Competitiveness and production networks: the case of the Argentine automotive sector

This paper offers an empirical methodology for evaluating the development of production networks. It looks at the linkages between the flow of knowledge within the production network and the development of firm-endogenous capabilities, and applies this methodology to the Argentinean automotive industry in order to study its weaknesses and potential. The paper finds that the automotive network is partially integrated and based on incomplete interactions. In general, the firm's innovative performance is based on its own strategies and background, and the effects of a closer interaction with the network are undermined. However, this paper concludes that the network is significant for explaining the complexity of innovative activities and work organization. Copyright 2004, Oxford University Press.