Economic and Social Upgrading in Global Value Chains and Industrial Clusters: Why Governance Matters

Abstract

The burgeoning literature on global value chains (GVCs) has recast our understanding of how industrial clusters are shaped by their ties to the international economy, but within this context, the role played by corporate social responsibility (CSR) continues to evolve.

Governance of Industrial Districts: Bibliometric and Cluster Analyses

“…These papers are mostly empirical but mainly use quantitative methodologies (De Propris & Wei, 2007;Clifton et al, 2010). The opposite occurs for papers authored by USA scholars as they are overwhelming conceptual and provide theories to model industrial district governance (Powell, 1990;Gereffi & Lee, 2016). Figure 6 shows the rankings of top ten articles by number of citations per year (Furrer et al, 2008) and summarizes their main elements in terms of period, type and focus.…”

“…Consistently, a second literature strand investigates the competitive and performance implications of district governance for clusters and their companies. Scholarly attention is focused on the competitive advantage driven by effective network governance (Chen, 2011;Crestanello & Tattara, 2011), as well as on the delocalization/relocalization effects, internationalization, growth and corporate social responsibility outcomes (Clifton et al, 2010;Gereffi & Lee, 2016;Zander et al, 2016) (Cluster 4).…”

“…Thereby, a fruitful line of research yields implications of network governance for practice and policymaking by exploring its role for corporate social responsibility (Lund-Thomsen & Renginee, 2012). Indeed, literature highlights that industrial network governance matters in advancing the social responsibility of network and its companies, and illustrates the importance of "synergistic governance" for district environmental sustainability (Gereffi & Lee, 2016;Zander et al, 2016). Empirical and theoretical research coexists and papers are published in regional and management journals.…”

“…In particular, empirical investigations employ bivariate and multivariate regression techniques or combine case studies with prior theorizing to provide country specific evidence (Clifton et al, 2010;Cucculelli & Storai, 2015). Differently, drawing on various theoretical paradigms, conceptual studies develop frameworks for interpreting the potential effects of industrial district governance on competition and performance (Gereffi & Lee, 2016). …”

Collective Impact Approach: A “Tool” for Managing Complex Problems and Business Clusters Sustainability

“…In fact, many of these elements are widely debated within the research as an issue of districts' and networks' governance (Schmitz & Nadvi, 1999;Nelson & Pritchand, 2009;Hemmati, 2002;Gereffi & Lee, 2016). Rather, within the definition of a process, articulated in pre-conditions, conditions, and phases of implementation, appears the distinctive element of this approach that can represent a guarantor function, so that choices can be taken and implemented in the interest of all.…”