Written by the Professor Lundvall who, together with Chris Freeman, first introduced the concept of the innovation system, this book brings the literature an important step forward, Based upon extraordinarily rich empirical material, it shows how and why competence building and innovation are crucial for economic growth and competitiveness in the current era. It also provides a case study of a small, very successful European economy combining wealth creation with social cohesion. The author's comparative analysis of innovation systems demonstrates that the 'new economy' can thrive and grow not only in the US-type of economy but also in European economies which exhibit a high degree of social cohesion. He warns against the polarisation that may result from a development path where the success of individuals, organisations and national economies reflects their capability to adopt new competencies and skills. He argues that if this kind of learning economy is left unattended, it will eventually undermine the social cohesion that is essential for interactive learning processes. As such, he emphasises the need to develop coherent policy strategies at the regional, national and EU level in order to cope with the new challenges of the globalising learning economy. Innovation, Growth and Social Cohesion is a highly readable, non-technical book which illustrates the basic concepts with plentiful examples and a wide variety of empirical material.

Cooke and Morgan explore important issues of corporate reorganization in the context of heightened global competition, focusing upon how firms associate with regional milieu. In-depth studies of inter-firm and firm-agency interactions are presented for four European regions: Baden-Wurttemberg and Emilia-Romagna as accomplished regional economies; Wales and the Basque Country as learning regions. The book is theoretically informed by an evolutionary economics perspective and draws policy conclusions which emphasize the importance of decentralized industrial policy in support of both corporate and regional economic development ambitions. It concludes that the associational economy may be the third way between state and market coordination of modern economies.

An increasing number of studies in the last decade or so have emphasized the viability and persistence of distinctive systems of economic coordination and control in developed market economies. Over more or less the same period, the revival of institutional economics and evolutionary approaches to understanding the firm has focused attention on how firms create distinctive capabilities through establishing routines that coordinate complementary activities and skills for particular strategic purposes. For much of the 1990s these two strands of research remained distinct. Those focusing on the institutional frameworks of market economies were primarily concerned with identifying complementaries between institutional arrangements that explained coherence and continuity. On the other hand, those focusing on the dynamics of firm behavior studied how firms develop new capacities and are able to learn new ways of doing things. This book aims to bring together these approaches. It consists of a set of theoretically motivated and empirically informed chapters from a range of internationally known contributors to these debates. In their chapters, the authors show how institutions and firms evolve. Ideas of path dependency and complementarity of institutions are subjected to critical scrutiny both by reference to their own internal logic and to empirical examples.

Offering fresh innovations, strategies, and concise explanations of long-held theories, this book includes new alternatives for practitioners and researchers. Argyris and Schon address the four principle questions which cut across the two branches of the field of organizational learning. Why is an organization a learning venue? Are real-world organizations capable of learning? What kinds of learning are desirable? How can organizations develop their capability for desirable kinds of learning? With new examples and the most up-to-date information on the technical aspects of organization and management theory, Argyris and Schon demonstrate how the research and practice of organizational learning can be incorporated in today's business environment.