Level Of Technological Capabilities Research Articles

Understanding the regional innovation support systems in developing countries: the state of Sabah in Malaysia

This paper presents empirical research on the regional dimensions of Malaysia's innovation system in one of the less-developed regions, namely, Sabah. Case studies on government organisations, public research institutions, universities and firms were undertaken to investigate the level of interactions (both intra- and inter-) of the innovation system at the regional level. The findings reveal that these interactions are negligible or almost absent. Such weak interactions have led to static levels of technological capabilities of firms operating in the regions. This paper argues that Malaysia's national innovation systems need to ensure that local and regional dimensions are incorporated into fashioning appropriate strategies to enhance technological capabilities at the regional level. Above all, an institutional framework that is responsive and flexible to the needs of the region must be in place.

Measuring of Technological Capabilities in Technology Transfer (TT) Projects

Technology Transfer (TT) projects involve the cross-boarder transfer of technology with the main purpose of enhancing the local technological capabalities in response to a changing economic environment. Technological capability refers to an organisation’s capacity to deploy, develop and utilise technological resources and integrate them with other complementary resources to supply the differentiated products and services. Technological capability is embodied not only in the employees’ knowledge and skills and the technical system, but also in the managerial system, values and norms. Therefore, the phenomena of TT projects occur at the macro and micro level in organisations. The main problem identified in international TT is the lack of managerial capabilities. The common question is how to measure technological capabilities from the perspective of technology receivers. The objective of this paper is to measure the level of technological capabilities in TT projects. The empirical research was undertaken by means of Case Studies using semi-structured interviews with Human Resource Management officers from six (6) Category of G7 contractor companies in Malaysia. . A total of six organisations (currently engaged in overseas projects) were involved representing 100% response rate. The results were analysed using of NVivo software version 8. The findings revealed that, three components for measuring the level of technological capabilities in TT projects are production performance (i.e., construction cost, time, product quality, safety, productivity, profitability, and client satisfaction); technology utilisation (i.e., labour force and organisation & management); and firm’s/orgaisation’s capability (i.e., tools & equipment, research input and development output). These measurements could be used as a guideline for measuring technological capabilities in TT projects for construction organisations.

A QUALIDADE COMO SUPORTE ESTRATÉGICO DAS EMPRESAS

The modern enterprise is included in an environmental context characterized by high and rising levels of instability and very high degrees of uncertainty regarding the continuity of their activities. This climate is related to adverse environmental occurrence of certain events that make today's business environment much more volatile than in the past had been relatively close in historical terms, namely: globalization, the advent of a new paradigm in energy and environmental the rapid technological development, deregulation of economies and fierce competition in global markets. It becomes increasingly difficult to insert within the enterprise context a setting in which the uncertainty is the key attribute. Therefore, the modern company needs more of a strategic support that it makes possible the surrounding turbulent activity and enables it to achieve high levels of technological capability. As a direct result of this process would have increased productivity with a consequent increase organizational competitiveness. Total Quality as a strategic variable of the basic organizations with regard to their performance in an environment characterized by instability increasingly apparent. Then it is proposed the adoption of a reformed concept of Quality as strategic support organizations that are dealing with an increasingly uncertain surroundings.

Technology sourcing decision making for new technology development projects: An empirical study of South Korean high-tech small firms

Although external development has been strongly recommended as an effective governance strategy for new technology development projects (NTDPs), it may not always be appropriate for high-tech small firms (HTSFs). This study examined South Korean HTSF decision makers’ consideration of internal and external development for NTDPs. Drawing on transaction-cost and resource-based perspectives, we identified five key determinants of governance decisions: respondents’ perceived levels of technological capability, entrepreneurial strategic orientation, specialized asset investment, technological uncertainty and environmental uncertainty. A questionnaire-based survey of Korean HTSFs in the telecommunications industry yielded a sample of 258 respondents. On the basis of a logistic regression analysis of the firms’ responses, we found that firms’ perceived technological capability, entrepreneurs’ strategic orientations, levels of technological uncertainty and redeployability of invested assets were key criteria in the decision-making process. Specifically, this study showed that technologically strong Korean HTSFs preferred to use internal development methods, but tended to choose external development methods when they perceived high levels of technological uncertainty and low levels of invested asset redeployability. Entrepreneurs’ strategic orientation also influenced the choice of an external development method. On the basis of our empirical results, we discuss the managerial and practical implications of our research.

Appropriate intellectual property protection and economic growth in countries at different levels of development

This paper examines how the role of patents and utility models in innovation and economic growth varies by level of economic development. Using a panel dataset of over 70 countries, we find that patent protection is an important determinant of innovation and that patentable innovations contribute to economic growth in developed countries, but not in developing. Instead, in developing economies, a minor form of intellectual property rights (IPRs) – namely utility models – is conducive to innovation and growth, controlling for other factors. Using Korean firm level data as a case study, we find that utility model innovations contribute to firm performance when firms are technologically lagging and that those minor innovations can be a learning device and thus a stepping stone for developing more patentable inventions later on. Upon reaching higher levels of technological capabilities, firms become more reliant upon patents and less on utility models. Thus the lesson here is that patent protection enhances innovation and economic growth in countries where the capacity to conduct innovative research exists. Where this capacity is weaker, a system that provides incentives to conduct minor, incremental inventions is more conducive to growth. The significance of this paper is to emphasize the importance not just of the strength of IPRs but of the appropriate type of IPRs for economic development.

User Innovation in Korean Manufacturing Firms: Incidence and Protection

In this study we examine the user development of process technologies and protection of these innovations in manufacturing industries in a late industrializing context, Korea. Using data from both KIS 2008 and a follow-up survey, we study the characteristics of user innovations and user-innovators, as well as the protection of user innovations. This study has two major findings and a number of minor findings. The major findings are, first, that the incidence of user innovations in Korea is quite significant. Firms that are larger, more technologically capable, with a higher export ratio, or that belong to a business group are more likely to be a user-innovator in Korea. Second, we find that the proportion of user innovations sharing by innovators with other firms is much lower (3.2%) than that found in similar studies conducted in Canada and the Netherlands (about 20%). We suggest that the lower incidence and transfer of user innovation in Korean manufacturing industries may be due to the lower level of technological capability and social trust, and also due to the closed nature of the buyer-supplier relationship dominated by a few large Chaebols. The study concludes by discussing managerial and policy steps that could be used to encourage user innovation and its transfer in the Korean manufacturing sectors.

Technological Capability's Predictor Variables

The aim of this study was to identify the factors that influence in configuration of the technological capability of companies in sectors with medium-low technological intensity. To achieve the goal proposed in this article a survey was carried out. Based on the framework developed by Lall (1992) which classifies firms in basic, intermediate and advanced level of technological capability; it was found that the predominant technological capability is intermediate, with 83.7% of respondent companies (plastics companies in Brazil). It is believed that the main contribution of this study is the finding that the dependent variable named “Technological Capability” can be explained at a rate of 65% by six variables: development of new processes; selection of the best equipment supplier; sales of internally developed new technology to third parties; design and manufacture of equipment; study of the work methods and perform inventory control; and improvement of product quality.

(Changing Pattern and Relation with Technological Level of the Korean and Japanese Export Competitiveness)

Korean Abstract: 본 연구에서는 1990년대 이후 최근에 이르기까지 한국과 일본의 수출경쟁력을 분석하였다. 기존연구와 달리 단순히 수출경쟁력의 추이나 업종별 비교에 그치지 않고 소속분면과 이동방향의 새로운 방법론에 의해 변화유형을 입체적으로 파악하였다. 또한 48개의 부문들을 몇 개의 기술수준으로 나누고 각 기술수준별로 수출경쟁력의 변화가 어떠한 분포를 보이는지 분석하였다.현시비교우위와 무역특화지수의 지표에 있어서 수출경쟁력에 상당한 변화가 일어나고 있는 것으로 나타났다. 일본의 수출경쟁력은 지속적으로 저하하고 있는 반면 한국의 경쟁력은 급속히 높아지고 있다. 특히 한ㆍ일 간 수출경쟁력의 격차는 2000년대 중반을 전후하여 크게 줄어든 상태를 보였는데, 수출경쟁력의 격차 축소는 1990년대 후반과 2000년대 전반에 변화의 기반이 마련되었다. 수출경쟁력의 변화는 기술수준별로 서로 다른 추이를 보이고 있다. 고기술이나 중기술 분야에서 한국의 수출경쟁력이 더 많은 빈도로 상승한 것으로 집계되었다. 고기술과 중 기술의 경우 한국이, 저기술의 경우 일본이 수출경쟁력 상승추세를 보이고 있다. 1990년대 후반 이후 한ㆍ일 간 수출경쟁력의 격차는 급속히 축소되고 있으며, 주로 기술수준이 높은 분야에서 격차 축소가 이루어지고 있다. English Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to explore empirically whether export competitiveness of Korea and Japan has changed since 1990s. Unlike existing literature, we tried to grasp changing patterns of export competitiveness by new methodology such as belonging quadrant and moving direction, rather than simply showing its trend or comparison classified by industry. And we categorized 48 sectors into some technological levels, then analyzed how the change of export competitiveness is distributed by each technological level. When seeing ‘revealed comparative advantage’ and ‘trade specification index’, we found considerable changes in export competitiveness. Competitiveness of Korea has rapidly improved while that of Japan has been continuously decreasing. Especially the gap of competitiveness between Korea and Japan has largely reduced around the midterm of 2000s. Shrinking of the gap in export competitiveness has begun from the latter half of 1990s and first half of 2000s. Change of export competitiveness shows different trend by technology level. Korea has gained more competitiveness than Japan in high and middle level of technology. Korea shows upward tendency of competitiveness in mid and high technology, while Japan in low technology. Competitiveness gap between Korea and Japan is rapidly decreasing since the late 1990s, and curtailment of the gap is mainly happening in the high level of technological capabilities

