研发国际化、跨国知识网络与研发单元创新绩效——基于华为PCT专利(2002-2013年)的面板数据分析

为探索企业通过研发国际化所建立的跨国知识网络对其创新绩效影响的内在机理，本文以研发单元为分析单元，探讨知识连接和关系强度对其创新绩效的单独影响和共同交互效应，区分了跨国与本地知识连接和关系强度的作用差异，并进一步考察了研发单元年龄和规模等内部环境条件的调节作用.利用华为2002至2013年的PCT专利申请数据，构建了其37个研发单元12年跨度的面板数据集进行实证分析.结果显示：知识连接和关系强度对研发单元的创新绩效均有正向促进作用，但是二者对创新绩效的影响具有负向交互效应；跨国知识连接的作用效果高于本地知识连接，但跨国关系强度的作用效果低于本地关系强度；研发单元的年龄越小、规模越小，知识连接和关系强度对研发单元的创新绩效的影响效果越高.这些发现也表明，虽然在不同国家建立研发单元能够帮助企业获得异质性知识，但是研发单元与内外部合作组织间的知识连接和合作关系才是促进这些多样化知识传递、吸收和转化为创新的内在动力.本文研究结果能够为我国和其它发展中国家的企业拓展海外研发、促进创新能力提供启示.

R&D internationalization,cross-country knowledge network and innovation performance of R&D units: Evidence from Huawei's PCT patent applications (2002-2013)

The aim of this paper is to investigate how the cross-country knowledge network established during a firm's R&D internationalization process affect innovation performance. We put our unit of analysis at the R&D unit level in order to investigate how knowledge connections and tie strength affect a unit's innovation performance separately as well as the interaction effect of the two factors. We also further distinguished the differential effects of cross-country or domestic knowledge connections and tie strength a R&D unit maintains. The moderation effects of the internal environmental conditions including unit age and size are also examined. PCT patent applications data of Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. was collected to construct a panel of 37 global R&D units spanning 12 years from 2002 to 2013. The empirical results revealed that knowledge connections and tie strength both have significant positive effects on a R&D unit's innovation performance, but there is a negative interaction effect between the two factors; the effect of cross-country knowledge connections is higher than domestic knowledge connections, but the effect of cross-country tie strength is lower than domestic tie strength; the effects of knowledge connections and tie strength on innovation is more salient for younger and smaller units. These findings indicate that although R&D units established in different counties can bring geographically heterogeneous knowledge to the firm, it is the connections and collaborative ties between the R&D units and their internal and external partner organizations that facilitate the knowledge exchange, absorption, and combination into innovations. This study also bears practical implications to firm R&D internationalization and innovation strategies for Chinese firms and firms from other emerging economies.