Resilience and related variety: The role of family firms in an ocean-related Norwegian region

Abstract

Recent research in economic geography has introduced two notions that historical studies should explore: regional resilience and related variety. Regional resilience refers to a region's ability to recover from external shocks. Related variety refers to the existence of related industrial sectors in a region, and the relatedness promotes economic development due to spill-overs between sectors. From an evolutionary perspective, external shocks result in new development paths in regions with related variety. This is a dynamic process well suited to historical studies. This article argues that historical studies can contribute to this literature by studying how related sectors interact in resilient regions. We propose that family firms may act as a micro-coordination mechanism by moving financial and human resources from one sector to another related sector as a response to shock. The paper develops this argument by studying how six major regional business families within ocean industries reacted to external shocks over time.

Temporality of agency in regional development

“…In addition, we found that small-and medium-sized firms targeted different market segments, and turned profitable faster after the crisis hit. Yet, large and mainly family-owned firms were essential not only in terms of employment and as a source of demand, but also as innovators and taking a leadership role in building the regional environment (see also Amdam et al, 2020a). In our case, the main factor promoting reproductive agency over change agency was the extraordinary market boom.…”

“…Firstly, the preparedness to invest own capital and take risks was important, which also implies that the financial resources built in the past were important too. This was in particular the case for locally rooted family firms, as found also by Amdam et al (2020a). Secondly, local actors had experience in innovating and the confidence that they could compete in world markets.…”

Advancing the treatment of human agency in the analysis of regional economic development: Illustrated with three Norwegian cases

“…Amdam, Bjarnar, et al. (2020) note that the search for new opportunities following hardship and downturns is part of the local “fishing village” identity. This explorative push highlighted in the interviews is supported by a doubling of R&D expenditures in 2015 and 2016 (Research Council of Norway, 2018).…”

The firm geography of Central and Eastern Europe and the Western Balkans

“…The plausible "but for" percentages for economic development incentives were examined, shedding light on the positive local employment effects resulting from a positive location decision by a firm [14]. Additionally, the role of family firms in regional resilience and related variety was demonstrated, emphasizing the relevance of historical studies in exploring these notions [15]. Overall, firm geography research has evolved to encompass a wide array of topics, ranging from the spatial dimension of multinational enterprises to the impact of location strategy on competitiveness, reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of this field.…”