COOPERATION, INNOVATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY: PORTUGUESE FIRMS RESEARCH

Abstract

Purpose–Reasons/aims of paper:Innovation is essential to increase the competitive advantages of firms, thus allowing the development of new ideas (Ingram, 2011). This study aims to understand the influence of cooperation on innovation, the relationship of these variables with eco-innovation and the factors that contribute to the decision-making of firms in the adoption of eco-innovations.

Research–Methodology:The database used is the CIS 2014 (Community Innovation Survey) applied to a sample of 7083 Portuguese firms in the period 2012-2014, the sample was analyzed through univariate and multivariate techniques, in particular, MANOVA, association between variables and multiple linear regression models.

Findings-Conclusions:The results of this study show that cooperation has an influence in the at least three types of innovation, therefore, the more cooperation there is, the greater the existing innovation in firms. Cooperation, innovation and eco-innovation are interrelated, and the results shows there is significant correlations between them. Lastly, the factors that most contribute to the adoption of eco-innovations are essentially the current or expected demand in the market for environmental innovations, the improvement of the firm reputation and the high costs of energy, water or materials.

Research limitations:The database CIS 2014, has few questions that allow answers on an ordinal scale, i.e., most of the questions are for "Yes" and "No" answers, which is not conducive to the analysis, being essential the creation of other variables.

Practical implications-Applications to practice: – This study suggests thar the managers must be aware that cooperating with different stakeholders are better able to innovate and therefore have access to new opportunities in the market. At the same time that these new possibilities (cooperation and innovation) open up, they will be in a position to adopt eco-innovations. Finally, firms that are concerned with introducing eco-innovations associate them with purely strategic motivations, namely in terms of reputation, costs and demand.

Originality: This study allows us to understand the influence that cooperation has on innovation ideas, as well as to understand the importance that both cooperation and innovation provide for the adoption of eco-innovation practices. It also allows to know what the most important factors in the decision-making of firms are to adopt acts of innovation directed towards sustainability (eco-innovation).