IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/respol/v51y2022i10s0048733322000877.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Towards a firm-level technological capability framework to endorse and actualize the Fourth Industrial Revolution in developing countries

Author

Listed:
  • Peerally, Jahan Ara
  • Santiago, Fernando
  • De Fuentes, Claudia
  • Moghavvemi, Sedigheh

Abstract

An essential precondition for developing countries to engage in the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) is to accelerate the creation and accumulation of firm-level technological capabilities necessary for digital transformation. Through an analysis of secondary data collected from a systematic review of the 4IR literature, we build on Lall's (1992) and Bell and Pavitt's (1995) frameworks, to develop an updated framework of firm-level technological capabilities which accounts for the refined set of human and organizational activities and resources required by firms for the uptake of 4IR technologies and processes along their digital transformation journey. The framework proposes four levels of increasingly complex technological capabilities across six thematic groups of technological and organizational functions. The framework represents an initial basis for examining the micro-level capabilities required by firms to launch, endorse and actualize the 4IR. Our analysis leads to a definition of 4IR firm-level technological capabilities which better reflects the new realities of this revolution. We discuss the implications of the proposed framework, and we conclude with the contributions of our study from the academic, policy and management perspectives.

Suggested Citation

  • Peerally, Jahan Ara & Santiago, Fernando & De Fuentes, Claudia & Moghavvemi, Sedigheh, 2022. "Towards a firm-level technological capability framework to endorse and actualize the Fourth Industrial Revolution in developing countries," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(10).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:respol:v:51:y:2022:i:10:s0048733322000877
    DOI: 10.1016/j.respol.2022.104563
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048733322000877
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.respol.2022.104563?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
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Benitez, Guilherme Brittes & Ayala, Néstor Fabián & Frank, Alejandro G., 2020. "Industry 4.0 innovation ecosystems: An evolutionary perspective on value cocreation," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 228(C).
    2. Dominguez Lacasa, Iciar & Jindra, Björn & Radosevic, Slavo & Shubbak, Mahmood, 2019. "Paths of technology upgrading in the BRICS economies," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(1), pages 262-280.
    3. Delera, Michele & Pietrobelli, Carlo & Calza, Elisa & Lavopa, Alejandro, 2022. "Does value chain participation facilitate the adoption of Industry 4.0 technologies in developing countries?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 152(C).
    4. Raj, Alok & Dwivedi, Gourav & Sharma, Ankit & Lopes de Sousa Jabbour, Ana Beatriz & Rajak, Sonu, 2020. "Barriers to the adoption of industry 4.0 technologies in the manufacturing sector: An inter-country comparative perspective," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 224(C).
    5. Sumera Ahmad & Suraya Miskon & Rana Alabdan & Iskander Tlili, 2020. "Towards Sustainable Textile and Apparel Industry: Exploring the Role of Business Intelligence Systems in the Era of Industry 4.0," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-23, March.
    6. Andrea Morrison & Carlo Pietrobelli & Roberta Rabellotti, 2008. "Global Value Chains and Technological Capabilities: A Framework to Study Learning and Innovation in Developing Countries," Oxford Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 36(1), pages 39-58.
    7. Lall, Sanjaya, 1992. "Technological capabilities and industrialization," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 20(2), pages 165-186, February.
    8. Yongxin Liao & Fernando Deschamps & Eduardo de Freitas Rocha Loures & Luiz Felipe Pierin Ramos, 2017. "Past, present and future of Industry 4.0 - a systematic literature review and research agenda proposal," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 55(12), pages 3609-3629, June.
