IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/ags/ijofsd/121856.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Should I Make or Should I Buy? Innovation Strategies and Governance Structures in the Italian Food Sector

Author

Listed:
  • Pascucci, Stefano
  • Royer, Annie
  • Bijman, Jos

Abstract

This paper analyses the “make or buy” decision of food firms applied to innovation strategy using 389 Italian food firms data from the Unicredit 2007 database. We develop a set of hypothesis from three theoretical perspectives such as transaction cost economics, strategic management and resource-based view. Our paper aims at highlight whether or not different firm’s features can be linked to the decision to make or buy. We found out that these two decisions are positively interlinked. Moreover we also found out that it is difficult to indicate a clear-cut behaviour for the Italian food firms if we refer to making or buying decisions. We discuss these results and use them to bring some interesting outcomes to discuss managerial implications and/or policy interventions in this highly strategic domain.

Suggested Citation

  • Pascucci, Stefano & Royer, Annie & Bijman, Jos, 2011. "Should I Make or Should I Buy? Innovation Strategies and Governance Structures in the Italian Food Sector," International Journal on Food System Dynamics, International Center for Management, Communication, and Research, vol. 2(2), pages 1-14, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:ags:ijofsd:121856
    DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.121856
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/121856/files/Pascucci-ok.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.22004/ag.econ.121856?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Drivas, Kyriakos & Giannakas, Konstantinos, 2006. "The Effect Of Cooperatives On Product Innovation In The Agri-Food System," 2006 Annual meeting, July 23-26, Long Beach, CA 21223, American Agricultural Economics Association (New Name 2008: Agricultural and Applied Economics Association).
    2. Alchian, Armen A & Demsetz, Harold, 1972. "Production , Information Costs, and Economic Organization," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 62(5), pages 777-795, December.
    3. Brousseau,Eric & Glachant,Jean-Michel (ed.), 2002. "The Economics of Contracts," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521893138, September.
    4. Rongxin Chen, 1996. "Technological Expansion: the Interaction Between Diversification Strategy and Organizational Capability," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(5), pages 649-666, September.
    5. Mansfield, Edwin, 1981. "Composition of R and D Expenditures: Relationship to Size of Firm, Concentration, and Innovative Output," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 63(4), pages 610-615, November.
    6. Williamson, Oliver, 2009. "The Theory of the Firm as Governance Structure: From Choice to Contract," Ekonomicheskaya Politika / Economic Policy, Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration, vol. 6, pages 111-134, December.
    7. C. Freeman, 1973. "A Study of Success and Failure in Industrial Innovation," International Economic Association Series, in: B. R. Williams (ed.), Science and Technology in Economic Growth, chapter 9, pages 227-255, Palgrave Macmillan.
    8. David J. TEECE, 2008. "Profiting from technological innovation: Implications for integration, collaboration, licensing and public policy," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: The Transfer And Licensing Of Know-How And Intellectual Property Understanding the Multinational Enterprise in the Modern World, chapter 5, pages 67-87, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    9. Veugelers, Reinhilde & Cassiman, Bruno, 1999. "Make and buy in innovation strategies: evidence from Belgian manufacturing firms," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 28(1), pages 63-80, January.
    10. Gooroochurn, Nishaal & Hanley, Aoife, 2007. "A tale of two literatures: Transaction costs and property rights in innovation outsourcing," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(10), pages 1483-1495, December.
    11. Hollenstein, Heinz, 1996. "A composite indicator of a firm's innovativeness. An empirical analysis based on survey data for Swiss manufacturing," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 25(4), pages 633-645, June.
    12. David J. Teece, 2008. "Firm organization, industrial structure, and technological innovation," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: The Transfer And Licensing Of Know-How And Intellectual Property Understanding the Multinational Enterprise in the Modern World, chapter 11, pages 265-296, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    13. Fritsch, Michael & Lukas, Rolf, 2001. "Who cooperates on R&D?," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 30(2), pages 297-312, February.
