Factors that determine the impact of innovation-oriented policies in firms: Conceptual and Methodological Formulation of Research Project

Abstract

This is a draft version of a proposal for a conceptual and methodological approach that seeks to answer the question of which are the most important factors that, from a micro-economical standpoint, determine the impact that policy instruments to promote innovation in Colombia have, over the companies that implement them, and how they operate. This seeks to shed some light on what criteria, strategies and measures must be developed as part of a public policy agenda, in order to effectively promote technological development and innovation and, thus, a better performance by implementing firms. These questions fall into the same line proposed by Lundvall and Borrás (2005): It is increasingly important to understand better the connection between science and technology on the one hand and economic performance on the other. The rise and fall of the new economy demonstrates that assumptions about simple and direct connections are problematic. [..] This is an issue that remains understudied. In terms of public policy there is a need for innovative thinking about how governments can support the diffusion of good and sustainable practices in cooperation with management and employees. In terms of research opportunities, this link with the importance and need to devote more analytical efforts examining how technical innovation interact with organizational change. [….] and how organizational change affects innovation processes in the economy. (Lundvall and Borrás, 2005:625) From a more general perspective, the project seeks to contribute to the study and analysis of the theory behind the emergence and development of firms, and to provide analytical elements to answer questions about firm’s identity, its evolution and the relationship it has with their development. In other words, it seeks to contribute to the study of the firms’ learning dynamics, and of the factors that, on meso- and especially micro-levels, determine firms’ performance in a developing country such as Colombia