Intermediaries in Regional Innovation Systems: High-Technology Enterprise Survey from Northern Finland

Abstract

Intermediaries play an important role in national as well as in regional innovation systems, especially in innovation policy. In linking organizations within an innovation system, intermediaries are focusing on technology transfer, commercialization of ideas and funding. This research focuses on the role of intermediaries in high-technology product development in northern Finland. Based on a survey of 168 high-technology enterprises, funding services are regarded as the most important activity of intermediaries. Our results show that finance matters: a key actor within the Finnish innovation system in terms of direct funding and indirect collaborative resourcing, the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (TEKES), is considered the most important public sector organization in private sector product development. The survey also reveals that growth-driven companies with emphases on product innovation and high levels of investment in research and development for increasing their annual turnover benefit the most from intermediaries.

Can a governance structure foster cluster ambidexterity through knowledge management? An empirical study of two French SME clusters

“…In linking organisations within an innovation system, intermediaries focus on technology transfer, commercialisation of ideas and funding (Inkinen & Suorsa, 2010). These organisations aim to support innovation creation, dissemination and collaboration (Inkinen & Suorsa, 2010). In characterising innovation mediation research, Howells (2006) distinguishes two emergent research fields: investigations focused on 'intermediaries as organisations' and studies that view 'intermediation as a process'.…”

“…In linking organisations within an innovation system, intermediaries focus on technology transfer, commercialisation of ideas and funding (Inkinen & Suorsa, 2010). These organisations aim to support innovation creation, dissemination and collaboration (Inkinen & Suorsa, 2010).…”

Intermediation in intermediation: triple helix innovation and intermediary legal organisation

“…For example, Metcalfe (2010: 507) analyses three intermediational knowledge stocks and resultant flows of exchange (actors, resources, commerce) that 'connect the state, industry, and higher education to the intermediating organization [as] transactions that take place between and among formally defined organizational entities'. The exchanges may here become facilitated (and relationally, but not yet, institutionally intermediated) by so-called boundary spanners (Aldrich and Herker 1977;Todeva 2013: 265) who 'sit on two or three helices' (Todeva and Etzkowitz 2013: 11) or by generic, merely consultative and limited-task intermediary/brokerage organisations as, for example, banks and other financial intermediaries (Inkinen and Suorsa 2010;Lichtenthaler and Ernst 2008;Todeva 2013). Such substantive inquiries are obviously important.…”

“…Thus, success in academic research as well as in its commercialisation was expected and was the overall goal-at least, in a diffuse, but shared manner-among the investor-participants of the Hybrid Firm. Indeed, the Research Leader was originally attracted to join the University of Helsinki from abroad through initial 'funding from a major Finnish science-funding agency' (Tuunainen 2005b: 289), the Academy of Finland (Tuunainen 2004: 33) and, thereafter, the Research Group 'was receiving most of its funding from a major Finnish financing organization for applied and industrial research and development' (Tuunainen 2005a: 180), namely, the Finnish National Technology Agency (also known by its Finnish acronym: Tekes) (Tuunainen 2005c: 215; see also Dalziel and Parjanen 2012;Inkinen and Suorsa 2010). The Academy of Finland expressly required, as part of its original funding conditions, that the Research Group 'extended its collaboration networks from academic partners to international plant-breeding enterprises' (Tuunainen 2005a: 180).…”

Accelerating the Transition of Technologies Created through the U.S. Department of Defense Small Business Innovation Research Program

“…Given that innovation systems have two major parties-knowledge producers such as academic institutions and research labs, and knowledge users such as private firms and government agencies-intermediaries are supposed to broker the two parties (Inkinen and Suorsa, 2010). In terms of innovation processes and activities, their roles are also defined as innovation consultancy services (Pilorget, 1993), technology brokering (Hargadon and Sutton,142 As Rogers (1995) and Chen, Chang and Hung (2011) noted, specific technological attributes increase the success of technology commercialization.…”