Foreign Workers Are Associated with Innovation, But Why? International Networks as a Mechanism

Abstract

While there is a wealth of empirical research examining the potential relations and effects of foreign workers, immigration and cultural diversity on wages, employment, economic growth, and-in recent years-innovation, very little of this research has provided a convincing empirical demonstration of the mechanisms through which foreign workers would affect innovation. Most accounts hypothesize that foreign workers provide a different perspective that contributes to a diversity of ideas in the firm, while some also add the idea that foreign workers might help a firm build international networks. Nonetheless, these mechanisms have for the most part remained entirely theoretical, with few attempts being made at uncovering the intermediary relationships. This article contributes to filling this gap by focusing on the second of these mechanisms, asking whether firms that employ foreign workers also have broader international networks and whether this may, in turn, promote innovation through access to new knowledge. This article builds on survey data from approximately 500 firms in Norway, with more than ten employees, covering all sectors and regions. We find evidence that firms with highly educated foreign workers collaborate more frequently with international partners and that there is a positive relation between having a variety

Foreign board members and firm innovativeness: an exploratory analysis for setting a research agenda

“…While most accounts hypothesize that national diversity (e.g. foreign workers) provide different perspectives that contribute to greater variety of ideas and enhanced innovation in the firm, these notions have mostly remained entirely theoretical (Solheim and Fitjar, 2016). This applies also in the case of board diversity and innovation: there is no systematic empirical evidence corroborating the supposition of a positive relationship between foreign board members (FBMs) and firm innovativeness [1] .…”

Samanhengar mellom utanlandskfødd arbeidskraft og innovasjon: er det kjønnsmessige og geografiske skilnader?

“…Utanlandskfødde arbeidstakarar kan difor også vere viktige for marknadsretta innovasjonar. Tidlegare forsking på utanlandskfødd arbeidskraft og innovasjon i norske verksemder viser mellom anna at utanlandskfødd arbeidskraft kan legge til rette for internasjonalt samarbeid og eksport (Solheim 2016;Solheim & Fitjar 2018).…”

Fostering Innovation Through Workplace Diversity

“…Despite this increased diversity, little research has been carried out demonstrating how this increased diversity could affect firm performance, innovation, and presence in international markets. In a recent study, myself and Rune Dahl Fitjar (Solheim and Fitjar, 2016) sought to use survey data covering about 500 Norwegian firms asking managers with whom and how they organize their innovation processes. The survey was carried out in 2013 and covered private sector firms across all of Norway's regions.…”