Project Description:

Large scale surveys among innovating organizations have shown that especially in science based industries informal R&D agreements are regarded to play a crucial role for the knowledge acquisition and knowledge generation processes of innovating organizations (e.g. firms).

While there are various studies that examine the consequences of formal R&D agreements for the knowledge generation and transfer activities of innovating organizations, the micro level empirical evidence on informal R&D agreements and the resulting consequences for the knowledge dynamics of innovating organizations is rare. This is mostly due to the fact that informal R&D agreements are difficult to define and measure. This thesis consists of four empirical parts that all touch upon the issue of informal R&D partnerships and provides more micro level evidence on both, the formation motives and consequences of informal R&D collaborations.