Interactive Process Innovation : Descriptive Study of Regional Innovation System Coahuila

Innovation is a multidimensional process in which different institutions and agents interact, and it is based on various approaches. There is an interpretation of the interactions, which is not reflected in the national surveys or regional surveys. The objective of this paper is to describe the characteristics of the innovation’s interactive process at an organizational and regional level in Coahuila, Mexico. The methodology involves two stages: Analysis of previous diagnostics of regional innovation; and the empiric study oriented to interactions, through interviews with managers of 20 medium-sized industrial manufacturer enterprises. The results affirm that the companies, even though they lack research and innovation structures, they actually innovate; different areas personnel participate, with a less dynamism and technological practices than expected. In these innovation projects, interactions are oriented to the industrial sector, leaving behind universities and research centers. This study is a first of interaction and technological issues as factors of success in regional innovation