Innovation success in an emerging economy: A comparison of R&D‐oriented companies in Turkey

Abstract

Knowledge and innovation capacities are unevenly distributed on a global scale, with national or regional settings playing a crucial role when it comes to the production and usage of knowledge. In particular, emerging economies are less equipped with relevant institutions and resources, meaning that firms residing in such contexts are likewise dealing with lacking innovation capabilities. However, achieving innovation is highly relevant for the economic development of firms and regions. Therefore, we aim to identify key factors for innovation strategies in a differentiated corporate landscape that might affect innovation success. Survey data from the innovative segment of 225 manufacturing firms in Istanbul is used in a two‐step methodological approach. We apply dimension reduction through principal component analysis and use the resulting components in logistic regression analysis to estimate their effects on firms’ innovation success. The results reveal not only important findings about factors for the innovation success of firms, but also highly relevant insights about firms’ innovation strategies. The usage of internal and external R&D resources varies with firm type. In addition, we find that external R&D resources determine firms’ internationalization strategies. Hereof, we suggest policy implications for distinct firm types to support diverse innovation strategies and consequently innovation success.

Barriers to university–industry collaboration in an emerging market: Firm-level evidence from Turkey

“…In a study on the innovation success of R&D-oriented companies in Turkey, Kleiner-Schäfer and Liefner (2021) show that for domestic Turkish firms, internal R&D resources are the main success factor for achieving innovations, whereas external R&D resources have no influence. Respective firms thus still need to build their internal capabilities prior to assessing and using external knowledge and technology sources for their innovation activities.…”

“…Respective firms thus still need to build their internal capabilities prior to assessing and using external knowledge and technology sources for their innovation activities. This is particularly true for technological knowledge sources that are related to collaboration and learning from scientific partners (Kleiner-Schäfer and Liefner, 2021). Furthermore, De Fuentes et al (2020) explored perceived barriers to innovation on the part of successful and unsuccessful innovating firms for the EM settings of Turkey and Mexico.…”

Find your match! How emerging economy firms combine different forms of openness to innovate

“…Turkey is a representative case of open innovation in an emerging economy context. First, it exhibits typical features such as underdeveloped institutions and a lack of resources (Kleiner‐Schafer and Liefner, 2021; Bouguerra et al, 2022). Second, although open innovation can stimulate improvements in the innovation climate, its successful implementation remains as challenging for Turkey as it does for other emerging economies (Kafouros and Forsans, 2012; Tusiad, 2013; Badir et al, 2020; Patrucco et al, 2022).…”

Unlocking the relationships between strategic planning, leadership and technology transfer competence: the mediating role of strategic quality management

“…Turkish firms are connected to an increasing number of firms exchanging not only goods and services but also knowledge and technology (Turker and Altuntas, 2014). However, Turkey is still far behind other OECD countries regarding R&D competencies and the capability to innovate and enable TTC for innovation (Kleiner-Schäfer and Liefner, 2021). Given its nascent status in technology competence (in which it is similar to many other emerging economies (Li and Kozhikode, 2008)) and its role in connecting different geographies, Turkey can be a suitable context for examining TTC and its strategic underpinnings.…”