HUMAN RESOURCES; ABSORPTIVE CAPACITY AND INNOVATIVE PERFORMANCE

In relation to firms’ innovative performance this study investigates the importance of human capital for the firm’s absorptive capacity. The estimation of an ordered probit model including 1938 firms from the private manufacturing and non manufacturing sectors shows that the share of highly educated employees, development of a closer relationship with both vertically related actors and knowledge institutions and, application of human resource management (HRM) practices within the firm, not only promote the ability to innovate but also reduce the degree of innovative imitation. Finally, estimations according to size show that development of a closer relationship with a complete network of actors is especially important for firms with less than 50 employees.