Changing Pattern and Relation with Technological Level of the Korean and Japanese Export Competitiveness

The purpose of this paper is to explore empirically whether export competitiveness of Korea and Japan has changed since 1990s. Unlike existing literature, we tried to grasp changing patterns of export competitiveness by new methodology such as belonging quadrant and moving direction, rather than simply showing its trend or comparison classified by industry. And we categorized 48 sectors into some technological levelsThe purpose of this paper is to explore empirically whether export competitiveness of Korea and Japan has changed since 1990s. Unlike existing literature, we tried to grasp changing patterns of export competitiveness by new methodology such as belonging quadrant and moving direction, rather than simply showing its trend or comparison classified by industry. And we categorized 48 sectors into some technological levels, then analyzed how the change of export competitiveness is distributed by each technological level. When seeing ‘revealed comparative advantage’ and ‘trade specification index’, we found considerable changes in export competitiveness. Competitiveness of Korea has rapidly improved while that of Japan has been continuously decreasing. Especially the gap of competitiveness between Korea and Japan has largely reduced around the midterm of 2000s. Shrinking of the gap in export competitiveness has begun from the latter half of 1990s and first half of 2000s. Change of export competitiveness shows different trend by technology level. Korea has gained more competitiveness than Japan in high and middle level of technology. Korea shows upward tendency of competitiveness in mid and high technology, while Japan in low technology. Competitiveness gap between Korea and Japan is rapidly decreasing since the late 1990s, and curtailment of the gap is mainly happening in the high level of technological capabilities.

International Standardization Strategies of Latecomers: The Cases of Korean TPEG, T-DMB, and Binary CDMA

Summary This paper develops a framework for analyzing international standardization strategies of latecomers based on the level of technological capabilities and social-institutional-economic opportunities. Three Korean cases of TPEG, T-DMB, and Binary CDMA technologies and standards were studied, and from the results it is argued that latecomer standardization strategies converge to those of advanced countries as the latecomers reach the cutting edge of technology. Latecomer countries’ strategies may initially be limited to an “adoption” strategy. However, latecomer countries may consider participatory standards and compatible variations while their capabilities are developing, and ultimately new independent standards are possible once latecomers join the league of advanced countries.

International, intra-national and inter-firm knowledge diffusion and technological catch-up: the USA, Japan, Korea and Taiwan in the memory chip industry

Using data on US patent citations, this paper investigates the pattern of international, intranational and interfirm knowledge diffusion in the process of technological catch-up by Japanese, Korean and Taiwanese firms in the memory chip industry. First, regarding international diffusion, this paper finds that the ordering of citations is exactly the same as the order of entry into the industry: Taiwanese firms tend to cite Korean firms, Korean firms tend to cite Japanese firms and Japanese firms tend to cite US firms. Second, the degree of intranational knowledge diffusion is proportional to the level of technological capability or order of entry, although it is also affected by organisational differences among the firms. Third, the difference in patterns of interfirm knowledge reflects difference across organisations, such that big Korean group firms are less oriented toward interfirm knowledge diffusion compared with their Taiwanese small and medium enterprise (SME) counterparts. To explain such difference, the role of government research institutions has been highlighted, especially since the Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) accounts for the lion's share of Taiwanese-held patents and in the spin-offs of many firms in the industry.

