Innovation surveys and measurement of innovation activities

Innovation surveys and measurement of innovation activities

Micheline Goedhuys

UNU-INTECH,Maastricht, the Netherlands

[email protected]

University of Antwerp, Belgium

[email protected]

May 30, 2005 Globelics Academy 2005, Lisbon 2

Relevance of innovation surveys

• Scarcity of data in general, on innovation in particular

• Stimulate research on innovative behaviour of firms

• monitoring and evaluation of policies • Systemic nature of innovation calls for firm

level information


Overview of session

• Measuring innovation: conceptual background

• Overview of innovation surveys worldwide• Use of innovation surveys• Designing a survey for Africa: choices made• Survey instrument and its use


Conceptual background

• linear view that science, research and discovery underlie innovation

• innovation measured by science indicators: – R&D– engineers– patenting– bibliometrics, publications, citation indices

• surveys (USA, 1960s) collecting R&D, patent data;



End 1980s, 1990s ‘activity approach’:• investigating the ‘black box’• innovation results from interaction firm-

market, learning, feedback (chain-link model of Kline and Rosenberg 1986)

• need for indicators capturing non-R&D activities and incremental change



• Harmonisation of survey efforts in the

‘Oslo Manual’, 1992, 1997, …• basis for Community Innovation Surveys• Measurement: innovation is measured as an

activity (R&D, design, acquisition of machinery, technology, training) and an output (introduction of product or process innovations)



Characteristics of innovation in developing countries:

• Importance of incremental innovation; Organisational and marketing innovation;

• Importance of innovation embodied in machinery and equipment (dissemination)

• Importance of agriculture; increased knowledge intensity in resource based sectors



Characteristics of innovation in developing countries:

• Less private and more informal RD • Fragmented flows of information• Market structure : Small firm size and

informality, foreign and state ownership• Barriers to innovation:Uncertainty,

infrastructure, lack of awareness, lack of government support instruments



Towards an ‘innovation system approach’:• innovation takes place in firm and system• role of governments• inclusion of services and resource based

sectors• broader concept of innovationOngoing work for NEPAD;

Expertise in Asia, Africa and Latin America, resulting in Annex to the Oslo Manual and TPB


CIS

• First regional effort to collect innovation data: CIS-1; 13 European countries, 1990-2

• CIS-2; 1994-1996; +4 countries, services• CIS-3; 1998-2000; more firms, more

questions• CIS-4: 2002-04


IS in Latin America

• Chile (4), Brazil (2), Mexico (2), Panama (1), Peru (1), Venezuela (1)

• Argentina (2), Colombia (3), Uruguay (2)• Paraguay (1), Cuba (1), Ecuador (1)

• Bogotà Manual 2000


Innovation surveys

In Southeast Asia:• Malaysia (3), Taiwan (1), Singapore (1)

Thailand (2)

In Africa: • South Africa (2)


Questionnaire Content (Oslo)

• Basic information on the firm: turnover, employment, activity, linkage with foreign firms

• Did your firm introduce any new or improved products/processes (and sales from them)

• Innovation activities (expenditures): R&D intramural, R&D extramural, acq. machinery, acq. External technology, industrial design, training, market intro

• R&D personnel, patent application

• Objectives, goals or reasons for innovating


Questionnaire content (2)

• Sources of information for innovation

• Cooperation or collaboration for innovation (with competitors, customers, universities, government)

• Impact of innovations on firm performance

• Obstacles to innovation

• Government policy or incentives affecting innovation


Comparison of surveys

• Organisation: national statistics agency, MOST, universities, consultants

• Reference period: 2 or 3 years (mostly 3)• Participation: voluntary, mandatory (in Latin

America)


Comparison of surveys (2)

• Survey modalities: postal, PTEF follow up, personal interview, telephone interview, online questionnaire, CATI

• Sectoral coverage• Firm size: cutoff points: 5, 10, 20 or 50

workers


Use of innovation surveys

• by academics and researchers– Identify determinants to innovate– Identify constraints – Innovation and firm performance– Innovation strategies– Regional and country studies– Sector studies– Innovation patterns over time– Developing innovation indicators: measurement

issues


Use of innovation surveys

• for policy making:

– Indicators for benchmarking– Mapping innovation ; innovation in new

sectors– Assessing trends – Monitoring specific policy instruments


• Example– European innovation scoreboard : uses 20

indicators• Cross-country comparisons, sectoral comparisons • changes over time• consensus in policy action

– uses CIS based indicators• % SMEs with in-house innovative activities• % SMEs that collaborate on innovation• total innovation expenditures as % sales• % new-to-market products/sales• % new-to-firm products/sales


A policy-relevant survey for Africa

• An innovation system oriented survey - focus on the firm

• use of aggregate S&T indicators to complement firm-level innovation data

• use of panel data: trends, adaptive policy making• length of questionnaire• scope• stratified random sample • questions easy to understand, respond and code


Proposed questionnaire

General information questions:

name,

year started,

address,

education and global exposure of owner,

# scientists engineers employed,

ownership, sector, evolution of size and exports



Innovation questions:

• Licensing; licence contract, year obtained, from a local or foreign firm or research institute

• Linkages (subcontracting & outsourcing);

• New machinery and equipment, expend.;


Introduced new/ improved existing product/process;

new waste management procedures,

maintenance routines,

quality controls,

training programs;

new ways of organizing production and marketing


• Reasons• Sources of information• Collaboration• Impact• Obstacles



• S&T indicators: # R&D employees and expenditures,

patents granted,

use internet

• Policy impact


Suggested reading or sources for further consultation

• Smith, Keith, 2004, Measuring innovation, in: Oxford handbook of innovation, chapter 6, p.149-175

• UNU-INTECH, Designing a policy relevant innovation survey for NEPAD, forthcoming

• The OSLO Manual, downloadable from the internet

• The Bogota Manual, downloadable from the internet


Documents

Innovation surveys and measurement of innovation activities