Workshop on firm growth and innovation

Having a better understanding of firms’ sources of growth is essential to leading the economy out of the present crisis. Although the theoretical literature explains very well the crucial role of firm growth, many questions still need to be answered. For instance, why do firms grow? How is this growth measured? What are firms’ sources of growth? In this context R&D and innovation are key to ensuring increased productivity levels and facilitating firms’ growth processes. Although theoretical studies show that innovation is a strong determinant of firm growth, empirical studies are more limited when it comes to showing the importance of innovation in firm growth.

Currently, the big challenge is to connect rich firm-level data sets regarding firm growth and innovation surveys with theoretical frames so that they can be applied in empirical studies. Empirical studies will help us to better understand the relation between innovation and economic growth in order to provide fresh insights that prove the existence of a plausible link between the two phenomena.

Empirical work shows that innovation is an important driver for economic growth at both firm level and regional level. However, for innovation to take place, firms must be able to carry out innovation projects and there must also be an appropriate infrastructure in the form of universities, financial institutions, etc. Thus, the intersection between firm growth, innovation and regional development are three different but interrelated dimensions that are of much interest to academic researchers, business practitioners and policy makers alike.

Organized by:

 GRIT- Research group on Industry and Territory

Research Group on Governments and Markets

Supported by:

   Chair for the Promotion of Business Innovation

Diputació Tarragona

Reference Network for Research in Applied Economics

                Research Centre on Industrial and Public Economics

       Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación