Promoting Balanced Competitiveness Strategies of Firms in Developing Countries

Promoting Balanced Competitiveness Strategies of Firms in Developing Countries
Author: Vivienne W L Wang
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 141
Release: 2011-11-06
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1461412757

Since the pioneering work of Joseph Schumpeter (1942), it has been assumed that innovations typically play a key role in firms’ competitiveness. This assumption has been applied to firms in both developed and developing countries. However, the innovative capacities and business environments of firms in developing countries are fundamentally different from those in developed countries. It stands to reason that innovation and competitiveness models based on developed countries may not apply to developing countries. In this volume, Vivienne Wang and Elias G. Carayannis apply both theoretical approaches and empirical analysis to explore the dynamics of innovation in developing countries, with a particular emphasis on R&D in manufacturing firms. In so doing, they present an alternative to Michael Porter’s Competitive Advantage Model—a Competitive Position Model that focuses on incremental and adaptive innovations that are more appropriate than radical innovations for developing countries. Their research addresses such questions as: Do innovations advance the competitive positions of manufacturing firms in developing countries? Does the pace of innovation matter, in particular, in socio-economic and socio-political contexts? To what degree can national innovation systems and policies influence development? To what extent do a firm’s innovation commitments correlate with the protection of intellectual property rights? What roles do foreign direct investment and relationships with clusters and networks play? The resulting analysis not only challenges traditional theoretical approaches to innovation, but provides suggestions for improving business practice and policymaking.

Innovative Firms in Emerging Market Countries

Innovative Firms in Emerging Market Countries
Author: Edmund Amann
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 403
Release: 2012-07-05
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0199646007

Based on evidence from Asia and Latin America, this book explores the role of innovative firms in emerging markets, and their contributor to growth, development, and knowledge transfer.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution

The Fourth Industrial Revolution
Author: Klaus Schwab
Publisher: Crown Currency
Total Pages: 194
Release: 2017-01-03
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1524758876

World-renowned economist Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, explains that we have an opportunity to shape the fourth industrial revolu­tion, which will fundamentally alter how we live and work. Schwab argues that this revolution is different in scale, scope and complexity from any that have come before. Characterized by a range of new technologies that are fusing the physical, digital and biological worlds, the developments are affecting all disciplines, economies, industries and governments, and even challenging ideas about what it means to be human. Artificial intelligence is already all around us, from supercomputers, drones and virtual assistants to 3D printing, DNA sequencing, smart thermostats, wear­able sensors and microchips smaller than a grain of sand. But this is just the beginning: nanomaterials 200 times stronger than steel and a million times thinner than a strand of hair and the first transplant of a 3D printed liver are already in development. Imagine “smart factories” in which global systems of manu­facturing are coordinated virtually, or implantable mobile phones made of biosynthetic materials. The fourth industrial revolution, says Schwab, is more significant, and its ramifications more profound, than in any prior period of human history. He outlines the key technologies driving this revolution and discusses the major impacts expected on government, business, civil society and individu­als. Schwab also offers bold ideas on how to harness these changes and shape a better future—one in which technology empowers people rather than replaces them; progress serves society rather than disrupts it; and in which innovators respect moral and ethical boundaries rather than cross them. We all have the opportunity to contribute to developing new frame­works that advance progress.

Workers, Managers, Productivity

Workers, Managers, Productivity
Author: Akio Hosono
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 337
Release: 2020-02-14
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9811503648

This open access book provides a glimpse into the Japanese management technique known as “Kaizen,” and the ways it has been disseminated around the developing world. The novelty of this book is three-fold: it provides a contextualized view of the mechanisms of initiatives implementing Kaizen in developing countries; compared with productivity studies, it places the relationship between workers and managers at the center of inquiry, reflecting the intent of SDG8 concerning decent work and economic growth; and it provides an overview of the heterogeneity of Kaizen in terms of geography and firm size. This book explores how improving management techniques can support firms’ productivity and quality. Given its wide range of case studies from across Africa, Asia and Latin America, this book will be of value to scholars, policymakers and advocates of sustainable development alike.

Exploiting Linkages for Building Technological Capabilities

Exploiting Linkages for Building Technological Capabilities
Author: Mai Fujita
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 130
Release: 2014-01-10
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 4431547703