Technological capability, strategic flexibility, and product innovation

AbstractThis paper examines the role of technological capability in product innovation. Building on the absorptive capacity perspective and organizational inertia theory, the authors propose that technological capability has curvilinear and differential effects on exploitative and explorative innovations. The findings support the proposition that though technological capability fosters exploitation at an accelerating rate, it has an inverted U‐shaped relationship with exploration. That is, a high level of technological capability impedes explorative innovation. Strategic flexibility strengthens the positive effects of technological capability on exploration, such that when strategic flexibility is high, greater technological capability is associated with more explorative innovation. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Capacidade Tecnológica e Inovação em Organizações de Serviços Intensivos em Conhecimento: evidências de institutos de pesquisa em Tecnologias da Informação e da Comunicação (TICs) no Brasil

Embora existam vários estudos sobre estratégias de inovação na indústria de tecnologias de informação e comunicação (TICs), há uma escassez de estudos sobre o grau de capacidade tecnológica em nível de organizações que operam à base de TICs, no contexto de áreas em desenvolvimento. Este artigo examina tipos e níveis de capacidades tecnológicas em uma amostra de 18 dos principais institutos de pesquisa em TICs no Brasil, aqui denominados de organizações de serviços intensivas em conhecimento (OSICS). O artigo baseia-se em evidências empíricas de primeira-mão coletadas com base em extensivo trabalho de campo. O estudo encontrou uma variedade de níveis de capacidades para funções tecnológicas específicas, não apenas entre as organizações da amostra, mas também dentro delas. Foi encontrada uma diversidade de processos intra-organizacionais de aprendizagem e de ligações com as demais organizações do sistema de inovação, examinadas aqui como fonte de capacidade tecnológica. Ao aplicar métricas que captam nuanças de tipos e níveis de capacidades tecnológicas e de suas fontes, este artigo contribui para oferecer uma perspectiva mais realista sobre a inovação no âmbito de uma parte específica do seu setor das TICs no Brasil. Pelo menos no âmbito desta amostra estudada, e considerando as limitações deste estudo, as evidências apontam para uma resposta positiva desses institutos ao arcabouço institucional de incentivo às atividades inovadoras criado no início dos anos 1990 (a nova Lei de Informática). Tais evidências, por sua vez, são importantes para clarificar e apoiar o desenho e a implementação de estratégias para acelerar inovação e fortalecer a competitividade deste setor no Brasil.

Linking Technology Development to Enterprise Growth: Evidence from the Mozambican Manufacturing Sector

This paper examines the relationship between firm-level technological development and enterprise performance in the Mozambican manufacturing sector. It does this on the basis of primary data collected for two industries - metalworking and light chemicals - and the triangulation of quantitative and qualitative information. Overall, the analysis presented in this paper only identifies a weak and, in some cases counterintuitive, association between levels of technological capability and innovation and enterprise performance. There are, however, some isolated exceptions to this finding, in which technology development has played a more decisive role in driving enterprise growth, such as the cluster of firms subcontracting work with the Mozal aluminium smelting plant. The case study of this cluster of firms allows the identification and illustration of conditions that might be required to facilitate a process of technology-led manufacturing growth.

The paradox of technological capabilities: a study of knowledge sourcing from host countries of overseas R&D operations

We investigate the factors that influence the extent to which a multinational corporation's headquarters (MNC-HQ) sources knowledge from the host countries of its R&D labs. We propose that the technological capabilities held by MNC-HQs present a paradox. On the one hand, they enhance MNC-HQs' learning capabilities. On the other hand, they reduce MNC-HQs' motivations to outsource knowledge from host countries. We also argue that it is important to consider both relative and absolute levels of technological capabilities, because relative levels can influence MNC-HQs' motivations to source knowledge from host countries. Statistical findings generally support our arguments.

Foreign ownership, technological capabilities and clothing exports in Sri Lanka

Drawing on recent developments in applied international trade and innovation and learning in developing countries, this paper examines the links between firm-level export performance, foreign ownership and the acquisition of technological capabilities in a sample of 205 clothing enterprises in Sri Lanka. Econometric analysis indicates that foreign ownership, firm size, human capital, technological capabilities and geographical location are all positively associated with export shares. Furthermore, higher levels of technological capability are associated with larger firm size, university-level manpower and in-house technological effort. Micro-level investigations are a complementary input to developing policies for promoting private sector competitiveness in outward-oriented developing countries.

