This study attempts to establish the importance of specific formally achieved higher skills for the innovation intensity in firms across a group of European countries. Innovation expenditures are calculated as the ratio to turnover and the main explanatory variable is the proportion of highly skilled employees (tertiary education in ICT-oriented or other fields). The analysis employs official data on innovation activities (Community Innovation Survey) in firms for the period 2004–2010, linked to registers on education and businesses as well as to the Structural Business Statistics including 34,000 observations. Estimation results show a strong significantly positive relationship between the innovation intensity and the proportion of highly ICT skilled employees. Higher skills outside the field of ICT are also important for the innovation activities. Control variables reveal that the innovation intensity significantly increases with joint national and EU funding while the role of firm age varies. The significant and negative link to firm size reveals a lack of advantages of scale, a finding possibly related to the use of a comprehensive measure of innovation activities. There are also indications that industry affiliation is essential for the innovation intensity.

本研究试图确定特定正式获得的更高技能对一组欧洲国家公司创新强度的重要性。创新支出计算为营业额的比率，主要解释变量是高技能员工的比例（面向 ICT 或其他领域的高等教育）。该分析采用了 2004 年至 2010 年期间公司创新活动的官方数据（社区创新调查），与教育和企业注册以及结构性商业统计数据相关，包括 34,000 次观察。估计结果表明，创新强度与高 ICT 技能员工的比例之间存在很强的显着正相关关系。ICT 领域以外的更高技能对于创新活动也很重要。控制变量表明，创新强度随着国家和欧盟联合资助而显着增加，而企业年龄的作用则有所不同。与公司规模的显着负相关揭示了缺乏规模优势，这一发现可能与使用综合衡量创新活动有关。也有迹象表明，行业从属关系对于创新强度至关重要。