 Numerical labor flexibility and innovation outcomes of start-up firms: A panel data analysisMasatoshi Kato and Haibo Zhou Technovation, 2018, vol. 69, issue C, 15-27 Abstract: Using a panel data set based on repeated questionnaire surveys of Japanese start-up firms, this study examines the effects of numerical labor flexibility on the innovation outcomes of start-up firms, a topic on which there is currently insufficient research. Here, numerical labor flexibility is defined as the external labor turnover of regular employees and the proportion of non-regular employees, and innovation outcomes include product innovation and patent applications. The estimation results of a random-effects probit model indicate that an inverted U-shaped relationship exists between the external labor turnover of regular employees and the probability of patent applications. Moreover, a similar U-shaped relationship exists between the proportion of non-regular employees and the probability of product innovation. These results are interpreted in light of the organizational characteristics of start-up firms. The implications of the findings are discussed. Keywords: Start-up firm; Numerical labor flexibility; External labor turnover of regular employees; The proportion of non-regular employees; Product innovation; Patent applications; Panel data (search for similar items in EconPapers) Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:techno:v:69:y:2018:i:c:p:15-27 DOI: 10.1016/j.technovation.2017.10.002 Access Statistics for this article Technovation is currently edited by Jonathan Linton More articles in Technovation from Elsevier |
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