International spillovers, knowledge acquisition and transfer among Japanese fi rms in the United States

In this paper, we investigate (i) the relationship between international spillovers and knowledge acquisition, and, (ii) intra-firm subsidiary-to-parent transfer of technology among Japanese firms in the United States. Using a survey of 185 firms, probit regressions reveal that R&D personnel and market power significantly influence the acquisition of knowledge associated with basic and applied science and product development. Tacit knowledge that resides in customers, and skilled personnel are effective sources for exploitation of international knowledge spillovers. Participation in seminars and conferences also enhances the acquisition of applied science. Firms that rely on codified sources are unlikely to acquire any knowledge. This research also confirms other authors’ findings that subsidiary autonomy facilitates knowledge acquisition. In addition, knowledge in product development is most likely to lead to vertical intra-firm transfers while applied scientific research only results in the transfer of R&D capability. Scientific team visits from the US to Japan support subsidiaries’ transfer of R&D capability but teams sent from Japan to the US adversely affect transfers. Overall, our results suggest international spillovers are predominantly associated with the acquisition of tacit knowledge, and intra-firm transfers are most effective in the context of knowledge acquired in applied research and product development.

[1]  Terry S. Overton,et al.  Estimating Nonresponse Bias in Mail Surveys , 1977 .

[2]  M. Mendenhall,et al.  The contingent nature of best practices in national competitiveness: The case of American and Japanese innovation processes , 2009 .

[3]  David A. Wolfe,et al.  Universities and regional economic development: The entrepreneurial University of Waterloo , 2008 .

[4]  Jeffrey K. Liker,et al.  The Toyota way : 14 management principles from the world's greatest manufacturer , 2004 .

[5]  S. Winter,et al.  An evolutionary theory of economic change , 1983 .

[6]  S. Winter,et al.  Evolutionary theorizing in economics , 2002 .

[7]  S. T. Ok.  International Outsourcing: Empirical Evidence from the Netherlands , 2011 .

[8]  Hierry,et al.  A Theory of Defensive Skill-Biased Innovation and Globalization , 2004 .

[9]  Markus C. Becker,et al.  Applying Organizational Routines in Analyzing the Behavior of Organizations , 2008 .

[10]  M. Feldman,et al.  Knowledge spillovers and the geography of innovation , 2004 .

[11]  R. Belderbos,et al.  Intra-firm technology transfer and R&D in foreign affiliates: Substitutes or complements? Evidence from Japanese multinational firms , 2008 .

[12]  Gail E. Farrelly,et al.  A Survey of Management Views on Dividend Policy , 1985 .

[13]  Sofía Liberman,et al.  The flow of knowledge: Scientific contacts in formal meetings , 1997 .

[14]  Romualdas Ginevičius,et al.  The effectiveness of cooperation of industrial enterprises , 2010 .

[15]  Ruby P. Lee,et al.  Linking customer resources to firm success: The role of marketing program implementation , 2011 .

[16]  L. Bottazzi,et al.  Innovation and Spillovers in Regions: Evidence from European Patent Data , 2002 .

[17]  Carine Peeters,et al.  Innovation strategy and the patenting behavior of firms , 2006 .

[18]  Jeffrey Cummings,et al.  Transferring R&D Knowledge : the Key Factors Affecting Knowledge Transfer Success , 2003 .

[19]  Hiroyuki Odagiri,et al.  Overseas R&D, knowledge sourcing, and patenting: an empirical study of Japanese R&D investment in the US , 2004 .

[20]  D. Teece.  Firm organization, industrial structure, and technological innovation☆ , 1996 .

[21]  Jaeyong Song,et al.  Foreign Direct Investment and the Sourcing of Technological Advantage: Evidence from the Biotechnology Industry , 1997 .

[22]  David L. Deeds.  The Role of R&D Intensity, Technical Development and Absorptive Capacity in Creating Entrepreneurial Wealth in High Technology Start-Ups , 2001 .

[23]  Dennis Nobelius,et al.  Linking product development to applied research: transfer experiences from an automotive company , 2004 .

[24]  Andrew J. Nelson.  Putting University Research in Context: Assessing Alternative Measures of Production and Diffusion at Stanford , 2011 .

[25]  Moreno Muffatto,et al.  Reorganizing for product development: Evidence from Japanese automobile firms , 1998 .

[26]  J. Scott Armstrong,et al.  Estimating nonresponse bias in mail surveys. , 1977 .

[27]  Michael E. Porter,et al.  Competition in Japan , 2004 .

[28]  Elhanan Helpman,et al.  Endogenous Innovation in the Theory of Growth , 1993 .

