Hardback
Productivity, Innovation and Knowledge in Services
New Economic and Socio-Economic Approaches
9781840649697 Edward Elgar Publishing
Written by some of the most distinguished authors in the field, this book elucidates the critical and complex relationships between services, production and innovation. The authors discuss the limitations of current theories to explain service productivity and innovation, and call for a conceptual re-working of the ways in which these are measured. They also highlight the important role of knowledge in the production system and in doing so make an important contribution to a key debate which has emerged in the social sciences in recent years.
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Critical Acclaim
Contributors
Contents
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Services now account for almost three quarters of economic activity in advanced market economies and two of the principal topics that researchers on services have been concerned with are, on the one hand, productivity, and on the other, innovation in and through services. These two issues, and finding ways to measure and conceptualise them, lie at the heart of this book.
The productivity question is a puzzle in many so-called ‘stagnant services’, where national accounts show little or no increase in productivity, while closer empirical investigations and case studies reveal that some of these sectors are in fact as dynamic as their manufacturing counterparts. How can these opposing views be reconciled? The same applies to innovation in and through services, where many of the existing approaches retain much of their bias towards manufacturing and technology, and fail to capture some of the fundamental aspects of innovation in services. Written by some of the most distinguished authors in the field, this book elucidates the critical and complex relationships between services, production and innovation. The authors discuss the limitations of current theories to explain service productivity and innovation, and call for a conceptual re-working of the ways in which these are measured. They also highlight the important role of knowledge in the production system and in doing so make an important contribution to a key debate which has emerged in the social sciences in recent years.
Productivity, Innovation and Knowledge in Services will inform and interest those in the fields of economics, management, business studies and economic geography.
The productivity question is a puzzle in many so-called ‘stagnant services’, where national accounts show little or no increase in productivity, while closer empirical investigations and case studies reveal that some of these sectors are in fact as dynamic as their manufacturing counterparts. How can these opposing views be reconciled? The same applies to innovation in and through services, where many of the existing approaches retain much of their bias towards manufacturing and technology, and fail to capture some of the fundamental aspects of innovation in services. Written by some of the most distinguished authors in the field, this book elucidates the critical and complex relationships between services, production and innovation. The authors discuss the limitations of current theories to explain service productivity and innovation, and call for a conceptual re-working of the ways in which these are measured. They also highlight the important role of knowledge in the production system and in doing so make an important contribution to a key debate which has emerged in the social sciences in recent years.
Productivity, Innovation and Knowledge in Services will inform and interest those in the fields of economics, management, business studies and economic geography.
Critical Acclaim
‘. . . contains a number of useful papers on a highly topical issue, where high quality published work is lagging behind public interest.’
– Stephen Broadberry, Journal of Economic Literature
‘This is an interesting and readable collection by a group of long-standing scholars.’
– Sally Randles, The Service Industries Journal
‘While I have suggested that the literature on the services has not yet attained a volume commensurate with their importance, recent contributions by economists to analysis of this arena have hardly been negligible. Groups of highly qualified and productive researchers have contributed to a valuable and growing literature that begins to provide a deeper understanding of the issues raised by the role of the service sector. Jean Gadrey and his colleagues have been in the vanguard of this activity and their work has provided much needed additions to the analysis of the subject. This volume is a significant example of their work. And it is significant not only because of the quality of its contents but also because of the particular topic on which the compendium focuses.’
– From the foreword by William J. Baumol
‘This is an engaging volume that brings together some of the most important researchers working on the complex relationships between productivity, innovation and services. It is a major contribution to understanding the paradox in the relationship between services and economic growth. It challenges some of the widespread assumptions that are commonly held about services and is particularly strong in highlighting the relationship between these assumptions and the limitations imposed by existing forms of measurement and conceptual frameworks. The collection provides an important stepping-stone in the developing service research agenda in the discipline of economics. I enjoyed the book and found the content stimulating and thought-provoking, and the reference lists especially interesting. It is well worth a close read.’
– John R. Bryson, University of Birmingham, UK
– Stephen Broadberry, Journal of Economic Literature
‘This is an interesting and readable collection by a group of long-standing scholars.’
