Networks have been hailed as a third organizational form, between markets and hierarchies. One of the main characteristics of networks is the coexistence of different kinds of relationships, personal and professional among these. The presence of multiple types of relationships modifies...

In the last century, the evolution of manufacturing was characterized by several innovations, concerning technologies, processes, but also entire production systems, with radical changes in strategies, product design, and management of organizations. Cost, time, and quality are the pillars on...

The location of agricultural activities in favourable geographic areas has led to the development of local agglomerations of companies, recognised as agri-food clusters (AFCs). AFCs are characterised by typical environmental problems such as changes in land use, CO2 emissions, energy and water...

To introduce new products and processes, firms often acquire knowledge from other organizations. Drawing on social capital and transaction cost theory, we argue that not only is the impact of such acquisitions on the successful development of product and product innovations dependent on...

To introduce new products and processes, firms often need to acquire knowledge developed in other firms and organizations. Drawing on social capital and transaction cost theory, we argue that not only is the success of such acquisitions for the development of product and product innovations...

Drawing on social capital theory and the international business literature, we argue that domestic geography, in terms of localized potential social capital, facilitates individual firms’ awareness of business opportunities, including knowledge related to involvement in the foreign markets for...

Offshoring of intangibles is a global production strategy based on the decision to externalize intangible activities to foreign countries. In the present work we test the existence of a positive relationship between offshoring intangibles and firm performance. To reap the full benefit of...

External knowledge acquisition represents a precondition for firms’ competitive advantage. However, young firms find it particularly difficult to gain access to external sources of knowledge: young firms suffer from a liability of newness by exhibiting significantly lower propensities to...