One of the key ingredients of success in building internationally competitive industries lies in amassing a sizeable pool of competent suppliers of parts, components and accessories. This monograph examines how in developing countries suppliers of mechanical components at the low end of the technological trajectory build up key capabilities over time. The focus is on Vietnam’s motorcycle industry, which was rapidly transformed from a small, highly protected market to the world’s fourth largest motorcycle producer. This rare success resulted from intense competition between leading Japanese motorcycle manufacturers and local Vietnamese assemblers of imported Chinese components both attempting to gain supremacy in the emerging market. In particular, the book analyzes how local Vietnamese suppliers of motorcycle components exploited participation in contrasting types of value chains developed by the two groups of leading manufacturing firms, referred to here as Japanese and/or Vietnamese–Chinese chains, for accumulating strategic know-how. On the basis of historical evidence and recent empirical data collected through repeated rounds of in-depth fieldwork the analysis finds first, those suppliers’ learning trajectories evolved over time resulting in a divergence in learning performance extending across suppliers in later phases of industrial development. In the later stage, high-performing suppliers amassed basic innovative expertise, constituting the bedrock of this fast-growing industry. Second, the analysis finds that the diverging performance can be explained by the combination of roles played by lead firms in inducing and facilitating supplier learning and those of suppliers in mobilizing their own sources of knowledge. These conclusions not only provide dynamic, insightful accounts of supplier learning in developing country contexts but also make key theoretical and methodological contributions to the research on value chain participation and supplier learning.

IBSS: Economics: 2006 Vol. 55

IBSS: Economics: 2006 Vol. 55
Author: British Library of Political and Economic Science Staff
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 664
Release: 2007-10-31
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9780415447171

First published in 2007. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

The Oxford Handbook of Industrial Policy

The Oxford Handbook of Industrial Policy
Author: Arkebe Oqubay
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 952
Release: 2020-10-20
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0192607235

Industrial policy has long been regarded as a strategy to encourage sector-, industry-, or economy-wide development by the state. It has been central to competitiveness, catching up, and structural change in both advanced and developing countries. It has also been one of the most contested perspectives, reflecting ideologically inflected debates and shifts in prevailing ideas. There has lately been a renewed interest in industrial policy in academic circles and international policy dialogues, prompted by the weak outcomes of policies pursued by many developing countries under the direction of the Washington Consensus (and its descendants), the slow economic recovery of many advanced economies after the 2008 global financial crisis, and mounting anxieties about the national consequences of globalization. The Oxford Handbook of Industrial Policy presents a comprehensive review of and a novel approach to the conceptual and theoretical foundations of industrial policy. The Handbook also presents analytical perspectives on how industrial policy connects to broader issues of development strategy, macro-economic policies, infrastructure development, human capital, and political economy. By combining historical and theoretical perspectives, and integrating conceptual issues with empirical evidence drawn from advanced, emerging, and developing countries, The Handbook offers valuable lessons and policy insights to policymakers, practitioners and researchers on developing productive transformation, technological capabilities, and international competitiveness. It addresses pressing issues including climate change, the gendered dimensions of industrial policy, global governance, and technical change. Written by leading international thinkers on the subject, the volume pulls together different perspectives and schools of thought from neo-classical to structuralist development economists to discuss and highlight the adaptation of industrial policy in an ever-changing socio-economic and political landscape.

Competitiveness Strategy in Developing Countries

Competitiveness Strategy in Developing Countries
Author: Ganeshan Wignaraja
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 321
Release: 2003-10-04
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1134585454

Globalization and structural adjustment offer many opportunities for export orientated industrialization in developing economies. As a group, competitiveness in the developing countries has improved, but, while East Asian economies have had rapid export growth and technological upgrades, South Asian and African economies have lagged behind. Old structures, institutions, behavioural patterns and public policies are ill-adapted to deal with the challenges posed by technological change and economic liberalization. Consequently there is an urgent need for change in government and private sector attitudes and strategies. This volume seeks to generalise the lessons across developing country and enterprise cases, and sheds light on which trade and industrial strategies and instruments work best, and which do not work, in relation to manufacturing competitiveness.

The Oxford Handbook of Industrial Hubs and Economic Development

The Oxford Handbook of Industrial Hubs and Economic Development
Author: Arkebe Oqubay
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 1226
Release: 2020-07-23
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0192590936

Industrialization supported by industrial hubs has been widely associated with structural transformation and catch-up. But while the direct economic benefits of industrial hubs are significant, their value lies first and foremost in their contribution as incubators of industrialization, production and technological capability, and innovation. The Oxford Handbook of Industrial Hubs and Economic Development adopts an interdisciplinary approach to examine the conceptual underpinnings, review empirical evidence of regions and economies, and extract pertinent lessons for policy reasearchers and practitioners on the key drivers of success and failure for industrial hubs. This Handbook illustrates the diverse and complex nature of industrial hubs and shows how they promote industrialization, economic structural transformation, and technological catch-up. It explores the implications of emerging issues and trends such as environmental protection and sustainability, technological advancement, shifts in the global economy, and urbanization.

The Future of Global Business

The Future of Global Business
Author: Michael Czinkota
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 769
Release: 2011-05-27
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 1135967288

In the fast-paced world of global business, success is marked by the ability to stay on top of currents events, to recognize new trends, and to react quickly to change. This book offers contributions by global marketing authorities to help you understand this rapidly changing international environment and respond to opportunities and perils. Editors Michael R. Czinkota and Ilkka A. Ronkainen use their years of experience in policy, business, and academia to provide these readings noted for their currency, relevancy, and scholarly depth.