R&D Cooperation and Investments concerning Sustainable Business Innovation: Empirical Evidence from Polish SMEs

The empirical literature provides strong evidence supporting the relation of various innovation activities, including business innovation. The literature, however, continues to be limited in the context of developing countries, especially considering different types of business innovations. The aim of the present research is to fill the gap in the literature concerning the impact of research and development (R&D) cooperation and various types of investments in innovation for the creation of sustainable business innovation in small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Particular emphasis in this study is placed on the differences in types of business innovations. The research is based on cross-sectional data (n = 406) collected by the CATI (Computer-Assisted Telephone Interview) method in a Polish peripheral region (Subcarpathian Voivodeship). To examine the relation between different innovation activities and the creation of business innovation, logistic regression was employed. The results show that the outputs of both R&D cooperation and investments are highly dependent on the innovation type. The outcomes suggest that R&D cooperation might be a driver of the implementation of development activities and organizational innovation, while the expenditures on machinery and equipment lead to a greater probability for the implementation of process innovation and development activities. We also found that expenditures on marketing activities and investments in the implementation of new solutions may have an impact on business innovation implementation.

Automated summary

This research explores the impact of R&D cooperation and different types of innovation investments on business innovation in small- and medium-sized enterprises in developing countries. The findings indicate that the outputs of R&D cooperation and investments are highly dependent on the type of innovation.