International journal of corporate social responsibility, May 7, 2024
environmental benefits (Lima et al., 2021; Cohen et al., 2023); hence, this paper focuses on this... more environmental benefits (Lima et al., 2021; Cohen et al., 2023); hence, this paper focuses on this knowledge gap. Godin and Dore (2005) define the "social impact" of scientific research as an impact knowledge has on the welfare and behavior of people. There are also public health and environmental impacts such as illness prevention and the management of natural resources. Our research question asks the following: What indicators can be used to identify the social benefits of UICs? We compile a list of social impact indicators from three sources: The European Commission (2010, p. 42), Lima et al. (2021, p. 13), and the UN 17 Sustainable Development Goals (UN, 2023). We then apply these indicators to the social benefits realized as a result of UICs, based on the cases of winners of the Industry-Academia Collaboration Prize presented by the UK Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) (2010-2023) (Royal Society of Chemistry, 2023). 1
International Journal of Innovation and Technology Management
Does international R&D collaboration produce patents of higher technological value? Applied to th... more Does international R&D collaboration produce patents of higher technological value? Applied to the case of Siemens, this paper utilizes the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) and Google Patents statistics to identify patterns within invention and co-invention. For example, sole patenting by headquarters or subsidiaries is juxtaposed with co-invented patent filings, vertical versus horizontal co-patented applications and internal versus external. The paper compares the effect of different forms of co-invention on the technological value of patent filings, proxied by forward external citations. The results are based on 2013 and 2019 Siemens PCT data and confirm the positive effect of international co-invention, vis-à-vis sole patenting, on the technological value of patents. Patent applications co-invented by foreign subsidiaries, or vertically collaborated applications, create higher technological value, while headquarters or single subsidiaries generate fewer forward citations. Moreove...
PurposeThe paper proposes an answer to one of the most important questions in corporate innovatio... more PurposeThe paper proposes an answer to one of the most important questions in corporate innovation management: what mechanisms of technological diversification exist within multinational companies? It is ascertained that research and development (R&D) intra-firm co-invention or co-patenting is one of those mechanisms. Co-invention implies knowledge-sharing, which should lead to unique combinations of knowledge and expertise and hence technological diversification of patent applications.Design/methodology/approachThis paper offers a novel conceptual framework exploring the relationship between patents’ technological diversification and a detailed classification of different forms of international co-invention. Based on the case of Siemens’ Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) applications, the revealed technological advantage (RTA) index is utilized to measure the extent of the technological diversification of patent output.FindingsThe results show that patent applications generated by su...
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify major developments in corporate innovation. The ... more Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify major developments in corporate innovation. The author focuses on the behavioral differences between MNEs from developed and emerging markets in the way they locate their R&D activities. Design/methodology/approach With the help of descriptive statistics, the paper identifies major trends in the global distribution of innovative activity. The novel source of patent statistics, Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) applications, is used as a proxy for innovative effort by leading MNEs. This paper is among the first attempts to analyze the global geography of innovation based on PCT statistics. Findings The analysis underscores differences in the patenting activities of MNEs from emerging and advanced markets. It confirms that innovative activity by major MNEs remains largely home-based, which contradicts the premise of the global nature of corporate innovation. At the same time, the growing importance of China as a research center attracts M...
In this paper, we probe the relationship between institutions and internationally oriented innova... more In this paper, we probe the relationship between institutions and internationally oriented innovation. For the first time, we use Patent Cooperation Treaty statistics as a new source of national-level data on the inventive activities of internationally oriented innovators, which we refer to as Bglobal innovators.^One third of global innovators are small-and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). We apply these new data and investigate the effects of corruption and business climate on patenting activity. It is ascertained herein that the inventive activity of global innovators has a linear relationship with institutional factors, while there is no observed relationship between the quality of the institutional environment and PCT patenting by multinational enterprises (MNEs). Abstract (German) In diesem Artikel erforschen wir den Zusammenhang zwischen Institutionen und international ausgerichteten erfinderischer Tätigkeit. Zum ersten Mal untersuchen wir, ob PCT-Patentanmeldungen auf nationaler Ebene als eine neue Datenquelle für die erfinderischen Aktivitäten der neuen Art von international ausgerichteten Unternehmen, die als "global innovatorsB bezeichnet werden können. Das Drittel von global innovators besteht aus Klein-und Mittelunternehmen. Wir anwenden diese neue Datenquelle und untersuchen die Auswirkungen von Korruption und Geschäftsklima auf international ausgerichtete Erfinder. Es wurde festgestellt, dass es einen linearen Zusammenhang zwischen den Institutionen und erfinderischer Tätigkeit der global innovators gibt. Und es gibt keine Verbindung zwischen den Patentanmeldungen von großen multinationalen Firmen und institutionellen Gegebenheiten.
PurposeThis paper addresses the geographical dimension of cross-border knowledge integration, exp... more PurposeThis paper addresses the geographical dimension of cross-border knowledge integration, expressed as the co-invention of patent filings and investigates the siting of patenting activities by major US corporations in China. Most importantly, the study looks into the patterns of international co-invention or the links of these locations to headquarters and other company subsidiaries.Design/methodology/approachThe study explores the cases of six US multinationals that file international patent applications in China. The applications were analyzed based on the composition of invention teams and the locations of inventors.FindingsThe co-invented patent filings by US multinational enterprises (MNEs) in China demonstrate a high degree of US–Chinese subsidiary collaboration. Links with other subsidiaries are marginal, and at the same time, high levels of sole patenting by inventors in China point to competence-creating research and development (R&D) activities taking place.Practical i...
The objective of this paper is to investigate the effects of institutions on national rates of in... more The objective of this paper is to investigate the effects of institutions on national rates of inventive activity. Invention, part of the innovation process, is acknowledged as one of the driving forces behind economic growth, and patent statistics are frequently used as a measurable indicator of inventive output. Thus this paper explores the relationship between national patent statistics and measures of institutional quality. As a result of our research, the effect of the “threshold of inventive activity” was observed. This effect demonstrates that when countries reach a certain level of institutional development and attain a general institutional climate conducive to inventive activity, the number of patent applications begins to sharply increase. The paper contributes to the body of evidence that confirms that a combination of fundamental institutions like the rule of law or freedom of expression, which are not necessarily aimed at boosting innovation, create an overall environm...
Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, 2019
This article investigates the dynamics of internationally-oriented patenting activity in Russia, ... more This article investigates the dynamics of internationally-oriented patenting activity in Russia, with the objective of exploring the link between innovation and entrepreneurship in an emerging economy. Research Design & Methods: By using the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) statistics, we create a typology of PCT applicants. Patent categories are compared based on their technological footprint, measured as consequential patent references. Findings: The article reveals a shortage of domestic companies engaged in internationally-oriented innovation in Russia. The majority of international patent applications published by WIPO in 2013 were filed by individuals. Russian companies, as well as individual applications, demonstrate lower technological impact, measured as citations, than foreign subsidiaries operating in Russia. Implications & Recommendations: The innovation capability of Russian business, small or large, must be prioritised and strengthened via creating the right incentives and providing a stable institutional and infrastructural foundation. Contribution & Value Added: This project discovers the weak role of the domestic private sector in international patenting, which points to the imbalanced nature of the Russian national innovation system (NIS). Article type: research article
The paper pursues a mixed methods approach of conducting both quantitative and qualitative conten... more The paper pursues a mixed methods approach of conducting both quantitative and qualitative content analysis of corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports in two types of Chinese companies: State-owned (SOE) and non-state-owned (non-SOE) enterprises. Quantitative content analysis revealed overall homogeneity in CSR reporting among SOEs and non-SOEs in China, which can be explained by coercive isomorphism on a national scale. The Chinese government has created an intricate system of incentives encouraging both SOEs and non-SOEs to engage in socially responsive behavior and disclosure. As a result of qualitative analysis, a recurring theme of “strategic emerging industries” (SEI) was identified in the CSR reports of predominantly state-owned banks. This finding provides empirical evidence of the link between the social and economic objectives of the Chinese government, and it shows how state-owned banks mediate between the state and business (SOEs and non-SOEs) as part of a coercive...
International Journal of Corporate Social Responsibility
In light of the growing economic might and intensification of global activities of Chinese multin... more In light of the growing economic might and intensification of global activities of Chinese multinational enterprises (MNE), this paper looks into the nature of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting. CSR communications of the largest Chinese companies and their counterparts from advanced economies have been compared based on quantitative and qualitative content analysis of CSR reports. A mixed method approach has been rarely utilized in the analysis of CSR reporting. To analyze CSR reports the paper uses a two-dimensional conceptual framework based on Wood (Acad Manag Rev 16:691–717, 1991); Jamali and Mirshak (J Bus Ethics 72:243–262, 2007) and Lockett, Moon and Visser (J Manag Stud 43:115–136, 2006); Moon and Shen (J Bus Ethics 94:613–629, 2010). The findings indicate that quantitatively Chinese MNEs display patterns of CSR reporting comparable to major MNEs in developed economies. This paper argues that just like MNEs from developed economies Chinese MNEs use a glob...
