Scandinavian Working Papers in Economics

Working Paper Series in Economics and Institutions of Innovation,
Royal Institute of Technology, CESIS - Centre of Excellence for Science and Innovation Studies

No 175: Key Characteristics of the Small Innovative Firm

Martin Andersson () and Hans Lööf ()
Additional contact information
Martin Andersson: CESIS - Centre of Excellence for Science and Innovation Studies, Royal Institute of Technology, Postal: CESIS - Centre of Excellence for Science and Innovation Studies, Royal Institute of Technology, SE-100 44 Stockholm, Sweden
Hans Lööf: CESIS - Centre of Excellence for Science and Innovation Studies, Royal Institute of Technology, Postal: CESIS - Centre of Excellence for Science and Innovation Studies, Royal Institute of Technology, SE-100 44 Stockholm, Sweden

Abstract: Despite broad agreement on the strategic role of SMEs (Small and Medium Sized Enterprises) in industrial renewal processes, the lack of systematized and comprehensive information on the nature and level of small innovative firms is striking. This bias is partly explained by an empirical shadow created by the limited availability of good, detailed data for comparable firm-level analyses. Based on extensive matched databases, the purpose of this paper is to provide new insights into the roles of micro and small innovative firms in research-based as well as tradition-based manufacture. The data consists of close to 160 000 observations of manufacturing firms in Sweden over the period 2000-2006, including information on innovation activities captured by patent applications, firm characteristics, international trade and the regional milieu.

Keywords: Innovation; Innovative Firms; Entrepreneurship; Small firms; Intellectual Property Rights; Technology Transfer; Location

JEL-codes: F43; L26; M13; O31; O34

31 pages, March 25, 2009

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