– Sally Randles, The Service Industries Journal
‘While I have suggested that the literature on the services has not yet attained a volume commensurate with their importance, recent contributions by economists to analysis of this arena have hardly been negligible. Groups of highly qualified and productive researchers have contributed to a valuable and growing literature that begins to provide a deeper understanding of the issues raised by the role of the service sector. Jean Gadrey and his colleagues have been in the vanguard of this activity and their work has provided much needed additions to the analysis of the subject. This volume is a significant example of their work. And it is significant not only because of the quality of its contents but also because of the particular topic on which the compendium focuses.’
– From the foreword by William J. Baumol
‘This is an engaging volume that brings together some of the most important researchers working on the complex relationships between productivity, innovation and services. It is a major contribution to understanding the paradox in the relationship between services and economic growth. It challenges some of the widespread assumptions that are commonly held about services and is particularly strong in highlighting the relationship between these assumptions and the limitations imposed by existing forms of measurement and conceptual frameworks. The collection provides an important stepping-stone in the developing service research agenda in the discipline of economics. I enjoyed the book and found the content stimulating and thought-provoking, and the reference lists especially interesting. It is well worth a close read.’
– John R. Bryson, University of Birmingham, UK
Contributors
Contributors: W.J. Baumol, B. Chane Kune, J. De Bandt, L. Dibiaggio, P. den Hertog, E. Lazega, I. Miles, N. Mulder, P. Petit, M. Savona, E.N. Wolff
Contents
Contents
Preface
William J. Baumol
Introduction
Jean Gadrey and Faïz Gallouj
PART I PRODUCTIVITY AND PERFORMANCES IN SERVICES
1. How stagnant are services?
Edward N. Wolff
2. The misuse of productivity concepts in services: lessons from a comparison between France and the United States
Jean Gadrey
3. Informational activities as co-production of knowledge and values
Jacques De Bandt and Ludovic Dibiaggio
4. Capital stock and productivity in French transport: an international comparison
Bernard Chane Kune and Nanno Mulder
5. Growth and productivity in a knowledge-based service economy
Pascal Petit
6. Networks, distributed knowledge and economic performance: evidence from quality control in corporate legal services
Emmanuel Lazega
PART II INNOVATION IN SERVICES AND THROUGH SERVICES
7. Services as leaders and the leader of the services
William J. Baumol
8. Services innovation: towards a tertiarization of innovation studies
Ian Miles
9. Demand, innovation and growth in services: evidence from the Italian case
Maria Savona
10. Co-producers of innovation: on the role of knowledge-intensive business services in innovation
Pim Den Hertog
11. Knowledge-intensive business services: processing knowledge and producing innovation
Faïz Gallouj
Epilogue: towards innovation and high performance in research on services
Jean Gadrey and Faïz Gallouj
Index
Preface
William J. Baumol
Introduction
Jean Gadrey and Faïz Gallouj
PART I PRODUCTIVITY AND PERFORMANCES IN SERVICES
1. How stagnant are services?
Edward N. Wolff
2. The misuse of productivity concepts in services: lessons from a comparison between France and the United States
Jean Gadrey
3. Informational activities as co-production of knowledge and values
Jacques De Bandt and Ludovic Dibiaggio
4. Capital stock and productivity in French transport: an international comparison
Bernard Chane Kune and Nanno Mulder
5. Growth and productivity in a knowledge-based service economy
Pascal Petit
6. Networks, distributed knowledge and economic performance: evidence from quality control in corporate legal services
Emmanuel Lazega
PART II INNOVATION IN SERVICES AND THROUGH SERVICES
7. Services as leaders and the leader of the services
William J. Baumol
8. Services innovation: towards a tertiarization of innovation studies
Ian Miles
9. Demand, innovation and growth in services: evidence from the Italian case
Maria Savona
10. Co-producers of innovation: on the role of knowledge-intensive business services in innovation
Pim Den Hertog
11. Knowledge-intensive business services: processing knowledge and producing innovation
Faïz Gallouj
Epilogue: towards innovation and high performance in research on services
Jean Gadrey and Faïz Gallouj
Index