International journal of corporate social responsibility, May 7, 2024
environmental benefits (Lima et al., 2021; Cohen et al., 2023); hence, this paper focuses on this... more environmental benefits (Lima et al., 2021; Cohen et al., 2023); hence, this paper focuses on this knowledge gap. Godin and Dore (2005) define the "social impact" of scientific research as an impact knowledge has on the welfare and behavior of people. There are also public health and environmental impacts such as illness prevention and the management of natural resources. Our research question asks the following: What indicators can be used to identify the social benefits of UICs? We compile a list of social impact indicators from three sources: The European Commission (2010, p. 42), Lima et al. (2021, p. 13), and the UN 17 Sustainable Development Goals (UN, 2023). We then apply these indicators to the social benefits realized as a result of UICs, based on the cases of winners of the Industry-Academia Collaboration Prize presented by the UK Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) (2010-2023) (Royal Society of Chemistry, 2023). 1
International Journal of Innovation and Technology Management
Does international R&D collaboration produce patents of higher technological value? Applied to th... more Does international R&D collaboration produce patents of higher technological value? Applied to the case of Siemens, this paper utilizes the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) and Google Patents statistics to identify patterns within invention and co-invention. For example, sole patenting by headquarters or subsidiaries is juxtaposed with co-invented patent filings, vertical versus horizontal co-patented applications and internal versus external. The paper compares the effect of different forms of co-invention on the technological value of patent filings, proxied by forward external citations. The results are based on 2013 and 2019 Siemens PCT data and confirm the positive effect of international co-invention, vis-à-vis sole patenting, on the technological value of patents. Patent applications co-invented by foreign subsidiaries, or vertically collaborated applications, create higher technological value, while headquarters or single subsidiaries generate fewer forward citations. Moreove...
PurposeThe paper proposes an answer to one of the most important questions in corporate innovatio... more PurposeThe paper proposes an answer to one of the most important questions in corporate innovation management: what mechanisms of technological diversification exist within multinational companies? It is ascertained that research and development (R&D) intra-firm co-invention or co-patenting is one of those mechanisms. Co-invention implies knowledge-sharing, which should lead to unique combinations of knowledge and expertise and hence technological diversification of patent applications.Design/methodology/approachThis paper offers a novel conceptual framework exploring the relationship between patents’ technological diversification and a detailed classification of different forms of international co-invention. Based on the case of Siemens’ Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) applications, the revealed technological advantage (RTA) index is utilized to measure the extent of the technological diversification of patent output.FindingsThe results show that patent applications generated by su...
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify major developments in corporate innovation. The ... more Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify major developments in corporate innovation. The author focuses on the behavioral differences between MNEs from developed and emerging markets in the way they locate their R&D activities. Design/methodology/approach With the help of descriptive statistics, the paper identifies major trends in the global distribution of innovative activity. The novel source of patent statistics, Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) applications, is used as a proxy for innovative effort by leading MNEs. This paper is among the first attempts to analyze the global geography of innovation based on PCT statistics. Findings The analysis underscores differences in the patenting activities of MNEs from emerging and advanced markets. It confirms that innovative activity by major MNEs remains largely home-based, which contradicts the premise of the global nature of corporate innovation. At the same time, the growing importance of China as a research center attracts M...
In this paper, we probe the relationship between institutions and internationally oriented innova... more In this paper, we probe the relationship between institutions and internationally oriented innovation. For the first time, we use Patent Cooperation Treaty statistics as a new source of national-level data on the inventive activities of internationally oriented innovators, which we refer to as Bglobal innovators.^One third of global innovators are small-and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). We apply these new data and investigate the effects of corruption and business climate on patenting activity. It is ascertained herein that the inventive activity of global innovators has a linear relationship with institutional factors, while there is no observed relationship between the quality of the institutional environment and PCT patenting by multinational enterprises (MNEs). Abstract (German) In diesem Artikel erforschen wir den Zusammenhang zwischen Institutionen und international ausgerichteten erfinderischer Tätigkeit. Zum ersten Mal untersuchen wir, ob PCT-Patentanmeldungen auf nationaler Ebene als eine neue Datenquelle für die erfinderischen Aktivitäten der neuen Art von international ausgerichteten Unternehmen, die als "global innovatorsB bezeichnet werden können. Das Drittel von global innovators besteht aus Klein-und Mittelunternehmen. Wir anwenden diese neue Datenquelle und untersuchen die Auswirkungen von Korruption und Geschäftsklima auf international ausgerichtete Erfinder. Es wurde festgestellt, dass es einen linearen Zusammenhang zwischen den Institutionen und erfinderischer Tätigkeit der global innovators gibt. Und es gibt keine Verbindung zwischen den Patentanmeldungen von großen multinationalen Firmen und institutionellen Gegebenheiten.
