Joana Mendonça

Innovation strategy by firms: Do innovative firms grow more?

Linking innovation with firms growth and performance is still a challenge for research. It is difficult to observe the effect of new products and processes on firms performance, because it may take a long time between innovation and the economic gain of firms. This paper intends to address this challenge and look at the relationship between innovation and firm performance, distinguishing product and process innovation. We join two different databases: the third Community Innovation Survey (CIS III) survey and the Portuguese Quadros de Pessoal. We observe an impact of innovation activities in performance gains three years later. This effect is observed only for small firms (less than 50 employees), and it is stronger for newer firms, thus leading to conclude that innovation activities may be a source of competitive advantage, especially for new firms.

Entrepreneurial Backgrounds, Human Capital and Survival in the Early Years after Start-Up

We examine whether founders’ backgrounds influence new firm survival in the early years after start-up. We develop hypotheses linking founders’ backgrounds to pre-entry capabilities associated with entrepreneurial human capital, highlighting the cases of spin-offs and habitual entrepreneurs. In particular, the subject of unemployment-driven entrepreneurship is explored. We find that both general and specific human capital play a key role in enhancing the early survival chances of entrepreneurs who left their employment to found new firms (which we deem opportunity-based entrepreneurs), but have little effect on the early survival chances of unemployment-driven entrepreneurs (which we deem necessity-based entrepreneurs). We infer that pre-entry capabilities of entrepreneurs are a key factor for both opportunity discovery and implementation.

Skill Composition and Regional Entrepreneurship: A Comparative Study between Germany and Portugal

The question whether agglomeration externalities arise either from specialization or diversification of economic activity has since long been a major topic in the analysis of factors determining economic growth. In this paper we analyze whether a more specialized or a more diverse skill composition of labor in regions affects the level of new firm entries in general as well as in technology- and knowledge-intensive subsectors. We compare Germany and Portugal which exhibit, though EU member states, different institutional infrastructures for entrepreneurship. Based on a harmonized dataset, our results indicate that the skill composition has different effects on firm entry in the two countries. More specifically, for Portugal the specialization of skills has a positive effect on the level on new firm entry in all sectors. In contrast to this, our results for Germany reveal exactly the opposite effect. These results suggest that both specialization and diversity theories hold, and that the effect thus may depend on other more local and regional factors.

Mapping Knowledge Bases in the Portuguese Chemical Industry

This paper examines the innovation processes in the Portuguese chemical industry. By exploring the innovative activities undertaken by a chemical multinational in Portugal, we build a map of the knowledge bases representative of the Portuguese chemical industry. The paper presents a descriptive analysis of the companys formal innovation process, which includes an internal form and an external form. Within the external mode, we explore in greater detail the design of a specific initiative which can be classified as a kind of corporate entrepreneurship: a competition launched to search for new technological ideas. This research leads to the construction of a map of the knowledge bases. The mapping procedure allows for the identification of the companys knowledge bases and the knowledge flows established with the local economy. The map obtained shows that the chemical industry is based on widely distributed knowledge bases and that the main knowledge flows established with the surrounding environment are of the embodied form. The analysis of the mapping of knowledge bases indicates that there exists a significant ability in independent R&D units to generate new knowledge in fields related to the chemical industry and that this knowledge can be used to produce new value. In addition, this research shows that the ability to generate value-creating knowledge is concentrated in products, technologies and sub-sectors that are in relatively early stages of their life-cycle. Hence this knowledge does not seem to have an immediate application in the surrounding Portuguese industry, as this is concentrated mostly in products, technologies and sub-sectors that have reached maturity and, in some cases, decline. Due to this asymmetry, disembodied knowledge flows are difficult or impossible to create, and other types of relationship should be pursued. Portuguese chemical companies need to adapt their strategies in order to absorb and incorporate this new knowledge in promoting their innovation activities

On the Changing Nature of Industrial Production: Implications for a Research Agenda in Aeronautics Industrial Policy

The geography of industrial production is continuously shifting towards the most cost effective locations, being particularly associated with increasing uncertainty. This paper presents a contextual analysis of industrial production dynamics leading to a policy research agenda. In particular, we use unbalanced panel data on 173 European regions, during 1999–2007, to examine whether knowledge, human capital and innovation capability help to explain the role of manufacturing on regional development. A number of regulatory, institutional and policy issues affect the analysis.

Determinant of Careers Patterns for Doctorate Holders

It is accepted worldwide that highly skilled human resources play a vital role in the development of economies. Doctoral training is the highest formal education an individual can attain, and doctorates have the best qualification for the creation and implementation of new knowledge and are more likely to have networks that can contribute to spreading this knowledge. This paper looks at careers patterns of doctorate holders, by exploring the results of the Careers of Doctorate Holders Survey, 2009. We examine the determinants of doctorates to engage in a research career, identifying what generates mobility throughout their careers, and what are the main factors affecting the earning of doctorates. We perform this analysis for four different countries: Belgium, Denmark, Portugal and Spain, allowing for a comparison in an international context.

Human Capital and the Performance of Firms Over Time

We examine the impact of founders and employees general and specific human capital on the performance of new firms (survival and sales) over time. We find that firms founded by more educated business owners are more likely to perform better. Results also indicate that business owners with previous managerial and industry-specific experience are more likely to survive and present better sales performance. This effect persists and indeed gains relevance over time, even if the firms owners change. While industry-specific and managerial experience are important for entrepreneurs, firm-specific human capital is more important for employees, and the acquisition of old routines and practices from previous firms does not matter so much for employee performance as it does for founders.

A map of the knowledge bases for the chemical industry

This paper examines the innovation processes in the chemical industry, by exploring the innovative activities undertaken by a Portuguese branch of a multinational chemical company. The paper presents a descriptive analysis of the companys formal innovation process. This research leads to a map of the knowledge bases, which allows for the identification of the companys underlying technologies and the knowledge flows. The map shows that the chemical industry is based on widely distributed knowledge bases, and that the main knowledge flows established with the surrounding environment are of the embodied form. In addition, this research shows that the ability to generate value-creating knowledge is concentrated in the early stages of the industrys life cycle, whereas the corresponding Portuguese industry is mostly concentrated on activities that have reached maturity and, in some cases, decline. Owing to this asymmetry, disembodied knowledge flows are difficult to create, and other types of relationship should be pursued.

Synthesis of Disulfides Containing a Corrinoid Head Group for Preparation of Self-Assembled Monolayers

The synthesis of three novel alkane disulfides with head-groups derived from vitamin B 1 2 , 14a, 14b and 15, is described. Self-assembled monolayers on gold are prepared from the symmetrical disulfide 15, bearing two cobyrinate head groups. The coating of the gold surface is analyzed by TOF-SIMS and ESCA measurements.

5,6-Dihydro­thieno[2,3-d][1,3]dithiol-2-one

The title compound, C5H4OS3, contains discrete molxadecules, which are linked into sheets by a combination of short S⋯S contacts [S⋯S = 3.512u2005(1) and 3.586u2005(1)u2005A] and C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds.