The biotechnology sector in a latecomer country: The case of Poland

This paper offers a detailed firm-level analysis of innovation strategies, exporting activities and employment and sales dynamics of Polish biotechnology companies. The study is based on the unique dataset provided by three runs of the Polish edition of the Community Innovation Survey (CIS). Poland is a latecomer in the biotechnology industry, as are all the Central and Eastern European Countries (CEECs). In addition, the Polish biotechnology sector faced relatively unfavorable starting conditions: no partners in the pharmaceutical industry and, unlike some other CEECs, little government support. Nevertheless, biotechnology companies have developed in several Polish industries. It is shown that these companies implement innovation strategies that are typical for the biotechnology sector; however, they do not cooperate much with their clients. The innovation expenditure of biotechnology companies is distinctively higher than that of other companies. In addition, government and EU grants play a crucial role in funding the R&D activities of Polish biotechnology companies. This reflects the change in the innovation policy in Poland, but also raises the question of the sustainability of these efforts. Biotechnology companies are strongly export-oriented but, contrary to expectations, their dynamics are average: when controlling for firm characteristics and export performance, biotechnology companies neither outperform nor underperform other companies in terms of sales or employment growth.