Are knowledge-intensive business services so “hard” innovators? Some insights using Spanish microdata

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“…Our data does not distinguish between product and process innovations (both are regarded as technological), but the result appears consistent with those of Rodriguez and Camacho [Rodriguez, Camacho, 2010] who identify a factor that reflects companies' orientation towards product innovation. In addition, our factor relates also to customers' innovation activity: innovative clients require more and, to a lesser extent, a wider range of services from KIBS.…”

“…When asked about their size relative to other firms in their sector, 46% of the surveyed companies positioned themselves as medium-sized and 36% as small. KIBS companies' innovation configurations were analyzed using a two-stage procedure similar to that employed in earlier studies [Camacho, Rodriguez, 2008;Corrocher et al, 2009;Rodriguez, Camacho, 2010]. In the first stage, factor analysis was employed (using the principle components analysis technique with a varimax rotation); this effectively reduced the number of indicators that we examined to a smaller set of distinctive compound variables (factors).…”

“…Researchers suggest that the sources of knowledge and information KIBS companies use to create and apply innovations are another important group of factors contributing to the mode of innovation. Customers, suppliers, and competitors are major sources [Corrocher et al, 2009;Rodriguez et al, 2015], while partners such as franchises or professional associations are another [Rodriguez, Camacho, 2010]. A third way of acquiring specialized knowledge and information is to purchase it, in particular, from consulting firms [Asikainen, 2015].…”

“…As in other industries, another major spending area, often the largest, can also be understood as expenditures on external sources of knowledge and information. This includes the acquisition of specialized equipment, software and other information and communication technologies as well as data procured from consulting companies [Doloreux, Shearmur, 2010;Rodriguez, Camacho, 2010]. Finally, the protection of intellectual property is an important innovation-related investment area [Asikainen, 2015].…”

“…T-KIBS are an exception here, and some firms are very R&D-intensive. Traditionally these first of all include internal and external R&D infvestments [Rodriguez, Camacho, 2010;Rodriguez et al, 2015]. However, KIBS companies frequently lack specialized R&D departments and place much emphasis on the role of human capital [Schricke et al, 2012].…”