Globalization and Competitive Strategy in Europe's Vulnerable Regions: Firm, Industry and Country Effects in Labour-intensive Industries

Abstract

Clark G. L., Palaskas T., Tracey P. and Tsampra M. (2004) Globalization and competitive strategy in Europe's vulnerable regions: firm, industry and country effects in labour-intensive industries, Regional Studies38, 1077-1092. European integration has prompted great interest in the adjustment capacities of small and medium enterprises in regions characterized by high levels of unemployment and lower-than-average incomes. At issue, in these circumstances, is the extent to which economic competitiveness can be enhanced by technological change and the resources of European and national governments. Relying upon the results of a detailed survey of small- and medium-sized firm competitive strategies in selected vulnerable regions across Europe, the paper focuses upon firm adjustment strategies in four labour-intensive industries vulnerable to international competition. It draws together the results of these surveys providing econometric and statistical analyses that demonstrate the commonalities and differences apparent in small- and medium- sized firms' responses to changing market competition. Significant insights were gleaned from the pooling of these data. It is shown that there are statistically significant firm, country and industry effects in competitive strategies. Unlike many other related studies, the derived results are quite consistent across Europe. Furthermore, statistically significant relationships are established between changes in market sales, local employment and the adoption of process-specific technologies. The findings provide robust conclusions about the significance of country and industry determinants of European small and medium enterprises' competitive strategies in relation to the expanding European and global economy. In sum, the paper raises doubts about the value of regional development strategies that rely exclusively upon clusters and geographical embeddedness in the face of globalization.Clark G. L., Palaskas T., Tracey P. et Tsampra M. (2004) La mondialisation et la stratégie compétitive dans les régions défavorisées d'Europe: les retombées sur l'entreprise, l'industrie et le pays des industries à forte main-d'oeuvre, Regional Studies38, 1077-1092. L'intégration européenne a suscité un intérêt important à la capacité d'ajustement des petites et moyennes entreprises dans les régions qui se caractérisent par des niveaux de chômage élevés et par des niveaux de revenu qui sont inférieurs à la moyenne. Dans de telles circonstances, la question qui se pose est la suivante. Jusqu'à quel point peut-on améliorer la compétitivité économique au moyen de l'évolution technologique et à l'aide des ressources dont disposent l'administration européenne et nationale? Puisant dans les résultats provenant d'une enquête détaillée de la stratégie compétitive des PME situées dans certaines régions défavorisées à travers l'Europe, l'article porte sur les stratégies d'ajustement dans quatre industries à forte main-d'oeuvre qui sont exposées à la compétition internationale. A partir des résultats de ces enq...

Skill and support to globalization in the EU

“…National labour markets seem to be integrated; individuals care more about their relative skill compared to the country rather than to the region in which they live. This result is in line with Clark et al (2004) who found that there are significant country effects affecting European small and medium enterprises' competitive strategy in a global economy, including their demand for skilledlabour. Regarding the control variables, we find that age reduces the likelihood of supporting globalization until age 48, when age starts to increase the probability of favouring globalization.…”

Do Rural Firms Perceive Different Problems? Geography, Sorting, and Barriers to Growth in UK SMEs

“…Fitjar and Rodriguez-Pose (2011a;2011b) show how Norwegian firms develop strategies which overcome remoteness and facilitate innovation. Such studies support the idea that firms which neither sort into areas with characteristics they value, nor adopt strategies to compensate for particular locations, are less likely to survive (Clark et al, 2004).…”

The role of place branding in local and regional economic development: bridging the gap between policy and practicality

“…In terms of local economic development, 'low-road' policy implies a narrow set of homogenized policy initiatives (Gordon, 1996;Helper, 2009), characterized by low-end prescriptive activities that propagate and are mimicked among many places (Malecki, 2004;Ornston, 2014). Alternatively, 'high-road' policies focus on comprehensive placed-based strategies to attract and retain mobile resources through enhancements and improvements to local conditions and attributes (Clark, Palaskas, & Tsampra, 2004;Helper, 2009;Malecki, 2004;Markusen, 1996;Turok, 2004). 'High-road' policies are more likely to be effective and provide the strongest opportunity for a place to be competitive (Clark et al, 2004;Malecki, 2004;Turok, 2004).…”