Identifying the network capabilities of large and small companies in the process of formation and development of innovation networks

One of the most important fields of biotechnology is the pharmaceutical industry, which is of special importance due to its intertwining with public health. Biomedicines, in the production of which biotechnology has been used. They are known as targeted drugs to treat patients in difficult medical conditions. Networks, as a special type of communication, connect a set of people, objects or events and are a very good model for corporate communication.  Innovation networks include government, research and industrial institutions working together for a common innovation goal. Companies need networking capabilities to make the most of the networking platform and benefit from external resources, capabilities, and knowledge streams. The purpose of this study is to identify the types of network capabilities of large and small firms in the biopharmaceutical networks of the country

 The present study is an applied-descriptive research. The research method used in this research is a combination and research strategy of thematic analysis and confirmatory factor analysis. In this research, first, the literature and theoretical foundations and some existing documents in the field of biopharmaceutical companies were reviewed, and in the second step, in order to complete the data, in-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with 15 experts in government, academia and industry. Sampling in this section has been judgmental and purposeful. Regarding sample size, sampling continued until the theoretical saturation stage. Accordingly, after the fifteenth interview, no new data and information were identified by the researchers, and in fact, the coding process took place until the realization of theoretical adequacy. The interviews were conducted in a semi-structured manner and without directing the interviewee in person. Given that the statistical population of the research in the second phase, biopharmaceutical companies are active in innovation networks, the number of companies is equal to 70 companies and the sample size was determined based on Morgan table equal to 58 companies. 60 questionnaires were distributed among bio-pharmaceutical companies and finally 32 questionnaires that could be analyzed were received.

  In this research, observing the ethical principles of qualitative research, the text of the interviews was transcribed and by carefully studying these texts, open coding was done sentence by sentence. The concepts and codes extracted, considering the duplicate codes, are 37 items, which were reduced to 9 sub-themes in the first step and four sub-themes in the second step by categorizing similar and well-understood items, and finally, According to the research findings, network capabilities can be divided into two categories: general capabilities of active presence in the network and networking or network management capabilities. The results of confirmatory factor analysis show that "active presence in the network" is more related to the network capabilities of companies than "network management" in terms of factor load. Also, other findings obtained from factor analysis show that among all the dimensions related to the network capabilities of companies, extra-organizational capabilities have the highest priority. Findings also show that small firms have more general capabilities of active presence in the network and network management capability is related to larger firms, which are often known as hub.

In general, the role of large and central companies (hubs) is very important in networks, both during and after their formation. In fact, the networks studied in the country show that in the field of biopharmaceuticals, networks have been formed around these companies and have continued their activities and even expanded their activities, and considering the recent significant developments. In this area, the findings of this study can be a good model for other technological areas and provide useful lessons for companies. For future research, it is suggested that the role of corporate network capabilities, including general capabilities and managerial and orchestral capabilities in the development of corporate performance and outputs in innovation networks in other areas. To be examined technologically. Another suggestion of the research is to investigate the role of effective variables in the development of corporate network capabilities in networks and according to the theories of relationship between industry and academia, followed by the three-helix theory of the role of regulatory institutions. And the facilitator should be considered in the networks. It is also suggested that the challenges of corporate cooperation in innovation networks and how the role of network capabilities in solving them be examined.