Economic governance models of European automotive industry centers

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to summarize the results of the research program called “Regional cooperation models of Western and East-Central-European automotive industry centers” in the framework of the TÁMOP 4.1.1.F-03/1-2013-000 project “The development of the economic and social field of activity of the regional innovation and technological knowledge centre of the automotive industry at the Széchenyi István University.”

Observing regional political developments, it is obvious that the postmodern era surpassed modernity. In the modern era (Fordism), the state used centralized and inflexible market regulations, while the characteristics of postmodernism (post-Fordism) are flexibility, decentralization, and direct market regulations.

Modern economic development focused on supply, building hard infrastructure, applying top-down approaches and the beneficiaries were the economic actors. Nowadays’ postmodern era, on the other hand, relies on economic governance: it is demand-focused, underlines soft investments, applies bottom-up approaches and tends to focus on the cooperation of economic, R&D and scientific organizations. In my point of view, this development does not mean that the tools of the modern era disappeared but they coexist with postmodern ones, the two often strengthening each other.

The reason of the research program is to summarize the European automotive industry centers’ best practices in order to help the institutionalization of the Győr Automotive Career Model. The paper sums up the most important research results (based on about 19 automotive industry centers in 9 countries) and outlines the regional collaboration and career models of European automotive industry centers.

The findings reveal cooperation at different levels and forms of organization among the players in the given settlements. These types of cooperation may fall into the following categories: 1. between (local) government entities and companies in the field of economic development, 2. between companies and higher education institutions in the field of research and development, 3. cooperation in the field of vocational training, 4. multilateral cooperation systems involving a large number of participants. There are many figures in the article summarizing, for example, local economic development policy stages, the most important characteristics of the automotive centers and the cooperation models of European automotive industry centers.