基于知识流动分析的汽车企业海外创新策略研究——以宝马全球研发中心为例[1]

Knowledge Flow and Innovation Internationalization Management of Automotive Companiestake global R D Centers of BMW for example

摘要:

为解决如何在技术变革过程中重塑新型海外研发策略、实现创新发展可持续性问题，试图在跨国企业创新理论基础上引入知识流动分析方法及技术异质性维度，探讨跨国企业高效获取知识与实现持续创新的模式。以德国宝马公司从1980到2020年的创新国际化进程为例，基于知识流动视角，通过专利申请与专利引文数据、采用定性与定量方法相结合的方法，从一般技术、新能源技术以及数字技术3个领域分析其总公司、海外研发中心与东道国供应商之间的知识流动和创新国际化模式差异。结果发现：宝马在一般技术领域，德国总部持有核心技术知识，知识流动呈现“总部－海外研发机构－总部”循环；在新能源技术领域，采用创新联盟模式，知识流动限于联盟成员之间；在数字技术领域，集团内部的知识流动并不活跃，宝马更多在海外技术高地使用企业风险投资（CVC）布局相关创新研发，呈现由东道国向其子公司的反向知识流动。对于中国汽车企业创新实践而言，一方面企业可借鉴宝马在新能源与数字技术领域多类型的创新国际化合作模式，另一方政府部门应加强相应的创新生态建设。

Abstract:

The automotive industry is facing the technological change of integration innovation of new energy power and digitization, as well as the ever-changing global competition pattern. How to deal with the heterogeneity of technological characteristics and technological locations in overseas innovation cooperation has an important impact on the efficient knowledge acquisition and continuous innovation of multinational enterprises. This paper takes BMW as the research object, combines qualitative and quantitative methods, analyzes the knowledge flow between its head office, overseas R&D centers and suppliers in the host country, and summarizes BMW's innovative internationalization model under traditional power, new energy power and digital technology difference. The research found that: in the general technology field, BMW Germany headquarters holds core technical knowledge, and the knowledge flow presents a cycle of "headquarters - overseas R&D institutions - headquarters". In the field of new energy technology, BMW has adopted the innovation alliance model, and the knowledge flow is limited among alliance members. In the field of digital technology, the knowledge flow within the Group is not active,while the BMW use corporate venture capital (CVC) to invest overseas technology, showing a reverse knowledge flow of "host country - subsidiary". The research integrates the innovation internationalization and knowledge management theories of multinational enterprises, and provides guidance for the practice of Chinese automotive enterprises going overseas.