The role of the companies on promoting economic development in emerging countries: An analysis of the Brazilian case

Innovation is a central tool in the industry’s search for better competitive conditions, by reducing costs, creating new products, the emergence of a new production process, or other factors. Therefore, in a context where the dynamism of the market demands a constant renewal of companies, knowledge plays an incisive role in economic development. However, innovation does not emerge from the effort of a single agent. The innovative activity is the result of a process involving several actors, national or sectoral. The "National System of Innovation" (NSI) approach presents the importance of interaction between institutions that are part of the innovation process. This approach emphasizes that the interaction between different actors of the economy influences the creation and diffusion of new technologies, which in turn boosts the technological progress of a country. In this scope, the fragility of the connections between institutions and companies in developing and emerging countries undermines the consolidation of the NSI and, consequently, jeopardizes its economic and social development. In this context, this study aims to identify the main issues that inhibit the consolidation of the innovation process on emerging countries. To do so, it is going to analyze Brazilian companies.