Andrey Polyachenko (p)

Giovanna Lusini

This study explores the resilience of Russian regional economies by examining the interactions between individual industries, overall regional economic stability, and the quality of life indicators for local populations. Utilizing a modified version of R. Martin's method (Martin, 2012) to calculate resilience, we measure the relative changes in total output within industries, Gross Regional Product (GRP), and incomes across three major crises: the 2008-2009 financial crisis, the 2014 economic downturn, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Employing data spanning these crises, we employ the shift-share method to dissect the influence of industry structure on resilience, identifying factors that shape resilience beyond industry boundaries. Through rigorous analysis, we uncover patterns of resilience that transcend sectoral distinctions, providing insights into the broader economic landscape.

Furthermore, we examine the hierarchical influence of each layer of resilience on subsequent layers, elucidating the cascading effects within regional economic systems. This comprehensive approach allows us to untangle the complex web of factors influencing resilience, encompassing internal and external forces.

Our findings carry implications for policymakers and regional stakeholders, offering guidance on targeted interventions to bolster resilience and promote sustainable development across Russian regions. By understanding the intricate interactions between industries, economies, and quality-of-life indicators, stakeholders can devise effective strategies to navigate future crises and foster long-term resilience.

Torben Dall Schmidt (p), Timo Mitze

Andrey Polyachenko

Urban areas have been investigated as national and international nodes for the sharing of knowledge (e.g. Simmie, 2003). The function and flow of knowledge among firms in different contexts may then depend differently on national and international flows. This paper focusses particularly on the effects of international flows of knowledge and information from internationalization in firms. This stance of the literature is taken together with the literature suggesting that internationalization affects firm productivity. Effects of offshoring on productivity are unclear (Wagner, 2011; Monarch, Park and Sivadasan, 2017) and may at some point even reverse for SMEs (Kreuzer and Berger, 2022).

We consider different motivations of firms to pursue internationalization through offshoring. Specifically, we ask if knowledge sharing in international supply chains are differently valuable for firms in urban versus non-urban locations. One hypothesis is that such motivations are particularly valuable in urban areas due to scale effects in knowledge production. The alternative hypothesis is that scarcity is a more important factor pointing to higher returns in terms of productivity in non-urban areas. This motivation is compared with more standard motivations for internationalization in terms of wage costs. We test this hypothesis based on Danish panel register data for firms considering time-specific events of offshoring and the motivation indicated by the firm for this event. As such, we consider a difference-in-difference model setup for the effects of offshoring by motivation on productivity across region types. Our results point to important differences in the manner in which offshoring motivated by knowledge sharing affects productivity for firms located in urban versus non-urban contexts.

Vanessa Hellwig (p)

Torben Dall Schmidt

This paper explores microgeographical patterns of firm birth rates in knowledge-intensive business services (KIBS) within the city of Berlin. The novelty of the paper lies in distinguishing and comparing startups founded by female CEOs and male CEOs and their location decisions. For the regression analysis, I use geo-coded microdata of firm births aggregated on a 1*1 km² grid level and complement this data with several control variables on grid level. These include housing prices, socio-economic indicators, transport infrastructure, and social infrastructure such as kindergartens, primary schools, and playgrounds. Preliminary results show significant differences in the clustering of firms led by males and females. Although there are minimal differences in socio-economic determinants among the neighborhoods, access to highways is, quite surprisingly, a significant location determinant for more female-led startups, while there is no significant effect for male-led new firms. Further, I do find an effect for kindergartens for both groups, but the effect is double the size for female-led firms. Overall, the paper contributes to the literature in two ways: first, the literature on micro-geographical firm patterns in general is still sparse. The paper contributes to general questions of firm clustering and industry clusters within cities with a special emphasis on amenities and local infrastructure. Second, the paper contributes to current debates in the planning literature on feminist planning by providing evidence on the necessity of mixed built structures and the need for supporting economic opportunities for women through the built environment and local infrastructure.

Giovanna Lusini (p)

Vanessa Hellwig

This work is part of a wider research project - PRIN2017 "Regional Policies, Institutions and Cohesion in Southern Italy" - which inserts into the studies dedicated to interpreting the causes and consequences of the socioeconomic gaps existing among the European regions. In a perspective that combines micro, meso, and macro dimensions, the theoretical framework considers both the literature on the Regional Development of 'Mezzogiorno', and the implications of Deindustrialization and Transition 4.0.

Within this frame, the 'industrial question' returned centrally. Indeed, this contribution is going to focus on 'industry' and the determining factors of industrial transformations on development. The core analysis is a Case Study regarding the evolution of the former factories of 'Indesit Company' in the Developmental Industrial Area of Aversa Nord, a disadvantaged territory of the region Campania of 'Mezzogiorno'.

Through qualitative research and the use of semi-structured interviews, this Case offers the analysis of three different companies involved in the re-industrialization process, corresponding to the three industrial phases identified during the research: (1) Industrialization [1970-90] (2) Deindustrialization [1990-2017] and Transition 4.0 (3) [2017-2022]. Particular attention is on the passage between the second and third phases. In this line, the scientific hypothesis suggests that despite the phenomenon of deindustrialization, even in the disadvantaged industrial areas of the less developed regions, the manufacturing sector is resistant, and, with the new phase of Transition 4.0, a reconfiguration is underway in the structure of the industrial ecosystem which could reinvigorate market mechanisms.

To verify this hypothesis, the research questions investigate the interplay among the determining factors and how the industry has reacted to the change among phases: what are the underlying factors that motivate change in response to industrial transformation? How do the actors involved behave and what interests do they have? Furthermore, how do these factors and behaviors combine to the adoption of targeted policy instruments, such as regulations and incentives, in response to the different phases of industrial transformation?

The results will stress the empirical evidence on the influence of the entrepreneurial actors and the factors determining the development in a less developed context.