[29]  Axèle Giroud,et al.  Japanese transnational corporations' knowledge transfer to Southeast Asia: the case of the electrical and electronics sector in Malaysia , 2000 .

[30]  E. von Hippel,et al.  Sources of Innovation , 2016 .

[31]  Steve Brown,et al.  Managing process technology - further empirical evidence from manufacturing plants , 2001 .

[32]  D. Y. Sha,et al.  Linking innovative product development with customer knowledge: a data-mining approach , 2006 .

[33]  Ignacio Fernández-de-Lucio,et al.  Does external knowledge sourcing matter for innovation? Evidence from the Spanish manufacturing industry , 2009 .

[34]  W. Bean.  Personal Knowledge: Towards a Post-Critical Philosophy , 1961 .

[35]  Anita Van Gils,et al.  Knowledge Acquisition and Learning in Dutch and Belgian SMEs:: The Role of Strategic Alliances , 2004 .

[36]  Gilles Lambert,et al.  Completion of knowledge codification: an illustration through the ISO 9000 standards implementation process , 2001 .

[37]  T. Mroczkowski,et al.  A comparative study of enablers of knowledge creation in Japan and US-based firms , 2011 .

[38]  Andrew J. Nelson.  Measuring Knowledge Spillovers: What Patents, Licenses and Publications Reveal About Innovation Diffusion , 2009 .

[39]  A. Kokko,et al.  The Economics of Foreign Direct Investment Incentives , 2003 .

[40]  M. Trajtenberg,et al.  International Knowledge Flows: Evidence from Patent Citations , 1998 .

[41]  Alexander Peine,et al.  When 'national innovation system' meet 'varieties of capitalism' arguments on labour qualifications: On the skill types and scientific knowledge needed for radical and incremental product innovations , 2011 .

[42]  J. Cantwell,et al.  Why is R&D Internationalization in Japanese Firms so Low? A Path-Dependent Explanation , 2006 .

[43]  M. Ann McFadyen,et al.  The Complementary Roles of Applied and Basic Research: A Knowledge‐Based Perspective* , 2005 .

[44]  Jaider Vega Jurado,et al.  Does external knowledge sourcing matter for innovation? Evidence from the Spanish manufacturing industry , 2009 .

[45]  D. Teece.  Technology Transfer by Multinational Firms: The Resource Cost of Transferring Technological Know-How , 1977 .

[46]  Carliss Y. Baldwin,et al.  How User Innovations Become Commercial Products: A Theoretical Investigation and Case Study , 2006 .

[47]  Attila Varga,et al.  Local Geographic Spillovers between University Research and High Technology Innovations , 1997 .

[48]  Martin Kenney,et al.  The organization and geography of Japanese R&D: results from a survey of Japanese electronics and biotechnology firms , 1994 .

[49]  Y. Todo,et al.  Overseas R&D Activities and Home Productivity Growth: Evidence from Japanese Firm-Level Data , 2008 .

[50]  Gavin J. Wright.  An evolutionary theory of economic change , 1982 .

[51]  E. Mansfield,et al.  Technology Transfer to Overseas Subsidiaries by U. S.-Based Firms , 1980 .

[52]  Andrea Fosfuri,et al.  Foreign direct investment and spillovers through workers’ mobility , 2001 .

[53]  E. Mills,et al.  Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics , 1987 .

[54]  Anne-Wil Harzing,et al.  Response rates in international mail surveys: Results of a 22-country study , 1997 .

[55]  B. Kogut,et al.  Technological capabilities and Japanese foreign direct investment in the United States , 1991 .

[56]  Anupama Phene,et al.  Innovation in multinational subsidiaries: The role of knowledge assimilation and subsidiary capabilities , 2008 .

[57]  Theodore A. Khoury,et al.  Shared inventions and the evolution of capabilities: Examining the biotechnology industry , 2011 .

[58]  M. Polanyi.  Personal Knowledge: Towards a post-critical philosophy , 1959 .

[59]  K. Arrow.  Classificatory Notes on the Production and Transmission of Technological Knowledge , 1969 .

[60]  Daniel A. Levinthal,et al.  Innovation and Learning: The Two Faces of R&D , 1989 .

[61]  Chih‐Hai Yang,et al.  Outward Foreign Direct Investment and Product Quality of Domestic Productions: An Empirical Investigation , 2010 .

[62]  Edward B. Roberts,et al.  Global R&D Activities of Japanese MNCs in the US: A Triangulation Approach , 2007 .

[63]  Jaeyong Song,et al.  What determines knowledge sourcing from host locations of overseas R&D operations?: A study of global R&D activities of Japanese multinationals , 2011 .

[64]  G. Pisano.  Knowledge Integration and the Locus of Learning: An Empirical Analysis , 1994 .