Projetos locais de desenvolvimento no contexto das cadeias de suprimentos de montadoras de motores veteranas e entrantes

O objetivo do trabalho é identificar e comparar as atividades de projetos de desenvolvimento (produto e processo) realizadas por duas montadoras veteranas e uma entrante, considerando o contexto das cadeias de suprimentos nas quais estão inseridas. Para isso, foram realizados estudos de caso em três montadoras de motores e em oito fornecedores. A maior parte das empresas estudadas responsabiliza-se pelas atividades relacionadas ao projeto dos processos de produção. No caso das montadoras veteranas, isto ocorre praticamente sem auxílio externo (com apoio apenas eventual de suas matrizes), possivelmente pelo fato da tecnologia de produção estar consolidada, sofrendo apenas mudanças incrementais, e das competências necessárias já terem sido localmente desenvolvidas. No caso da montadora entrante, como seus processos de produção foram há pouco instalados, a subsidiária no Brasil tem se responsabilizado pelas poucas mudanças desde então implementadas. Nos fornecedores estudados, as alterações nos processos não são também de grande monta e eles podem contar, em certos casos, com o auxílio das montadoras. O projeto de produtos recebe grande atenção por parte das montadoras. As montadoras veteranas estudadas já fizeram desenvolvimentos locais relevantes e a entrante planeja ampliar seu setor de desenvolvimento de produtos, visando à possibilidade de iniciar desenvolvimentos locais e, principalmente, nacionalizar sua base de fornecedores. No que diz respeito aos fornecedores, os resultados desta pesquisa indicam que os níveis exigidos de capacidade tecnológica em desenvolvimento de produto podem variar segundo os segmentos tecnológicos das cadeias de suprimentos na indústria automobilística. No segmento dos componentes metálicos, os fornecedores ou recebem das montadoras os projetos de produtos completamente especificados ou desenvolvem projetos a partir das exigências colocadas pelas montadoras. No segmento dos eletrônicos, os fornecedores dominam a tecnologia e desenvolvem componentes que as montadoras apenas "aplicam" em seus produtos. Já os fornecedores de componentes poliméricos parecem ocupar nível intermediário de domínio tecnológico de produtos entre os segmentos de componentes metálicos e eletrônicos.

Development of technological capability by Cuban hospitality organizations

This study investigates the key elements that affect the ability of hospitality organizations to cultivate technological capability through innovation. The focus of analysis is not on the institutional context, but on the hotel and tourist companies. A theoretical framework that links the type of innovation undertaken by the firm, the firm's managerial capabilities, learning culture, organizational structure, systems and procedures, technological absorptive capacity and level of government support with the level of technological capability is presented and tested empirically based on the data on innovation projects from 62 Cuban hospitality companies. Analysis of the data confirmed hypotheses that group management skills, project management skills, learning culture, and government support are significantly related to the development of technological capability in these companies.

Technology spillover from foreign-owned firms in Japanese manufacturing industry

This paper shows that in the short run an increase in foreign firms’ industry share lowers the total factor productivity (TFP) growth of Japanese firms as a result of the decrease in market power. However, in the long run, the entry of foreign-owned firms has a positive effect on the productivity of local firms as a result of technology spillovers. In addition, the results suggest that foreign firms exert competitive pressure that forces Japanese firms with a high level of technological capabilities raise their productivity growth.

Linking the technological regime to the technological catch-up: analyzing Korea and Taiwan using the US patent data

This article examines the relationship between the technological regime and the technological catch-up, using US patent data. This study first extends the notion of technological regimes as more appropriate for the catching-up context before it goes on to develop the quantitative expressions of technological regime variables. Then, it investigates in which technological classes technological catch-up tends either to occur or not to occur and what affects the speed of the catch-up. This study has found that catching-up is more likely to happen in those technological classes with shorter technological cycle time and more initial stock of knowledge and that among those candidate classes the actual speed of catch-up varies depending on appropriability and knowledge accessibility. This implies that the factors that determine the occurrence of catch-up and the speed of catch-up are different. Comparing the level of technological capability of the advanced and catching-up economies, the article has found that catching-up countries tend to achieve high levels in the technological sectors with shorter cycle time, easier access to knowledge, and higher appropriability, whereas the advanced countries show the exactly opposite performances. The study also confirms the organizational selection hypothesis such that the firms of different organizations and strategies show divergent degrees of fitness in the different environment or technological regime. We find that the Korean firms find themselves more fitted to technological regimes featured by low appropriability and high cumulativeness (persistence), whereas the Taiwanese firms are more fitted to technological regimes featured by high appropriability and low cumulativeness (persistence). Our findings are consistent with the following characterization of the firms in Korea and Taiwan. The Korean firms, dominated by the so-called Chaebols especially in patent registrations, are characterized as less flexible, large diversified conglomerates and pursing more independent R&D and learning strategies. The Taiwanese firms are characterized as more flexible, network-based, specialized firms and pursuing more cooperative R&D and learning strategies. Copyright 2006, Oxford University Press.