Veranstaltung

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27.09.2007 - 28.09.2007 | Reutlingen

Knowledge Economy 2007 - A Multilayer Challenge for European Regions

"Ideas shape our world. They are the raw materials on which our future prosperity and heritage depend." (Kamil Idris, 2006). This citation outlines the role of ideas and knowledge for future growth and competitiveness of regions in a knowledge economy. The Research Institute of the European School of Business in Reutlingen (Germany) is hosting an international scientific conference "Knowledge Economy - A Multilayer Challenge for European Regions" in September 2007. In this conference we will accentuate internationality and interdisciplinary as we believe that knowledge economy deserves a holistic approach. During the conference, participants have multiple opportunities to deal with latest specific and detailed research results, as well as to participate in recapitulative and integrating presentations. Three workshops on "Regional Economic Competitiveness", "Innovation and Knowledge Management", and "Socio-economic Environment for a Knowledge Economy" will give place for discussions and exchange.
Company representatives, as Mr. Andreas Rentschler (Board of Management, Daimler AG), guarantee a fertile exchange between theory and practise.

For quite some time, the phrase "knowledge economy" was only one of the many "buzz" words used to characterize the global changes we have been facing for more than thirty years, both in our economies and in our societies.
However, we have become much more aware that the term "knowledge economy" encapsulates a wide range of short, middle and long term developments which are not only decisive for the production of knowledge but for economic growth as well. The latter in particular plays an increasingly crucial role when it comes to a debate of issues concerning the knowledge economy: How can we safeguard our high standard of living in the Western societies and how can we stay innovative to guarantee future growth? The upcoming conference contributes to this particular essence of the knowledge economy, namely the overlapping and interfering aspects of short, middle and long-term developments.
Since the 1980s the economic consequences of knowledge and technological change are intensively analysed in Endogenous Growth Theory. This development led to a renaissance of the interest in the determinants of economic growth. In addition to the traditional factors of production, i.e. labour and capital, interdependencies of technologically influenced innovations and long term developments within Western societies are more widely discussed in order to frame all possible components which may support economic growth. Therefore, it is not by accident that a very recent publication by Joel Mokyr (2006) on the knowledge economy starts with a discussion of the European Enlightenment and its' meaning for the modern knowledge society.
As a result, the conference will deal with some major, but sometimes hidden elements and challenges of the modern knowledge economy:

-To compete in a globalized market an economy has to be innovative.
- Each region has to apply specific measures in order to improve its' competitiveness.
- To develop a long term perspective for economic growth a region has to consider its socio-economic environment like education or the demographic change.

Based on these three thematic areas, the conference will discuss the major issues of the knowledge economy within individual workshops. However, during plenary sessions, these different topics will be drawn together through an integrated approach.

The conference aims at various target groups:

- Economists who are interested in the various layers of the knowledge economy.
- Managers who have to steer their company through the global process of knowledge based innovation.
- Academic researchers who see the interdependencies of the modern knowledge society.

This short description illustrates how a knowledge economy affects a variety of academic disciplines as well as practitioners. Having chosen an interdisciplinary approach, this conference should contribute to meeting academic and practice-orientated challenges which today's social processes may impose.

Workshops:

Workshop I: Knowledge and Innovation
Chairman: Prof. Dr. Christoph Müller, Universität Hohenheim

Knowledge is in the meantime widely regarded as the core resource among the various resources available to firms. The increasing relevance can be explained by the fierce competition in a global market place, where relevant information and the useful interpretation thereof generate alternatives for action. Thus, knowledge about customer needs and a creative environment allow to generate ideas for new products and services. The combination with technological and market know-how enables firms to turn inventions into innovations. Product, process and social innovations therefore depend on the organization's capability to increase its knowledge and on the integrative processes for keeping updated, networking and using the knowledge-stock.
At the same time, organizations are becoming permeable, as innovations are seldom led by lone inventors in their garrets but are the product of a collaborative process of partners in innovation networks. Moreover, the economic exploitation of inventions frequently exceeds the company's boundaries. Thus, as knowledge becomes a production factor, firms align their business models to global scanning and learning organizations:
- Creation of worldwide R&D networks
- Investments in ICT
- Open Business Models

Hence, the term knowledge economy is associated with various fundamental changes and new challenges in business. The workshop on knowledge and innovation will deal with these developments. It will in particular focus on

- particularities of the resource knowledge in firms,
- the relevance and value of knowledge for business in a globalized world,
- the constitution and design of international knowledge networks and R&D,
- possibilities and challenges for protect and safeguard intellectual property.

