Software development and innovation : Exploring the software shift in innovation in Swedish firms
(2021) In Technological Forecasting and Social Change 167.- Abstract
A number of scholars and industry professionals have claimed that there has been a ‘software-biased shift’ in the nature and direction of innovation, in that software development is a core part of innovation activities in firms across a wide array of industries. Empirical firm-level evidence of such a shift is still scant. In this paper, we employ new and unique firm-level survey data on the frequency and nature of software development among firms in Sweden, matched with the Community Innovation Survey (CIS). We find robust evidence supporting a software bias in innovation, in that software development is associated with a higher likelihood of introducing innovations, as well as higher innovation sales among firms in both manufacturing... (More)
A number of scholars and industry professionals have claimed that there has been a ‘software-biased shift’ in the nature and direction of innovation, in that software development is a core part of innovation activities in firms across a wide array of industries. Empirical firm-level evidence of such a shift is still scant. In this paper, we employ new and unique firm-level survey data on the frequency and nature of software development among firms in Sweden, matched with the Community Innovation Survey (CIS). We find robust evidence supporting a software bias in innovation, in that software development is associated with a higher likelihood of introducing innovations, as well as higher innovation sales among firms in both manufacturing and service industries. Furthermore, this positive relationship is stronger for firms that employ in-house software developers than for those that only use external developers, suggesting that there is a hierarchy but possibly also a complementarity between in-house and external software development. We also find support for complementarity between software-based technology and human capital; the estimated marginal effect of software development on innovation is particularly strong for firms that combine in-house software development with a highly educated workforce in both STEM and other disciplines.
(Less)
- author
- Andersson, Martin LU ; Kusetogullari, Anna and Wernberg, Joakim LU
- organization
- publishing date
- 2021
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- Absorptive capacity, Digital technology, Digitalization, Human capital, Innovation, Software, Software bias, Software development
- in
- Technological Forecasting and Social Change
- volume
- 167
- article number
- 120695
- publisher
- Elsevier
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85102068153
- ISSN
- 0040-1625
- DOI
- 10.1016/j.techfore.2021.120695
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- a66db4ed-5c24-43ce-a1ac-6f5f28ea95c8
- date added to LUP
- 2021-03-16 12:21:11
- date last changed
- 2024-05-02 04:56:13
@article{a66db4ed-5c24-43ce-a1ac-6f5f28ea95c8,
abstract = {{<p>A number of scholars and industry professionals have claimed that there has been a ‘software-biased shift’ in the nature and direction of innovation, in that software development is a core part of innovation activities in firms across a wide array of industries. Empirical firm-level evidence of such a shift is still scant. In this paper, we employ new and unique firm-level survey data on the frequency and nature of software development among firms in Sweden, matched with the Community Innovation Survey (CIS). We find robust evidence supporting a software bias in innovation, in that software development is associated with a higher likelihood of introducing innovations, as well as higher innovation sales among firms in both manufacturing and service industries. Furthermore, this positive relationship is stronger for firms that employ in-house software developers than for those that only use external developers, suggesting that there is a hierarchy but possibly also a complementarity between in-house and external software development. We also find support for complementarity between software-based technology and human capital; the estimated marginal effect of software development on innovation is particularly strong for firms that combine in-house software development with a highly educated workforce in both STEM and other disciplines.</p>}},
author = {{Andersson, Martin and Kusetogullari, Anna and Wernberg, Joakim}},
issn = {{0040-1625}},
keywords = {{Absorptive capacity; Digital technology; Digitalization; Human capital; Innovation; Software; Software bias; Software development}},
language = {{eng}},
publisher = {{Elsevier}},
series = {{Technological Forecasting and Social Change}},
title = {{Software development and innovation : Exploring the software shift in innovation in Swedish firms}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2021.120695}},
doi = {{10.1016/j.techfore.2021.120695}},
volume = {{167}},
year = {{2021}},
}