Recognizing Investment Opportunities at the Onset of Recoveries

Investment decision-making is modeled by means of a Kohonen neural net, whose neurons represent firms as decision-makers. Thus, the network reconstructs collective decision-making by the productive system. This model focuses on the decision to invest in novel fields of activity, which requires that managers recognize the emergence of a new technological pattern. Recognizing the value of information is not obvious, since it depends on a firm's mental categories. For instance, in 1964 Olivetti sold its electronics division in the firm belief, well supported by a tradition of excellence in mechanics, that computers would never substitute typing machines.