9. The Influence of Business Ecosystems on Innovation-Based Industries: A Research on the Mechanical Sector in Italy

The business ecosystem perspective can be considered as a more advanced point of view for interpreting the development of local economic systems, if compared to more traditional concepts such as clusters, industrial districts, local or regional systems, and local networks. The business ecosystem perspective allows to better highlight the adaptive and evolutionary nature of local systems in front of the changing external environment and dynamics on national and international markets. The aim of the research was to analyze the key characteristics of firms belonging to a local business ecosystem specialized on an innovation-driven industry – the mechanical sector – in order to verify which kind of influence the local context still exerts on firms’ management, competitiveness, and relationships. A quantitative survey has been conducted on a sample of 104 firms located in Italy, focusing on organization, strategies, and relationships with both the internal (at the local system level) and external networks, and to relationships with the local environment and market. Results highlight the ability of firms belonging to a business ecosystem to take advantage of innovation diffusion processes and also to better develop the quality of products. An important issue that emerges is related to the cohesion of ties within the local context. When relationships are based on knowledge exchange, the evolution of smaller and weaker firms can be fostered, bringing to a general strengthening of the local system.