Do labour markets and educational and training systems matter for innovation outcomes? A multi-level analysis for the EU-27

Much of Lundvall's recent work has focused on the notion of the ‘learning economy’ and in a series of recent publications he has argued that there are systemic relations between national labour market and education and training systems on the one hand, and processes of competence-building and innovation at the enterprise level on the other. Building on the insights of this research, this paper used aggregate data available on Eurostat's electronic database and enterprise-level data from the 2007 Innobarometer Survey to estimate a multi-level logistic model examining simultaneously the impact of enterprise- and national-level variables on the likelihood of an enterprise innovating. The results show that innovative performance is supported by national systems of ‘flexicurity’ which combine flexibility on the labour market with the generous provision of unemployment protection including the use of active labour-market policies and well-developed systems of life-long learning. Copyright , Beech Tree Publishing.