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Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its Components in Andalusia BioregionVesna Vlaisavljevic
Academic Summit: Innovation and business models in clusters
4 September 2013
Authors: VESNA VLAISAVLJEVIC
CARMEN CABELLO MEDINA
PABLO DE OLAVIDE UNIVERSITY
TCI Conference 2013 Kolding, September 4.
Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its
Components in Andalusia Bioregion
3
INTRODUCTION:
Collaborative networking justify and explain the attractiveness
and persistence of clusters (Hendry & Brown, 2006).
The most developed economies knowledge
application for the development of innovation as competitive
basis of the industry and business network.
Cluster of knowledge-intensive industry has innovation as one
of its main objectives (Cooke, 2004).
Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its Components in Andalusia Bioregion
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Cluster components
since not all of them are equally effective in the realization of knowledge exchanges.
Clusters can produce different results achieved from innovation process
Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its Components in Andalusia Bioregion
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INTRODUCTION:
Our research is focused on the biotechnology which is
extensively clustered inter-cluster differences could be
identified.
Two features should be highlighted:
1. It is composed of a large number of small firms that have
been created with the aim of commercializing research
results.
2. These new biotech firms are embedded in a dense network
of interorganizational relationships, primarily with universities
and large pharmaceutical companies.
Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its Components in Andalusia Bioregion
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THE AIM:
The relevance of clusters comes from consideration as an ideal environment for the exchange of knowledge and information (Porter, 1990). In this sense, the sustainability of the cluster would be given by the networks and agreements between organizations (Hendry, 2006; Ozman, 2009).
Social network methods of analysis are an important lens to examine how technology clusters emerge and become sustainable(Casper, 2007).
Just as a first approximation, our work presents descriptive analysis of the biotech cluster Andalusia Bioregion trying to capture network of relations between firms observing different activities they perform and level of linkages with universities they maintain.
Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its Components in Andalusia Bioregion
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THEORETICAL PROPOSITIONS:
Connections ability produce learning about new opportunities especially when level of technological dynamism is very high thus a wide range of interorganizational linkages is critical to knowledge diffusion, learning, and technology development (Powell, 1998).
Given that biotech firms lack the broad array of interdisciplinary skills needed to develop their activities, interorganizational networking is widely considered as crucial (Powell et al., 1996; Liebeskind et al., 1996).
In this work we study this seek to collaborate through complexity of biotech activities as well as crucial role of relations with university within biotech cluster.
Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its Components in Andalusia Bioregion
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Seek of Collaboration:
In the biotechnology case there is a need for a many different
types of knowledge (Powell et., al, 1996).
Biotechnology firms exploit new combinations of knowledge
resources by creating a host of related technologies with
different applications what lead to more possibility of
collaboration among firms (St. John and Pouder, 2006).
P1: Biotech firms related to more expertise have more relations with
other firms in the network from biotech cluster.
Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its Components in Andalusia Bioregion
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Complexity of Biotech Activities:
Biotechnology is rather than industry, an overarching technology that
influences several industries. (St. John & Pouder, 2006).
For our purposes biotechnology can be divided into four subgroups:
Bio-Pharma, Bio-Agri, Bio-Industrial and Bio-informatics.
The presence of all these industries within the cluster could be an
indicator of more interfirm knowledge exchanges as all these areas
should be well connected in the network to produce cross-industry
innovation (St. John and Pouder, 2006).
P2: Biotechnology clusters in which more biotech industries are present
provide greater opportunities for knowledge exchange within the cluster.
Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its Components in Andalusia Bioregion
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Role of Universities in Biotech Cluster:
The principal assumption is that governments that invest in their
universities’ research will stimulate innovation, attracting industrial R&D
and increasing its productivity (Levitte et al., 2010).
Besides all exploration benefits for the firm, having a high profile
scientist in stock can raise its price and also increase its credibility
among the scientific community (Gilsing and Nooteboom, 2006).
P3: For biotech firms relations with universities are crucial component of
knowledge exchanges for innovation in biotech clusters.
Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its Components in Andalusia Bioregion
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The case of Andalusia Bioregion:
For our investigation only companies with biotechnology as its main activity have been considered, leading to a population of 56 firms in Andalusia Bioregion.
The study is based on 34 firms interviews (response rate of 60%) complete and usable data collected from high-level managers.
Using the answers given, networks can be visualized by applying the UCINET 6 software of Borgatti et al. (2002) by which Social Network Analysis as well as network visualization may be performed.
In these networks, the actors as nodes are labeled by letters and numbers to ensure anonymity.
Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its Components in Andalusia Bioregion
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Applying the density indicator is possible to verify that the global network density is low (7,6%), reflecting poor linkages between actors.
The case of Andalusia Bioregion:
The vast majority of the 56 nodes are interconnected regionally, either directly or indirectly.
Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its Components in Andalusia Bioregion
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The density of this network is also relatively low (10,3%),
but unlike the previous one these actors are not interconnected so well.
The case of Andalusia Bioregion:
Just 3 of 34 firms don’t have relation with university (blue square) and 41% of them have more than one agreement with universities (red circle).
Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its Components in Andalusia Bioregion
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CONCLUSION:
Through previous two figures just as a first approximation we can observe the behavior of our propositions and we can say that:
1. Actually biotech firms related to more expertise have more relations with other firms in the network from biotech cluster;
2. All biotech industries are well interconnected across the network what makes more opportunities for knowledge exchanges in the cluster;
3. Mostly all biotech firms maintain relations with even more than one university from the cluster what prove the claim that relations with universities are crucial component of knowledge exchanges for innovation and sustainability of biotech clusters.
Currently we are collecting the same data from firms of others Spanish biotech clusters which will allow us in the future to make comparisons across these clusters.
Interorganizational Network for Innovation in Biotech Clusters: Different Roles of Its Components in Andalusia Bioregion
Presented by:
VESNA VLAISAVLJEVIC
PABLO DE OLAVIDE UNIVERSITY
TCI Conference 2013 Kolding, September 4.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR ATENTION