Technological capabilities in Argentina, Brazil and Chile

Abstract

This dissertation is concerned with the role of firms’ Technological Capabilities (TCs). The focus is on how key firms’ industrial patterns allow firms’ to build TCs, export, and innovate in three Latin American countries: Argentina, Brazil, and Chile. The picture we present in this study highlights the constant need for investments in indigenous efforts to reach external markets or to innovate. The centre of the analysis differs from most of the seminal studies in capabilities, both in developed and developing countries. Those studies, Voss, 1988; Prahalad and Hamel 1990; Leonard-Barton 1992; Katz, 1997; Romijn, 1997; Pietrobelli, 1999; Wignaraja, 1998, 2002 and 2008; Figueiredo, 2002, 2003 and 2008, Iammarino et al., 2008, focused on case studies or single sector analysis. Indeed, this dissertation performs an empirical evaluation through firms’ micro-data of whole industrial sectors, allowing a comparative overview of these countries. We find evidence that firms in these countries dedicate most of their technological efforts to building capabilities at basic levels. However, in some cases these firms reach foreign markets and are able to innovate, conditioned by their specific characteristics and their surrounding innovation system. In other less frequent cases, firms dedicate increasing efforts to realize the state of the art regarding their technological performance, becoming outstanding cases of industrial and economic success. Brazil is of special interest as a leading case of industrial development among emerging countries. Here, again, we witness heterogeneous industrial performance of firms, within specific sectors. Institutions (research centres , universities, etc.) and targeted government programs have been playing a crucial role in fostering industrial firms to export and to innovate. This dissertation aims to disentangle part of this complexity whilealso presenting some starting points for future research. In the following chapters, we will propose different theoretical approaches and empirical methodologies to encourage the reader to engage in critical thinking about Latin America industrial development reality and needs.