    14. Ulset, Svein, 1996. "R&D outsourcing and contractual governance: An empirical study of commercial R&D projects," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 30(1), pages 63-82, July.
    15. Cohen, Wesley M & Levinthal, Daniel A, 1989. "Innovation and Learning: The Two Faces of R&D," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 99(397), pages 569-596, September.
    16. W. Bruce Traill & Matthew Meulenberg, 2001. "Innovation in the food industry," Agribusiness, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 18(1), pages 1-21.
    17. Bart Nooteboom, 2004. "Governance and competence: how can they be combined?," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 28(4), pages 505-525, July.
    18. Brousseau,Eric & Glachant,Jean-Michel (ed.), 2002. "The Economics of Contracts," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521814904, September.
    19. James H. Love & Stephen Roper, 2001. "articles: Outsourcing in the innovation process: Locational and strategic determinants," Papers in Regional Science, Springer;Regional Science Association International, vol. 80(3), pages 317-336.
    20. Kumar, Nagesh & Saqib, Mohammed, 1996. "Firm size, opportunities for adaptation and in-house R & D activity in developing countries: the case of Indian manufacturing," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 25(5), pages 713-722, August.
    21. Pavitt, Keith, 1984. "Sectoral patterns of technical change: Towards a taxonomy and a theory," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 13(6), pages 343-373, December.
    22. Roper, Stephen & Love, James H., 2002. "Innovation and export performance: evidence from the UK and German manufacturing plants," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(7), pages 1087-1102, September.
    23. Scott E. Masten & Stéphane Saussier, 2000. "Econometrics of Contracts : an Assessment of Developments in the Empirical Literature on Contracting," Revue d'Économie Industrielle, Programme National Persée, vol. 92(1), pages 215-236.
    24. Arora, Ashish & Gambardella, Alfonso, 1994. "Evaluating technological information and utilizing it : Scientific knowledge, technological capability, and external linkages in biotechnology," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 24(1), pages 91-114, June.
    25. Kuemmerle, Walter, 1998. "Optimal scale for research and development in foreign environments--an investigation into size and performance of research and development laboratories abroad," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 27(2), pages 111-126, June.
    26. James H. Love & Stephen Roper, 2005. "Economists' perceptions versus managers' decisions: an experiment in transaction-cost analysis," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 29(1), pages 19-36, January.
    27. Oliver E. Williamson, 2000. "The New Institutional Economics: Taking Stock, Looking Ahead," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 38(3), pages 595-613, September.
    28. Bougrain, Frederic & Haudeville, Bernard, 2002. "Innovation, collaboration and SMEs internal research capacities," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(5), pages 735-747, July.
    29. Mark Freel & Richard Harrison, 2006. "Innovation and cooperation in the small firm sector: Evidence from 'Northern Britain'," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(4), pages 289-305.
    30. Kathleen R. Conner & C. K. Prahalad, 1996. "A Resource-Based Theory of the Firm: Knowledge Versus Opportunism," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 7(5), pages 477-501, October.
    31. Molero, Jose & Buesa, Mikel, 1996. "Patterns of technological change among Spanish innovative firms: the case of the Madrid region," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 25(4), pages 647-663, June.
    32. Arundel, Anthony & Kabla, Isabelle, 1998. "What percentage of innovations are patented? empirical estimates for European firms," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 27(2), pages 127-141, June.
    33. Freel, Mark S., 2003. "Sectoral patterns of small firm innovation, networking and proximity," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 32(5), pages 751-770, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Hobbs, J., 2018. "Transaction Costs, Institutions and the Organization of Supply Chains: Three Good Questions," 2018 Conference, July 28-August 2, 2018, Vancouver, British Columbia 277411, International Association of Agricultural Economists.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Pascucci, Stefano & Royer, Annie & Bijman, Jos, 2012. "To Make or to Buy: Is this the Question?," International Food and Agribusiness Management Review, International Food and Agribusiness Management Association, vol. 15(3), pages 1-20, September.