    9. Büchi, Giacomo & Cugno, Monica & Castagnoli, Rebecca, 2020. "Smart factory performance and Industry 4.0," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    10. Miguel Núñez-Merino & Juan Manuel Maqueira-Marín & José Moyano-Fuentes & Pedro José Martínez-Jurado, 2020. "Information and digital technologies of Industry 4.0 and Lean supply chain management: a systematic literature review," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 58(16), pages 5034-5061, July.
    11. Ercan Oztemel & Samet Gursev, 2020. "Literature review of Industry 4.0 and related technologies," Journal of Intelligent Manufacturing, Springer, vol. 31(1), pages 127-182, January.
    12. Culot, Giovanna & Nassimbeni, Guido & Orzes, Guido & Sartor, Marco, 2020. "Behind the definition of Industry 4.0: Analysis and open questions," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 226(C).
    13. Caves,Richard E., 2007. "Multinational Enterprise and Economic Analysis," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521677530.
    14. Kamble, Sachin S. & Gunasekaran, Angappa & Ghadge, Abhijeet & Raut, Rakesh, 2020. "A performance measurement system for industry 4.0 enabled smart manufacturing system in SMMEs- A review and empirical investigation," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 229(C).
    15. Kim, Linsu, 1999. "Building Technological Capability for Industrialization: Analytical Frameworks and Korea's Experience," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 8(1), pages 111-136, March.
    16. Norlela Ariffin & Paulo Figueiredo, 2004. "Internationalization of innovative capabilities: counter-evidence from the electronics industry in Malaysia and Brazil," Oxford Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 32(4), pages 559-583.
    17. Abramovitz, Moses, 1986. "Catching Up, Forging Ahead, and Falling Behind," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 46(2), pages 385-406, June.
    18. Norlela Ariffin, 2010. "Internationalisation of technological innovative capabilities: levels, types and speed (learning rates) in the electronics industry in Malaysia," International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 3(4), pages 347-391.
    19. Figueiredo, Paulo N., 2002. "Does technological learning pay off? Inter-firm differences in technological capability-accumulation paths and operational performance improvement," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(1), pages 73-94, January.
    20. Taro Daiko & Hélène Dernis & Mafini Dosso & Petros Gkotsis & Mariagrazia Squicciarini & Alexander Tuebke & Antonio Vezzani, 2017. "World Top R&D Investors: Industrial Property Strategies in the Digital Economy," JRC Research Reports JRC107015, Joint Research Centre.
    21. Rajput, Shubhangini & Singh, Surya Prakash, 2019. "Connecting circular economy and industry 4.0," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 98-113.
    22. Figueiredo, Paulo N. & Larsen, Henrik & Hansen, Ulrich E., 2020. "The role of interactive learning in innovation capability building in multinational subsidiaries: A micro-level study of biotechnology in Brazil," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(6).
    23. Hobday, Michael & Rush, Howard & Bessant, John, 2004. "Approaching the innovation frontier in Korea: the transition phase to leadership," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 33(10), pages 1433-1457, December.
    24. Rafael, Lizarralde Dorronsoro & Jaione, Ganzarain Epelde & Cristina, López & Ibon, Serrano Lasa, 2020. "An Industry 4.0 maturity model for machine tool companies," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    25. Xielin Liu & Sylvia Schwaag Serger & Ulrike Tagscherer & Amber Y. Chang, 2017. "Beyond catch-up—can a new innovation policy help China overcome the middle income trap?," Science and Public Policy, Oxford University Press, vol. 44(5), pages 656-669.
    26. Paulo N. Figueiredo, 2011. "The Role of Dual Embeddedness in the Innovative Performance of MNE Subsidiaries: Evidence from Brazil," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 48(2), pages 417-440, March.
    27. Fulvio Castellacci, 2008. "Innovation in Norway in a European Perspective," Nordic Journal of Political Economy, Nordic Journal of Political Economy, vol. 34, pages 1-1.
    28. Yu Sun & Ling Li & Hui Shi & Dazhi Chong, 2020. "The transformation and upgrade of China's manufacturing industry in Industry 4.0 era," Systems Research and Behavioral Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 37(4), pages 734-740, July.
    29. Carla Gonçalves Machado & Mats Peter Winroth & Elias Hans Dener Ribeiro da Silva, 2020. "Sustainable manufacturing in Industry 4.0: an emerging research agenda," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 58(5), pages 1462-1484, March.
