Innovation drivers of external competitiveness in the great recession

ABSTRACT: This paper explores the main drivers of firms’ external competitiveness in times of crisis. We focus on the aftermath of the Great Recession (2008–2015) and present evidence based on a comprehensive survey of Italian companies (the MET dataset). Overall, our results highlight not only the strict correlation between internationalization and innovative activities but also a positive change of attitude of Italian firms towards these strategies. We show that, while structural factors play a key role for external competitiveness, other critical aspects trigger superior performances, especially strategic profiles, technological capabilities, and proactive behaviors such as innovativeness and R&D investment. Importantly, we document disproportionate effects of innovation for smaller and less productive companies. This points at dynamic strategies as a potential tool to fill the gap between larger/more productive companies and the set of less structured firms, a segment representing an ideal target for policy measures.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11187-021-00453-0.

SUBMITTER: Brancati E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7846269 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature