Fernando E. García-Muiña

The complexity of technological capital and legal protection mechanisms

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the effectiveness of legal protection mechanisms to sustain competitive advantage and appropriate technological intellectual capital, taking into account its degree of complexity.Design/methodology/approach – The empirical analysis was conducted on a sample of Spanish biotechnology firms, devoted to human and animal health, having a specific department for carrying on R&D activities from 2001 to 2003. The hypotheses were tested by non‐parametric techniques after collecting data by sending a questionnaire as the primary source of information.Findings – The results show that the higher the complexity of technological knowledge, the greater the protection of intellectual capital against imitation. In addition, it is proven that legal protection is an effective means of protection against imitation only when technological knowledge has a low degree of complexity.Research limitations/implications – Within the resource‐based view context, our results provide new...

Absorptive routines and international patent performance

Patents on an international level are essential for firm results. Accordingly, the use of external sources of knowledge acquires crucial importance to get global innovations and create competitive advantages. For that reason, the literature has highlighted the strategic role of the absorptive capacity construct. We enrich the treatment of the absorptive capacity phases including the moderating effects between routines associated to the traditional potential-realized absorptive capacities. Taking into account external knowledge search strategies, the deeper external relationships, the better transference and appropriation of specific external knowledge. Nevertheless, when the moderating role of assimilation is included, cooperation agreements appear as the most efficient source of external knowledge. Finally, we show that technological tools let firms store and structure the information making easier its use for international patenting. This positive effect is reinforced in the presence of exploitation routines, since technological knowledge will better fit to the industrys key factors of success.

The effect of knowledge complexity on the strategic value of technological capabilities

This paper analyses the relationships between knowledge complexity and technology-based competitive advantage sustainability via barriers to imitation and substitution of capabilities. The theoretical treatment of the complexity construct and the separate analysis of imitability and substitutability of technological assets contribute to improving our understanding of these relations. The empirical evidence from a sample of Spanish biotech companies indicates that complex capabilities are better protected from imitation. But the results for barriers to substitution show that an excessive proportion of complex tacit knowledge may have a negative effect on competitive advantage sustainability, as it reduces interested agents’ confidence in the technology, and hence, encourages competitors to seek more attractive alternatives.

Knowledge Codification and Technological Innovation Success: Empirical Evidence from Spanish Biotech Companies

This paper analyzes the influence of knowledge codification on technological innovation firm results. Based on a sample of biotechnological Spanish firms the effect of codification on incremental and radical technological innovations is tested, taking into account that in some cases codification practices may include legal protection mechanisms too. In addition, in this research we studied the effect of such knowledge management decision on barriers to imitation and substitution. Results show, on the one hand, that knowledge codification is of great interest in developing incremental innovation only. On the other hand, maintaining the exclusive character of innovations demands knowledge codification and its legal protection simultaneously.

