Abstract: This book analyses the role of technological change in the competitiveness of firms and national economies. This includes an examination of the roles of R&D spending, and the organizational and technological capabilities of firms in the encouragement of innovation; the way institutions in various nations differ in the way in which they encourage, or discourage, innovation; and the way in which different industrial sectors provide, or fail to provide, incentives to innovate; and the ways in which trade, the operation of multinationals and international trade negotiations influence national production and innovation systems. The book explores the relation between organizational structures, and the process of innovation. It places the analysis of innovation within an international perspective and gives historical and current examples of the interaction between organizational and technological capabilities, industrial and innovation policies and economic performance. Examples are drawn from a range of sectors (services, pharmaceuticals, construction, chemicals) and a range of countries (including the UK and other European countries, the USA, East Asia, and Latin America).

Keywords: innovation, incentives to innovate, multinationals, international trade, national production, organizational structures, technological capability, economic performance, service sector, R&D spending