Innovative capability building and learning linkages in knowledge-intensive service SMEs in Brazil's mining industry

Paulo N. Figueiredo and Janaina Piana

Resources Policy, 2018, vol. 58, issue C, 21-33

Abstract: This study examines how small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that are knowledge-intensive service firms (hereafter “knowledge-intensive service SMEs”) accumulate innovative technological capabilities through learning linkages with large mining companies and other industry stakeholders in the Brazilian mining industry. Drawing on detailed, long-term, qualitative micro-level evidence gathered from extensive fieldwork, we use frameworks that identify the levels of innovative capabilities and the underlying learning linkages to examine three types of innovative capability-building paths pursued by knowledge-intensive service SMEs: (i) building innovative capability from basic up to world-leading levels, followed by diversification into novel technological activities; (ii) world-leading capability building since firm's inception’ (being born innovative), following a sustenance of such capabilities, with a potential for diversification; and (iii) the movement of building basic to intermediate innovative capabilities with a potential to accumulate further capability levels and expand the firms’ customer base. Such innovative capability-building processes are more a result of individual entrepreneur impetuses than that of deliberate corporate or government policies. Decision-makers could utilise these experiences as inputs to design policies to fill this void and facilitate the spread of knowledge-based linkages and innovative activities in the Brazilian mining industry. Otherwise, a persistent absence of such policies could lead to a rapid reinforcement of the development of enclave features in this industry.

Keywords: Innovative capability; Learning linkage; Knowledge-intensive service SMEs; Mining industry; Brazil (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (15)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0301420717301125
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jrpoli:v:58:y:2018:i:c:p:21-33

DOI: 10.1016/j.resourpol.2017.10.012

Access Statistics for this article

Resources Policy is currently edited by R. G. Eggert

More articles in Resources Policy from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().