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Serial innovators in the UK: does size matter?

Author

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  • Carlo Corradini
  • Giuliana Battisti
  • Pelin Demirel

Abstract

This article aims to shed light on the presence and importance of a significant number of small firms amongst serial innovators. Contrary to the common expectation in the innovative persistence literature, we posit that small serial innovators also benefit from operating within patterns of creative accumulation. However, it is in the quality of the technology and in the very nature of the knowledge accumulation process that the differences between small and large serial innovators can be found. Using a sample of 811 UK-based, highly innovative companies that patented over 66,000 inventions from 1990 to 2006, we find evidence in support of our theory. While large serial innovators experience higher innovation rates due to the scale of their innovation efforts, small serial innovators benefit more from processes of search depth characterized by the internal recombination of their previous knowledge. We find that important differences exist also in the very nature of the technologies being developed by small and large serial innovators.

Suggested Citation

  • Carlo Corradini & Giuliana Battisti & Pelin Demirel, 2016. "Serial innovators in the UK: does size matter?," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 25(1), pages 23-47.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:indcch:v:25:y:2016:i:1:p:23-47.
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    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1093/icc/dtu040
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    Cited by:

    1. Bianchini, Stefano & Pellegrino, Gabriele, 2019. "Innovation persistence and employment dynamics," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(5), pages 1171-1186.
    2. Hewitt-Dundas, Nola & Gkypali, Areti & Roper, Stephen, 2019. "Does learning from prior collaboration help firms to overcome the ‘two-worlds’ paradox in university-business collaboration?," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(5), pages 1310-1322.
    3. Davide Antonioli & Sandro Montresor, 2021. "Innovation persistence in times of crisis: an analysis of Italian firms," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 56(4), pages 1739-1764, April.
    4. Guarascio, Dario & Tamagni, Federico, 2019. "Persistence of innovation and patterns of firm growth," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(6), pages 1493-1512.

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