At the beginning of the twenty-first century it is common sense that science, technology and innovation will be of increasing importance to the well being of all. Nobody can turn a blind eye to the penetrating ways progress in communication technologies, new materials and biotechnology revolutionise our lives.
Although the conversion of science and technology into marketable products that cover societal needs is largely a matter of the private sector, the public sector has its role to play. European integration and liberalisation promote the interaction of various actors in science and technology. Also the perceived arrears with the United States and Japan has prompted the European Union to step up their R&D spending to reach 3% of gross domestic product by 2010. Individual Member States have taken concrete measures to promote their R&D, and Belgium is one of them. But there is a long and bumpy way to go still because of the slow growth rate the economies are currently experiencing and the tied budgetary constraints policy makers are confronted with. In the face of this it has to be acknowledged that many differences exist between countries. Differences are part and parcel of the internationalisation process and, within it, small open economies are confronted with specific opportunities and problems of their own.

This volume aims at informing and stimulating the debate on policy issues relating to science, technology and innovation. For those not acquainted with the subject it offers an introduction to the pallet of issues that play a role in the current state of affairs. Others might find the guidelines to policy more instructive. It is by no means the final word on thesubject.

Open innovation is about firms' external relations with other firms and organizations. It is a topic which has attracted an immense amount of attention, but which has also been heavily criticized due to the diversity of the ideas and fuzziness of its key concepts. To date, the bulk of the literature on open innovation draws on case study material to illustrate the operation of firms in an anecdotal way. By contrast, this book examines open innovation practices by using large-scale data sets and stresses their impact on firm performance. The authors examine four key issues: differences between firms in open innovation practices, public funding to enhance external relations, R&D outsourcing of firms, and the role of human resources in R&D and innovation. The conceptual and measurement issues attached to open innovation explored in this timely book will prove essential to academics. Practitioners from large firms who are closely engaged in the practical organization of open innovation will benefit from the authors insights on outsourcing R&D and the need for the right kinds of human resources.