The Impact of Outside Technological Services on Enterprise Performance in a National Systems of Innovation

This study investigates qualitatively and quantitatively the effect of innovation networks as defined by the external acquisition of technological services on the performance of enterprises. We assume that the outside acquisition of the technological services in a national system of innovation is a more significant indicator to evaluate innovative inputs than R&D for small and medium enterprises. Descriptive results show that successful and less succ essful enterprises have the same pattern in their process of externalisation of resources. However, statistical correlations show mixed findings from which arises the question: why do not innovation networks always positively affect the performance of enterprises?