    30. Krzysztof Ejsmont & Bartlomiej Gladysz & Aldona Kluczek, 2020. "Impact of Industry 4.0 on Sustainability—Bibliometric Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(14), pages 1-29, July.
    31. Caves,Richard E., 2007. "Multinational Enterprise and Economic Analysis," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521860130.
    32. David J. Teece & Gary Pisano & Amy Shuen, 1997. "Dynamic capabilities and strategic management," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 18(7), pages 509-533, August.
    33. Wang, Jian & Wu, Huiqin & Chen, Yan, 2020. "Made in China 2025 and manufacturing strategy decisions with reverse QFD," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 224(C).
    34. Ascúa, Rubén & Morero, Hernán & Motta, Jorge José, 2019. "Industria 4.0 en mipymes manufactureras de la Argentina," Documentos de Proyectos 45033, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL).
    35. Paolo Rosa & Claudio Sassanelli & Andrea Urbinati & Davide Chiaroni & Sergio Terzi, 2020. "Assessing relations between Circular Economy and Industry 4.0: a systematic literature review," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 58(6), pages 1662-1687, March.
    36. Paulo N. Figueiredo, 2001. "Technological Learning and Competitive Performance," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 2373.
    37. Dantas, Eva & Bell, Martin, 2011. "The Co-Evolution of Firm-Centered Knowledge Networks and Capabilities in Late Industrializing Countries: The Case of Petrobras in the Offshore Oil Innovation System in Brazil," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 39(9), pages 1570-1591, September.
    38. Linsu Kim, 1998. "Crisis Construction and Organizational Learning: Capability Building in Catching-up at Hyundai Motor," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 9(4), pages 506-521, August.
    39. W. Edward STEINMUELLER, 2001. "ICTs and the possibilities for leapfrogging by developing countries," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 140(2), pages 193-210, June.
    40. Antonio Andreoni & Ha-Joon Chang & Mateus Labrunie, 2021. "Natura Non Facit Saltus: Challenges and Opportunities for Digital Industrialisation Across Developing Countries," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 33(2), pages 330-370, April.
    41. Esin Yoruk, 2011. "The influence of technological capabilities on the knowledge network component of innovation systems: evidence from advanced materials in Turkey," International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 4(4), pages 330-362.
    42. Stornelli, Aldo & Ozcan, Sercan & Simms, Christopher, 2021. "Advanced manufacturing technology adoption and innovation: A systematic literature review on barriers, enablers, and innovation types," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(6).
    43. Culot, Giovanna & Orzes, Guido & Sartor, Marco & Nassimbeni, Guido, 2020. "The future of manufacturing: A Delphi-based scenario analysis on Industry 4.0," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    44. Figueiredo, Paulo N. & Cohen, Marcela, 2019. "Explaining early entry into path-creation technological catch-up in the forestry and pulp industry: Evidence from Brazil," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(7), pages 1694-1713.
    45. Fu Gu & Jianfeng Guo & Philip Hall & Xinjian Gu, 2019. "An integrated architecture for implementing extended producer responsibility in the context of Industry 4.0," International Journal of Production Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 57(5), pages 1458-1477, March.
    46. Judit Nagy & Judit Oláh & Edina Erdei & Domicián Máté & József Popp, 2018. "The Role and Impact of Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things on the Business Strategy of the Value Chain—The Case of Hungary," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(10), pages 1-25, September.
    47. Pérez, Carlota, 2001. "Technological change and opportunities for development as a moving target," Revista CEPAL, Naciones Unidas Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL), December.
    48. Paulo N. Figueiredo, 2003. "Learning, capability accumulation and firms differences: evidence from latecomer steel," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 12(3), pages 607-643, June.
    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. Qin, Meng & Zhu, Yujie & Xie, Xin & Shao, Xuefeng & Lobonţ, Oana-Ramona, 2024. "The impact of climate risk on technological progress under the fourth industrial era," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 202(C).

