Feasibility study: Construction of a Dataset on MNEs in the Swedish Innovation System

Purpose and goal

The aim of this pre-study was to develop and evaluate different alternatives for the construction of (1) a broad dataset covering all public and private firms and as well as other economic actors (e.g. business associations) in Sweden for several years starting as early as possible (DS1), b) a dataset for selected multinational companies. active in Sweden and their positioning in global value chains (DS2) and c) the possibility of combining DS1/DS2 with data from Statistics Sweden (SCB) for groups of MNEs.

Expected results and effects

By the analyses of the pre-study the general feasibility of the endeavors aiming at the construction of the core datasets DS1 and DS2 ideally linked to further SCB data could be proven. The authors of this feasibility study assert that within a continuation project it will be possible to construct a data infrastructure about the role of MNEs in Sweden and their positioning in the global value chains, which is accessible to a broader community of Swedish researchers under low financial or administrative burdens.

Planned approach and implementation

A core part of the project was to screen available data sources and assess their value for the construction of the datasets DS1 and DS2. The evaluation criteria were comprehensiveness, costs, and public access. Based on in-depth analyses finally the Serrano database was chosen. A second part of the project was to use Serrano for the construction of robust business group identifiers using the integrated business group information.