innovation policy process as part of the process of constructing regional advantage. The policy process is interpreted as a learning process in which governments and other regional actors such as firms or universities can develop the capabilities to construct regional advantage. This paper focuses on the following research questions: (1) What determines the potential of a policy learning process to construct regional advantage? (2) How can policy learning be organized to help construct regional advantage? The case study of EG (a policy network in the Basque Country) is used to illustrate the main concepts involved.

Constructing Regional Advantage in the Austrian ICT Sector—Towards Fine-Tuned Innovation Policies?

Regional innovation policies are often applied in a standardized way oriented at best practice models developed elsewhere. These policies fail to take specific sectoral and regional characteristics sufficiently into account. However, innovation processes and problems vary for firms in particular sectors since these exhibit distinct features dependent on their knowledge base. Also, companies are located in different types of regional innovation systems (RIS) facing specific innovation conditions. “One-size-fits-all” approaches, thus, frequently do not work. In the present paper, we are going to investigate for the information and communications technology (ICT) sector and three regions of Austria which differences exist in the innovation conditions and activities of companies and in their pattern of knowledge sourcing. We also try to find out to which extent policies are addressing such specific conditions. The regions investigated are the metropolitan region of Vienna representing an institutionally and organizationally “thick” RIS, the non-metropolitan region of Salzburg standing for “thin” RIS in this respect, and the industrial region of Upper Austria showing characteristics of a “networked” RIS. The analysis is based on interviews with 110 companies in the ICT sector as well with a number of key policy actors.

Constructing Regional Advantage: Platform Policies Based on Related Variety and Differentiated Knowledge Bases

Asheim B. T., Boschma R. and Cooke P. Constructing regional advantage: platform policies based on related variety and differentiated knowledge bases, Regional Studies. This paper presents a regional innovation policy model based on the idea of constructing regional advantage. This policy model brings together concepts like related variety, knowledge bases and policy platforms. Related variety attaches importance to knowledge spillovers across complementary sectors. The paper categorizes knowledge into ‘analytical’ (science based), ‘synthetic’ (engineering based) and ‘symbolic’ (arts based) in nature, with different requirements of ‘virtual’ and real proximity mixes. The implications of this are traced for evolving ‘platform policies’ that facilitate economic development within and between regions in action lines appropriate to incorporate the basic principles behind related variety and differentiated knowledge bases. Asheim B. T., Boschma R. and Cooke P. 构建区域优势：基于相关多样性以及不同知识基础的平台政策， 区域研究。 本文展示了基于构建区域优势这一理念的区域创新政策模型。 本政策模型整合了相关多样性、知识基础以及政策平台等概念。相对多样性概念强调了相互补充的部门间知识外溢存在的重要性。本文按知识的性质将其分类为：分析性（以科学为基础）、先验性（以工程为基础）以及象征性（以艺术为基础），不同类别的知识对于“真实”有着不同的要求。文章考察了上述分类对于“平台政策”演进的影响，平台政策有助于整合相关多样性和不同知识基础背后的基本原则，以此辅助区域内外协同发展。 相关多样性 不同知识基础 区域创新政策 区域（衍 生）分支 Asheim B. T., Boschma R. et Cooke P. L'établissement de l'avantage régional: une plate-forme économique fondée sur la variété liée et des bases de connaissance différenciée, Regional Studies. Cet article cherche à présenter un modèle de la politique en faveur de l'innovation régionale fondée sur la notion de l'établissement de l'avantage régional. Cette politique réunit des notions telles la variété liée, les bases de connaissance, et des plates-formes économiques. La variété attache de l'importance aux retombées de connaissance à travers des secteurs complémentaires. L'article classe la connaissance, par nature, sous les rubriques ‘analytique’ (fondée sur la science), ‘synthétique’ (fondée sur l'ingénierie) et ‘symbolique’ (fondée sur les arts), y compris des besoins différents pour les mélanges de proximités ‘virtuelle’ et réelle. On en esquisse les implications quant aux ‘plates-formes économiques'qui facilitent le développement économique sur les plans intra et interrégionaux à partir des actions appropriées aux principes qui étayent la variété liée et les bases de connaissance différenciée. Variété liée Bases de connaissance différenciée Plate-forme Politique en faveur de l'innovation régionale Ramification régionale Asheim B. T., Boschma R. und Cooke P. Aufbau eines regionalen Vorteils: Plattform-Politiken auf der Grundlage von verwandter Varietät und differenzierten Wissensbasen, Regional Studies. In diesem Beitrag wird ein Modell für regionale Innovationspolitik auf der Grundlage der Idee des Aufbaus eines regionalen Vorteils vorgestellt. In diesem politischen Modell werden unter anderem Konzepte von verwandter Varietät, Wissensbasen und politischen Plattformen miteinander kombiniert. Bei der verwandten Varietät wird der Wissensübertragung zwischen komplementären Sektoren Bedeutung beigemessen. In diesem Beitrag teilen wir Wissen je nach seiner Beschaffenheit in die Kategorien ‘analytisch' (wissenschaftsbasiert), ‘snythetisch' (technikbasiert) und ‘symbolisch' (kunstbasiert) ein, wobei an Mischungen von ‘virtueller' und echter Nähe unterschiedliche Anforderungen gestellt werden. Wir untersuchen die Auswirkungen auf die Entstehung von ‘Plattform-Politiken’, die eine Wirtschaftsentwicklung innerhalb und zwischen den Regionen begünstigen, durch eine Abbildung als Aktionslinien, mit denen die Grundprinzipien der verwandten Varietät und der differenzierten Wissensbasen angemessen berücksichtigt werden. Verwandte Varietät Differenzierte Wissensbasen Plattform-Politik Regionale Innovationspolitik Regionale Branchenbildung Asheim B. T., Boschma R. y Cooke P. La construcción de una ventaja regional: políticas de plataforma basadas en la variedad relacionada y las bases de conocimiento diferenciado, Regional Studies. En este artículo presentamos un modelo de política de innovación regional basado en la idea de crear una ventaja regional. En este modelo político se combinan conceptos tales como la variedad relacionada, las bases de conocimiento y las plataformas políticas. La variedad relacionada resalta la importancia de los desbordamientos de conocimiento en los sectores complementarios. En este artículo describimos el conocimiento según su naturaleza en las categorías de modelo ‘analítico’ (basado en la ciencia), ‘sintético’ (basado en la ingeniería) y ‘simbólico’ (basado en las artes), con combinaciones de proximidad ‘virtuales’ y reales según diferentes requisitos. Exploramos las repercusiones en la creación de ‘políticas de plataforma’ que facilitan el desarrollo económico dentro de las regiones y entre ellas, mediante líneas de acción apropiadas con la finalidad de incorporar los principios básicos de la variedad relacionada y las bases de conocimiento diferenciado. Variedad relacionada Bases de conocimiento diferenciado Política de plataforma Política de innovación regional `Ramificación regional