PurposeThis paper addresses the geographical dimension of cross-border knowledge integration, exp... more PurposeThis paper addresses the geographical dimension of cross-border knowledge integration, expressed as the co-invention of patent filings and investigates the siting of patenting activities by major US corporations in China. Most importantly, the study looks into the patterns of international co-invention or the links of these locations to headquarters and other company subsidiaries.Design/methodology/approachThe study explores the cases of six US multinationals that file international patent applications in China. The applications were analyzed based on the composition of invention teams and the locations of inventors.FindingsThe co-invented patent filings by US multinational enterprises (MNEs) in China demonstrate a high degree of US–Chinese subsidiary collaboration. Links with other subsidiaries are marginal, and at the same time, high levels of sole patenting by inventors in China point to competence-creating research and development (R&D) activities taking place.Practical i...
The objective of this paper is to investigate the effects of institutions on national rates of in... more The objective of this paper is to investigate the effects of institutions on national rates of inventive activity. Invention, part of the innovation process, is acknowledged as one of the driving forces behind economic growth, and patent statistics are frequently used as a measurable indicator of inventive output. Thus this paper explores the relationship between national patent statistics and measures of institutional quality. As a result of our research, the effect of the “threshold of inventive activity” was observed. This effect demonstrates that when countries reach a certain level of institutional development and attain a general institutional climate conducive to inventive activity, the number of patent applications begins to sharply increase. The paper contributes to the body of evidence that confirms that a combination of fundamental institutions like the rule of law or freedom of expression, which are not necessarily aimed at boosting innovation, create an overall environm...
Entrepreneurial Business and Economics Review, 2019
This article investigates the dynamics of internationally-oriented patenting activity in Russia, ... more This article investigates the dynamics of internationally-oriented patenting activity in Russia, with the objective of exploring the link between innovation and entrepreneurship in an emerging economy. Research Design & Methods: By using the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) statistics, we create a typology of PCT applicants. Patent categories are compared based on their technological footprint, measured as consequential patent references. Findings: The article reveals a shortage of domestic companies engaged in internationally-oriented innovation in Russia. The majority of international patent applications published by WIPO in 2013 were filed by individuals. Russian companies, as well as individual applications, demonstrate lower technological impact, measured as citations, than foreign subsidiaries operating in Russia. Implications & Recommendations: The innovation capability of Russian business, small or large, must be prioritised and strengthened via creating the right incentives and providing a stable institutional and infrastructural foundation. Contribution & Value Added: This project discovers the weak role of the domestic private sector in international patenting, which points to the imbalanced nature of the Russian national innovation system (NIS). Article type: research article
The paper pursues a mixed methods approach of conducting both quantitative and qualitative conten... more The paper pursues a mixed methods approach of conducting both quantitative and qualitative content analysis of corporate social responsibility (CSR) reports in two types of Chinese companies: State-owned (SOE) and non-state-owned (non-SOE) enterprises. Quantitative content analysis revealed overall homogeneity in CSR reporting among SOEs and non-SOEs in China, which can be explained by coercive isomorphism on a national scale. The Chinese government has created an intricate system of incentives encouraging both SOEs and non-SOEs to engage in socially responsive behavior and disclosure. As a result of qualitative analysis, a recurring theme of “strategic emerging industries” (SEI) was identified in the CSR reports of predominantly state-owned banks. This finding provides empirical evidence of the link between the social and economic objectives of the Chinese government, and it shows how state-owned banks mediate between the state and business (SOEs and non-SOEs) as part of a coercive...
International Journal of Corporate Social Responsibility
In light of the growing economic might and intensification of global activities of Chinese multin... more In light of the growing economic might and intensification of global activities of Chinese multinational enterprises (MNE), this paper looks into the nature of their corporate social responsibility (CSR) reporting. CSR communications of the largest Chinese companies and their counterparts from advanced economies have been compared based on quantitative and qualitative content analysis of CSR reports. A mixed method approach has been rarely utilized in the analysis of CSR reporting. To analyze CSR reports the paper uses a two-dimensional conceptual framework based on Wood (Acad Manag Rev 16:691–717, 1991); Jamali and Mirshak (J Bus Ethics 72:243–262, 2007) and Lockett, Moon and Visser (J Manag Stud 43:115–136, 2006); Moon and Shen (J Bus Ethics 94:613–629, 2010). The findings indicate that quantitatively Chinese MNEs display patterns of CSR reporting comparable to major MNEs in developed economies. This paper argues that just like MNEs from developed economies Chinese MNEs use a glob...
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Papers by Irina Ervits