Research On Coral Firm-Based Networked Innovationon In Industrial Cluster

Coral firms are firms with a certain level of local embeddedness, with strong market position and innovation ability, and who has a distinct competitive advantage above other companies. Coral firms affect other members and the whole cluster deeply, especially in technology innovation.It has been a challenge around world how to improve the innovation ability of industrial cluster through networked innovations. Research on cluster innovation network often ignores heterogeneity of firms, which is proved to have very important impact on the development of network.In a cluster, actors on all levels connect and interact with each other during innovation, and develop into a special network. A coral firm is often dominant in technology development. Coral firm-based innovation means that actors including coral firm itself, suppliers, customers, other organizations, and even rivals interact and cooperate to form normal/business and social network to promote the sharing of knowledge and other resources to achieve innovation objectives. Core enterprise-based innovation are hierarchical systems that can be divided into core layer, auxiliary layer and supporting layer.Scale-free model is used to simulate innovation network according to the growth law of enterprise networks. Connection probability is decided by fitness and degree, plus mode growth. The network formed are scale-free with a small world effect. Conclusion:The network is heterogeneous with high centrality of coral firms who thus have far-reaching impact on innovation and knowledge diffusion of the whole network. Clustering effect of the network is conducive to trust and tacit knowledge transfer, but with a risk of lock-in. The existence of coral firms and small world can make knowledge diffusion faster. With fewer connection between other members, the scale-free network is robust and fragile, showing particuliarly important role of hubs(coral firms). When more linkages strengthened, the impact of coral firms will be weakenedNetwork capacity is necessary for coral firms in their choosing, identifying networking opportunities, planning and managing Innovation networks, and getting social capital for innovation. Networking ability, together with knowledge absorption capacity help coral firms to catch, assimilate and transfer knowledge from internal and exteranl sources to benefit itself and other members. The objective of governance of innovation network is to constraint and coordinate the behavior of members to ensure the orderly operation of innovation network. Governance mechanisms are formal and informal norms and criteria combined to adjust and restrict the behavior of members to ensure orderly operation of a innovation network. Trust is the central mechanism of network governance. Trust is dynamic, and can be cultivate deliberately.Network power includes reward, coercion, legitimate, expert and referent, which have different effects in network governance. Network controlled by netwok power is subject to strategic intention of coral firms. Core firms dominate the direction of technological innovation and knowledge transferring efficiency is higher. But governance by power can also cause risks.