R&D Location and Innovation Performance : Tradeoffs between R&D Autonomy and Communication Efficiency

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

This paper investigates how the geographical distance between firms' R&D units and other departments affects their innovation performance. When R&D units are geographically separated from other functional departments, such as the headquarters and manufacturing plants, they are more likely to enjoy greater freedom in the research activities they conduct, while those units that are closely located to other functional departments are better suited for efficient communication or coordination between the departments. The two-period analytical model proposed in this study suggests that separated R&D units achieve better innovation performance in product innovation or in rapidly-changing technological environments, while co-located R&D units have better innovation performance in process innovation or under stable technological environments. Supportive evidence was found from data on Korean manufacturing firms for the existence of trade-offs between R&D autonomy and communication efficiency in relation to firm R&D location.

목차 (Table of Contents)

• Abstract
• 1. INTRODUCTION
• 2. MODEL AND HYPOTHESES
• 3. DATA, VARIABLES AND EMPIRICAL SPECIFICATIONS
• 4. EMPIRICAL RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
• 5. CONCLUDING REMARKS
• REFERENCES