TECHNOLOGICAL COLLABORATION: BRIDGING THE INNOVATION GAP BETWEEN SMALL AND LARGE FIRMS

This paper analyses technological collaboration as an input to the innovation processes of SMEs. Technological collaboration may be a useful mechanism to offset some of the weaknesses in SMEs’ resource endowments and bring their innovation capabilities closer to that of their large counterparts. The results, based on a large longitudinal sample of Spanish manufacturing firms, show that technological collaboration is a critical factor in improving the capabilities and innovativeness of SMEs. While a general bridging of the gap between the innovativeness of SMEs and large firms was observed, the most significant advance was in product rather than process innovations.