Ethnic innovation and U.S. multinational firm activity
By: C. Fritz Foley, William R. Kerr
Contributors: Kerr, William R. (William Robert); Harvard Business School
Series: Working paper / Harvard Business School -- 12-006; Working paper (Harvard Business School) -- 12-006
Publisher: Harvard Business School
Published: 2011
Place of publication: Boston]
Language: eng
Number of pages: 24
Description: This paper studies the impact that immigrant innovators have on the global activities of U.S. firms by analyzing detailed data on patent applications and on the operations of the foreign affiliates of U.S. multinational firms. The results indicate that increases in the share of a firm's innovation performed by inventors of a particular ethnicity are associated with increases in the share of that firm's affiliate activity in their native countries. Ethnic innovators also appear to facilitate the disintegration of innovative activity across borders and to allow U.S. multinationals to form new affiliates abroad without the support of local joint venture partners. Thus, this paper points out that immigration can enhance the competitiveness of multinational firms.
Notes: "August 2011" -- Publisher's website.

Includes bibliographical references.