Clusters facing competition: the role of external linkages

1 - 01 - 2005 in Books, Publications Tags: Clusters, Emerging Countries, Global Value Chain, Innovation, Small and Medium Enterprises

Published by Ashgate

Edited with Elisa Giuliani and Meine Pieter van Dijk

The book is a collection of papers on clusters in developing countries. The book explores the external sources of industrial cluster competitiveness and examines how they complement, integrate and substitute local, intra-cluster networks. The novelty of this book is to merge the cluster approach with two other conceptual approaches which have become increasingly popular in cluster and development studies: on the one hand, the Global Value Chains and their role in cluster upgrading processes; on the other, the National Systems of Innovation (NSIs) and their role in supporting the development of clusters in a national territory. The book explores these issues with empirical evidence from different countries in Latin America, Asia and the industrialized world.

«This book provides numerous and timely insights into new strategies for enhancing the competitiveness of firms and local clusters in the global economy. Replete with in-depth case studies across a broad range of industries and countries, this volume is must reading for anyone seeking to identify pragmatic as well as effective responses to the challenges of international competition today.»
Gary Gereffi,
Professor, Duke University, Durham, NC / USA

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Efficienza collettiva e cluster di imprese: oltre l’esperienza italiana

1 - 01 - 1999 in Books, Publications Tags: Clusters, Developing Countries, Industrial development

Published by Il Mulino

Edited with Marco Di Tommaso

This book presents studies of clusters in developing countries, showing how much these organizational model is diffused and how it contributes to industrial development.

External economies and cooperation in industrial districts: a comparison of Italy and Mexico

1 - 01 - 1997 in Books, Publications Tags: Footwear Industry, Industrial development, Industrial districts, Italy, Mexico, Small and Medium Enterprises

This book was published by McMillan and also translated in Persian.

The success of industrial districts in Europe has attracted the interest of development economists in their search for new industrial development models. This study explores the extent to which the industrial district ‘model’ explains the realities of four footwear clusters in Italy, the ‘land’ of districts, and in Mexico, a less developed country. Empirical investigation confirms that there are gains from clustering; however, differences have also been identified in the intensity and quality of collective effects between the realities studied and the ‘model’. Those differences are attributed to disparities in the external environments, to heterogeneity of economic actors, and to the adoption of a dynamic approach to interpret cluster growth trajectories.

Enterprise clusters and networks as sources of cooperation and technology diffusion for small firms in developing countries

1 - 01 - 1996 in Books, Publications Tags: Clusters, Developing Countries, Industrial development, Small and Medium Enterprises

Published by Frank Cass

Edited with Meine Pieter van Dijk

This is a collection of articles on industrial districts in developing countries. It analyses the functions and advantages of clusters and networks for small enterprises in developing countries. In the opening chapter the editors describe different types of clusters and networks and compare the diverse forms of external economies and co-operation effects derived from them. Taking a multidiscplinary approach, they point out it is trust that is the social basis for positive effects of clustering and networking, which are often sources of co-operation and technology diffusion for small enterprises in developing countries.

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