MEASURING KNOWLEDGE AND ITS ECONOMIC EFFECTS THE ROLE OF OFFICIAL STATISTICS Fred Gault Statistics Canada Advancing Knowledge and the Knowledge Economy National Academy of Sciences Washington D.C. January 10-11, 2005

OUTLINE System of National Accounts Knowledge A Systems Approach Context Learning and Doing Indicators Conclusions

System of National Accounts R&D Satellite Accounts Special Aggregations: Tourism, Energy, ICTs, High, Med, Low-Tech, … What about the KBE? –KBE Industries? –KBE Products? –Or, Education + Software + R&D (OECD)?

Knowledge What is it? Can we measure it? What can we measure? Does it have any place in ‘official statistics’?

A Systems Approach Actors –Governments –Businesses –Public Institutionsengage in Activities such as –R&D, Invention, Innovation, Diffusion of Practices and Technologies, Human Resource Development….and there are

A Systems Approach Linkages –Sources of knowledge/technologies/people Clients, suppliers, competitors, networks, alliances, partnerships, … Regulators, legislators, standard makers, … –Networks of knowledge and practice Communities of practice Joint ventures …leading to

A Systems Approach Outcomes –More knowledge –Intellectual property –Structural change –Employment levels –Skill levels –Quality of life –…giving rise to impacts.

Context For institutions in the knowledge system –Size, industry, labour force, location, legal conditions – all are linked –Economic and social framework conditions, trust. –Assumed to work in industrialized countries –Described by a mix of official and unofficial indicators

Learning and Doing Statistics about generation, transmission and use of knowledge focus on the person. Economic effects result from teams (firms, regions, countries …) