How to learn in R&D partnerships?

Abstract

Introductionearning and appropriating new scientific knowledge and or technical skills can be achieved in R&D partnerships. The objective of this paper is to help firms participating in Research and Development (R&D) activities in partnership with other organisations to benefit from their collaborations. We try to understand which factors enhance learning and result appropriation. By 'appropriation' we mean that a member firm not only learns but values the resources and competences developed during the course of the R&D alliance.There is little large-scale empirical evidence regarding the assessment of factors favouring organisational learning and the appropriation of knowledge and competences in the context of R&D partnerships. The objective of this article is to partly reduce this lack by identifying and testing a set of these factors.Our research consisted of two stages. First a literature review on organisational learning and appropriation in R&D partnerships and an exploratory qualitative phase enabled us to identify a set of potentially key factors in successful result appropriation. These were studied in three R&D partnerships led by a European high technology firm producing cyclotrons.These determinants fall into two broad categories (Heyvaert and Ingham, 1992):'behavioural' factors: motivation to learn, trust between partners, and involvement in the collaborative processes; 'structural' factors: nature of knowledge (tacit codified), complementary assets, characteristics of the formal contract, configuration of the alliance, division of tasks among partners, access to complementary assets, and experience in internal R&D. In this article a set of determinants of organisational learning and result appropriation are identified and then tested on a sample of Research and Development (R&D) consortia. The literature review and an exploratory case study highlight the main factors which favour learning and the appropriation of knowledge. The case study observes the organisational learning processes at work in three R&D partnerships entered into by a European high technology firm.Six hypotheses are formulated. They pertain to the link between the firm's learning and exploitation capabilities. The hypotheses relate to (1) trust between partners, (2) R&D integration in the firm, (3) the access to adequate complementary assets, (4) the member's involvement and motivation in the cooperative process, (5) its own experience in R&D, and (6) the number of partners in the consortium. These hypotheses are tested on a sample of 317 R&D consortia in the European EUREKA initiative.The results show that a firm's internal organisation and the level of trust between partners influence learning and result appropriation. However, the determinants vary according to the kind of outcome (tangible knowledge, new products processes, improved products processes, intangible knowledge). With the knowledge that alliances are increasingly becoming a necessity for firms involved in technology, a better understanding of how to benefit from R&D...

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