This workshop will approach the knowledge economy from a business and managerial point of view. It shall illuminate the relevant fields of action for companies in order to successfully compete in a global knowledge economy.

Workshop II: Regional Economic Competitiveness
Chairman: Prof. Dr. Maurizio Baussola, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Italy

In a world that is increasingly becoming global, more informed and better communicated; in a world of knowledge-economy where useful knowledge becomes the new key asset to competitiveness... , the Regions and Local Entities play a determinant role in the efficient implementation of strategies that are related to competitiveness development within their specific environments. Easier access to information on the one hand - on a global scale - and on the other hand, ever increasing importance of specialist, tacit knowledge - on a regional scale- has brought about an economic system in which regional competitiveness is the key for national and international success.

The extension of the competitiveness concept to the regional level is recent but is having a major influence on the direction of regional development policy. In particular, it is supporting a revival of interest in a new form of regional policy. In the past, regional policy attempted to make regions more competitive by attracting in internationally competitive firms, but with limited success. The search for a new approach to regional development is now mainly focused on making domestic firms more competitive. This has led to an emphasis on regional "assets" as the source of firm competitiveness, not only physical infrastructure but also other "soft" or less tangible factors.

The workshop aims at dealing with questions like:

o How can regional competitiveness be effectively measured?
o Which are the key factors that can improve the competitiveness of regions?
o Regional specialisation vs. regional diversification
o Benchmarking of regional strategies as target policy
o Role of higher education institutions in regional development
o Evaluation of regional competitiveness and cohesion policies
o The functioning of regional labour markets as indicator for competitiveness

Workshop III: Socio-Economic Environment for a Knowledge Economy
Chairman: Dr. Hans-Peter Baumeister, European School of Business Reutlingen

The Harvard Professor for Economic History, David Landes, explained convincingly in his famous book, "The Wealth and Poverty of Nations" how even since the 16th century in Europe it has been important to produce new knowledge based on mathematical principles for our economic wealth. Over the centuries, we as Europeans, have since developed an increasing awareness about the economic meaning of knowledge and have started to design our societies accordingly:
o Our educational systems have the clear task to prepare our population for contributing to the economic growth. This applies not only to our formal educational systems, but also the informal ones.
o We have a very sophisticated legal system to protect an individual's innovative knowledge.
o Over the centuries we have created a unique system for basic and applied research in order to develop the knowledge for our economies.

We are using new technologies, like the Internet, also for a better networking of educators and academic experts to improve the access to and the production of new knowledge.
Hence it is obvious that the term "Knowledge Economy" is not only based on a short term development, it is also proven to have a long history of importance. Therefore, it is rather logical that the draft of the European Constitution puts the term "learning" as one of the crucial European values to the forefront.
The workshop on the socio-economic environment will deal with these long term aspects.

It will particularly focus on the:

o Relationships between a modern and effective knowledge economy and the appropriate educational and academic systems.
o EU efforts to overcome the old national boundaries of our educational and academic systems (keyword "Bologna Process") to improve the quality of our scientific system.
o Tensions between short term expectations regarding the outcomes of R&D activities with long lasting research processes.
o Growing antagonism of knowledge as a private asset and as a public good.

This workshop will maintain a cross-sectional function for the entire conference. It will emphasise the great meaning of long term developments in order to safeguard our economic wealth and our understanding of progress. Therefore, the results of this section are meant to illuminate the background of the two previous sections.

Hinweise zur Teilnahme:
We are looking forward to your participation. To register, please use the registration formular on our website http://www.knowledge-economy.de
The conference fee (not including accomodation) is:
95 EUR per person with registration until August 15th
120 EUR per person after August 15th.

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