ESTRATEGIAS DE INTERNACIONALIZACIÓN EN EL SECTOR TURÍSTICO. EL ESTUDIO DE CUATRO GRANDES GRUPOS HOTELEROS ESPAÑOLES

En Espana el sector turistico ha desempenado un rol importante, desde la crisis financiera e inmobiliaria de 2008 es uno de los sectores que ha mostrado mejor comportamiento, es por ello que se ha de incidir en mejorar la competitividad turistica de las provincias espanolas y aprovechar asi la contribucion del turismo. Hemos seleccionado para este analisis las provincias del Mediterraneo por ser las que mayor cuota turistica acumulan respecto al conjunto nacional, y por sus caracteristicas comunes en el ambito turistico. La manera de analizar y posteriormente sugerir propuestas para mejorar la competitividad de los destinos turisticos del Mediterraneo, analizar a continuacion las valores de los indicadores que representan la competitividad de los destinos, para luego valorar mediante un panel de expertos la importancia de los factores en cada destino, y finalmente, sugerir actuaciones para aumentar la competitividad. ABSTRACT In Spain tourism sector has had a relevant role since financial and real state crisis in 2008, tourism is one of the few sectors that has helped to economic recovery and it is improving it performance year a year, so tourism competitiveness in the Spanish provinces must be enhanced taking advantage of the tourism good behavior. We have selected the Mediterranean area provinces because of their mayor acummulated tourism share above national, and because of their similar characteristics. The way of improving competitiveness, then to analyze the provinces which have worst performance on the indicators that form the factors, next to asses the factor importance through and expert panel, and finally to recommend actions for improving competitivenessNumerosos estudios han demostrado que las redes sociales influyen en las intenciones de los viajeros de visitar un destino. Sin embargo, la literatura ha prestado poca atencion a la relacion entre el comportamiento de busqueda de informacion y el desarrollo de la fidelidad a los destinos. En este sentido, este estudio analiza este fenomeno, considerando como los turistas no solo comparten su tiempo entre varias fuentes de informacion, sino que estas estan tambien influyendo en el tiempo que los turistas estan compartiendo entre varios destinos, no solo repitiendo la visita a un unico destino, sino tambien haciendose mas fieles a multiples destinos al mismo tiempo (fidelidad horizontal). Sin embargo, este tema no se ha destacado adecuadamente en el contexto turistico. Por lo tanto, el objetivo de este estudio es doble: 1) comprender mejor el comportamiento del turista con respecto al uso de las redes sociales, considerando las diferencias por nacionalidades, genero y edad; y 2) explorar la relacion entre el uso de las diferentes fuentes de informacion de los turistas (tradicionales y digitales) y su influencia en la posterior fidelidad (tanto a un solo destino como en la fidelidad horizontal), y considerando tanto la fidelidad conductual como la actitudinal. Estos resultados son utiles para tomar decisiones sobre estrategias de comunicacion digital y la gestion de los programas de fidelizacion por parte de los destinos turisticos. Palabras clave : Fidelidad Horizontal, Marketing Relacional, Fuentes de Informacion, Redes Sociales, Imagen ABSTRACT The visit to a tourist destination is influenced by the tourists use of social media. However, the literature has not focused its efforts on trying to understand the relationship between the use of social media and destinations loyalty. This study analyzes this phenomenon, considering how tourists not only share their time between several sources of information, but these are also influencing the time that the tourists are sharing between several destinations, not only repeating the visit to a single destination, but also becoming more loyal to multiple destinations at the same time (horizontal loyalty). However, this topic has not been adequately highlighted in the tourism context. This study tries to analyze the differences in the use of social media by nationalities, gender, age and income; and to shed light on their relationship with loyalty. These results are useful for making decisions about digital communication strategies and the management of loyalty programs by tourist destinations. Keywords : Horizontal Loyalty, Relationship Marketing, Information Sources, Social Media, ImageActualmente, los destinos de sol y playa afrontan la necesidad de renovacion y, en el Partido de Necochea, Argentina, se elaboro el Plan Estrategico de Turismo Sustentable de Necochea para responder a esta necesidad. La implementacion requiere analizar y evaluar de modo pragmatico y programatico las intervenciones territoriales para alcanzar las estrategias definidas de reposicionamiento. El articulo propone identificar las unidades de gestion del espacio, los modelos de intervencion para un escenario estrategico que contribuya a la gestion sustentable y reorientacion turistica y proporcionar bases para la reestructuracion territorial como eje transversal de politica publica ambiental y turistica. Para ello, respecto de la unidades se delimita el espacio turistico en funcion de las particularidades fisico-espaciales, los recursos turisticos y oportunidades recreativas y las disfuncionalidades o problematicas detectadas. Luego, se definen los contenidos concretos de los tipos de intervencion propuestos que reorienten la renovacion. Y por ultimo, se enuncian las bases para las actuaciones de reestructuracion territorial en funcion de un escenario estrategico. La renovacion ambiental de Necochea debe basarse en estrategias conducentes a la cualificacion del espacio turistico, la diferenciacion basada en la naturaleza, la potenciacion del entorno urbano y la inclusion de lo ambiental en la gestion turistica.

Open innovation: A preliminary model from the Knowledge-based Theory

Purpose : The open innovation paradigm is an alternative and/or complementary way to knowledge management processes in its various stages, questioning the basic assumptions where some of the technological innovation strategies and processes are based on. The new logic of innovation process exploits knowledge dissemination through new innovation communities, on the one hand, and, considers of strategic value the external access to intangible resources. Thus, this approach supposes an alternative view to the traditional close innovation, focused on the exclusive exploitation of value innovations. This paper aims to contribute to building an integrated model of key factors to success in open innovation processes. It is analyzed for the role that certain key knowledge management decisions have on the results of open innovation projects, to facilitate the change process and provide new capacity or skills to do so. Design/methodology/approach : Through the review of theoretical and empirical literature, we show the main variables related to the functioning of open innovation systems, and establish various propositions about the meaning and intensity of such relationships. Findings : The management of open innovation project improves through three external factors: technical leadership based on experience, the intensive use of ICT, which allows a multilateral communication, and the existence of intermediate agents or facilitators with a strong neutral attitude. The results also depend on internal factors: the link function, the search routines, the establishment of incentive systems to encourage proactivity and organizational culture. Originality/value : In the absence of full proposals to guide effective decision making on both the management of relationships between organizations, as well as factors inherent to each of them, this paper proposes an exploratory model that integrates the key success factors in open innovation processes.