    2. Coppola, Adele & Pascucci, Stefano, 2007. "The Role of Innovations in the Competitive Strategies of Italian Agri-Food Enterprises," 2007 1st Forum, February 15-17, 2007, Innsbruck, Austria 6584, International European Forum on System Dynamics and Innovation in Food Networks.
    3. Materia, Valentina & Pascucci, Stefano & Dries, Liesbeth, 2015. "Are in-house and outsourcing innovation strategies interlinked? Evidence from the European agri-food sector," 2015 Conference, August 9-14, 2015, Milan, Italy 212449, International Association of Agricultural Economists.
    4. Galende, Jesus & de la Fuente, Juan Manuel, 2003. "Internal factors determining a firm's innovative behaviour," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 32(5), pages 715-736, May.
    5. Valentina C. Materia & Stefano Pascucci & Liesbeth Dries, 2017. "Are In-House and Outsourcing Innovation Strategies Correlated? Evidence from the European Agri-Food Sector," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 68(1), pages 249-268, February.
    6. Garrouste, Pierre & Saussier, Stephane, 2005. "Looking for a theory of the firm: Future challenges," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 58(2), pages 178-199, October.
    7. Frank T. Rothaermel & Maria Tereza Alexandre, 2009. "Ambidexterity in Technology Sourcing: The Moderating Role of Absorptive Capacity," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 20(4), pages 759-780, August.
    8. Rajneesh Narula & Andrea Martínez-Noya, 2014. "International R&D Alliances by Firms: Origins and Development," John H Dunning Centre for International Business Discussion Papers jhd-dp2014-06, Henley Business School, University of Reading.
    9. Arbussa, Anna & Coenders, Germa, 2007. "Innovation activities, use of appropriation instruments and absorptive capacity: Evidence from Spanish firms," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(10), pages 1545-1558, December.
    10. Arbussà, Anna & Coenders, Germà, 2005. "Innovation strategies in the presence of technology markets: evidence from Spanish innovative firms," Working Papers of the Department of Economics, University of Girona 15, Department of Economics, University of Girona.
    11. Kenta Nakamura & Hiroyuki Odagiri, 2005. "R&D boundaries of the firm: An estimation of the double-hurdle model on commissioned R&D, joint R&D, and licensing in Japan," Economics of Innovation and New Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 14(7), pages 583-615.
    12. José Albors-Garrigos & José L. Hervas-Oliver, 2011. "Making sense of innovation by R&D and non-R&D innovators in low technology contexts: a forgotten lesson for policymakers," Working Papers. Serie EC 2011-06, Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Económicas, S.A. (Ivie).
    13. Cuervo-Cazurra, Alvaro & Un, C. Annique, 2007. "Regional economic integration and R&D investment," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(2), pages 227-246, March.
    14. repec:bla:jomstd:v:47:y:2010:i:s2:p:1483-1509 is not listed on IDEAS
    15. Rodil, Óscar & Vence, Xavier & Sánchez, María del Carmen, 2016. "The relationship between innovation and export behaviour: The case of Galician firms," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 113(PB), pages 248-265.
    16. Diego R. Moraes Silva & André T. Furtado & Nicholas S. Vonortas, 2018. "University-industry R&D cooperation in Brazil: a sectoral approach," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 43(2), pages 285-315, April.
    17. Vega-Jurado, Jaider & Gutiérrez-Gracia, Antonio & Fernández-de-Lucio, Ignacio & Manjarrés-Henri­quez, Liney, 2008. "The effect of external and internal factors on firms' product innovation," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(4), pages 616-632, May.
    18. Cassiman, Bruno & Veugelers, Reinhilde, 2007. "Are external technology sourcing strategies substitutes or complements? The case of embodied versus disembodied technology acquisition," IESE Research Papers D/672, IESE Business School.
    19. Carliss Baldwin & Eric von Hippel, 2011. "Modeling a Paradigm Shift: From Producer Innovation to User and Open Collaborative Innovation," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 22(6), pages 1399-1417, December.
    20. Schmiedeberg, Claudia, 2008. "Complementarities of innovation activities: An empirical analysis of the German manufacturing sector," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(9), pages 1492-1503, October.
    21. Gibbons, Robert, 2005. "Four forma(lizable) theories of the firm?," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 58(2), pages 200-245, October.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ags:ijofsd:121856. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: AgEcon Search (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/centmde.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.