The Globalization of Value chain activities, Knowledge dynamics, and Innovation: An empirical study on Denmark

Firms are increasingly relocating diverse activities in the value chain abroad to reap the locational advantage available in other countries. One of the issues raised in this context is that, as global operations can function as channels for knowledge flows, the involved firms and locations may gain or lose knowledge associated with the activities that are being globalized. Since knowledge is a critical input for innovation, this has some implications for the capability of firms to create new products and services. At the macro level, it may have an influence on the competitiveness of the involved regions and countries. The purpose of this thesis is to study these issues with a broad research question, “What implications does the globalization of value chain activities have on innovation in firms and locations?” Four articles and a case study included in the thesis present empirical results from quantitative and qualitative data on Denmark.