This paper provides fresh empirical evidence on technological innovation in the service sector, and highlights major similarities and differences with manufacturing. Technological innovation is quite a diffused and variegated phenomenon in market services. Service firms rely on a wide range of innovation sources. Investment, R&D and software are the major components of firms’ innovation expenditure. Both in services and manufacturing the most important objectives of firms’ innovation strategies consist of improving service/product quality, increasing market shares and reducing production costs. Major obstacles to innovation are of an economic nature – i.e. lack of finance and cost of innovation too high. Technological innovation is drawn mainly from in-house production departments as well as from outside suppliers, clients and customers. Finally, in the near future the importance of technology for firms’ performance is expected to increase in al service industries. Overall, service and manufacturing sectors show more similarities than differences with respect to the basic dimensions of innovation processes.
L'innovazione tecnologica nei servizi e nell'industria manifatturiera in Italia
EVANGELISTA, Rinaldo;
1999-01-01
Abstract
This paper provides fresh empirical evidence on technological innovation in the service sector, and highlights major similarities and differences with manufacturing. Technological innovation is quite a diffused and variegated phenomenon in market services. Service firms rely on a wide range of innovation sources. Investment, R&D and software are the major components of firms’ innovation expenditure. Both in services and manufacturing the most important objectives of firms’ innovation strategies consist of improving service/product quality, increasing market shares and reducing production costs. Major obstacles to innovation are of an economic nature – i.e. lack of finance and cost of innovation too high. Technological innovation is drawn mainly from in-house production departments as well as from outside suppliers, clients and customers. Finally, in the near future the importance of technology for firms’ performance is expected to increase in al service industries. Overall, service and manufacturing sectors show more similarities than differences with respect to the basic dimensions of innovation processes.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