Where Does the Knowledge for Knowledge-intensive Industries Come From? The Case of Biotech in Prague and ICT in Ostrava

The primary aim of this paper is to contribute to current discussion, concerning the role of geography of knowledge sources in knowledge-intensive industries from the perspective of a post-communist country (the Czech Republic), with its specific cultural and historical heritage, as well as its specific institutional and policy context. The article analyses the extent, to which the theoretical conceptualization of analytical and synthetic knowledge bases could be relevant for the geography of knowledge sources, within the emerging ICT and biotech sectors, in two selected regions of the Czech Republic (Prague and Ostrava regions). Our findings confirm the existence of significant variation in the geography of knowledge sources, according to the type of knowledge base (analytical versus synthetic) and the type of knowledge itself (technological versus market knowledge). The article is an outcome of the international project “Constructing Regional Advantage: Towards State-of-the-art Regional Innovation Systems Policies in Europe?”.

The challenge of constructing regional advantages in peripheral areas: The case of marine biotechnology in Tromsø, Norway

The idea of constructing regional advantage (CRA) has recently been emphasized by scholars as a new way for firms to gain competitiveness in a globalizing learning economy. The rationale behind the idea is that advantages in a regional industry can be constructed by proactive public–private partnership. This article uses, and examines the relevance of, the CRA framework in analysing the development and functioning of the marine biotechnology industry in Tromsø, which is a fairly peripheral region in Norway. Despite the fact that much effort has been put into education and R&D at the University of Tromsø and related research institutes, and the fact that many public policy tools have intended to create a blooming marine biotechnology industry in the area, the results have so far been meagre. This article explains the rather weak results in terms of the number of firms and jobs in the marine biotechnology industry in Tromsø as being due to a lack of synthetic knowledge on how to industrialize research results and little spillover of market knowledge. With regard to more general theoretical lessons linked to the CRA framework, this article argues for seeing the concept of related variety in a broader industrial and geographical sense in peripheral regions.

To Construct Regional Advantage from Innovation Systems First Build Policy Platforms

It has become clear that the idea of regional learning is an inadequate way of evolving regional economic development because of numerous problems of composition or utilizing samples of one, learning legacies and delays and impossibility of repeat experience. So, perforce, to offset regional imbalances responsible agencies are having to explore solutions endogenously in greater measure. This means constructing regional advantage, not an easy thing to do, by integrating and exploiting a range of assets from economic strengths to knowledge assets, good governance and creativity. Of great importance in this is seeking to promote “related variety” among economic activities. Single innovations diffuse swiftly across technology “platforms” into related industries because absorptive capacity is high among them. The key trick in constructing regional advantage is designing appropriate policy platforms that mix variable policy instruments in an integrated and judicious manner. This paper maps out a theoretical approach enabling this to be accomplished.