    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. Figueiredo, Paulo N. & Cabral, Bernardo P. & Silva, Felipe Q., 2021. "Intricacies of firm-level innovation performance: An empirical analysis of latecomer process industries," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    2. Cannavacciuolo, Lorella & Ferraro, Giovanna & Ponsiglione, Cristina & Primario, Simonetta & Quinto, Ivana, 2023. "Technological innovation-enabling industry 4.0 paradigm: A systematic literature review," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 124(C).
    3. Dutrénit, Gabriela & Natera, José Miguel & Puchet Anyul, Martín & Vera-Cruz, Alexandre O., 2019. "Development profiles and accumulation of technological capabilities in Latin America," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 145(C), pages 396-412.
    4. Figueiredo, Paulo N. & Larsen, Henrik & Hansen, Ulrich E., 2020. "The role of interactive learning in innovation capability building in multinational subsidiaries: A micro-level study of biotechnology in Brazil," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 49(6).
    5. Culot, Giovanna & Orzes, Guido & Sartor, Marco & Nassimbeni, Guido, 2020. "The future of manufacturing: A Delphi-based scenario analysis on Industry 4.0," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 157(C).
    6. Hansen, Ulrich Elmer & Lema, Rasmus, 2019. "The co-evolution of learning mechanisms and technological capabilities: Lessons from energy technologies in emerging economies," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 140(C), pages 241-257.
    7. Diego Queiroz Machado & Fátima Regina Ney Matos & Rafael Fernandes Mesquita, 2022. "Relations between innovation management and organisational sustainability: a case study in a Brazilian higher education institution," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(9), pages 11127-11152, September.
    8. Yu, Yubing & Zhang, Justin Zuopeng & Cao, Yanhong & Kazancoglu, Yigit, 2021. "Intelligent transformation of the manufacturing industry for Industry 4.0: Seizing financial benefits from supply chain relationship capital through enterprise green management," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 172(C).
    9. Özköse, Hakan & Güney, Gül, 2023. "The effects of industry 4.0 on productivity: A scientific mapping study," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    10. Davy, Elder & Hansen, Ulrich E., 2023. "A firm-level perspective on windows of opportunity," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    11. Zhang, Feng & Zhu, Lei & Xu, Zhi & Wu, Yingying, 2023. "Moving from reverse engineering to disruptive innovation in emerging markets: The importance of knowledge creation," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 125(C).
    12. Paulo N. Figueiredo & Janaina Piana, 2021. "Technological learning strategies and technology upgrading intensity in the mining industry: evidence from Brazil," The Journal of Technology Transfer, Springer, vol. 46(3), pages 629-659, June.
    13. Souzanchi Kashani, Ebrahim & Radosevic, Slavo & Kiamehr, Mehdi & Gholizadeh, Hossein, 2022. "The intellectual evolution of the technological catch-up literature: Bibliometric analysis," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(7).
    14. Elvis Korku Avenyo & Fiona Tregenna & Erika Kraemer-Mbula, 2021. "Do Productive Capabilities Affect Export Performance? Evidence from African Firms," The European Journal of Development Research, Palgrave Macmillan;European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI), vol. 33(2), pages 304-329, April.
    15. Belhadi, Amine & Kamble, Sachin S. & Chiappetta Jabbour, Charbel Jose & Mani, Venkatesh & Khan, Syed Abdul Rehman & Touriki, Fatima Ezahra, 2022. "A self-assessment tool for evaluating the integration of circular economy and industry 4.0 principles in closed-loop supply chains," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 245(C).
    16. Ricci, Riccardo & Battaglia, Daniele & Neirotti, Paolo, 2021. "External knowledge search, opportunity recognition and industry 4.0 adoption in SMEs," International Journal of Production Economics, Elsevier, vol. 240(C).
    17. Calza, Elisa & Lavopa, Alejandro & Ligia Zagato, 2022. "Advanced digital technologies and industrial resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic: A firm-level perspective," MERIT Working Papers 2022-008, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    18. Iizuka, Michiko & Soete, Luc, 2011. "Catching up in the 21st century: Globalization, knowledge & capabilities in Latin America, a case for natural resource based activities," MERIT Working Papers 2011-071, United Nations University - Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology (MERIT).
    19. Guo, Yanting & Zheng, Gang, 2019. "How do firms upgrade capabilities for systemic catch-up in the open innovation context? A multiple-case study of three leading home appliance companies in China," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 144(C), pages 36-48.
    20. Yoruk, Deniz E., 2019. "Dynamics of firm-level upgrading and the role of learning in networks in emerging markets," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 145(C), pages 341-369.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Capability-building; Technological capabilities; Fourth Industrial Revolution; Developing countries; Firm-level; Manufacturing;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O31 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Innovation and Invention: Processes and Incentives
    • O32 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Management of Technological Innovation and R&D

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:eee:respol:v:51:y:2022:i:10:s0048733322000877. 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: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/respol .

    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.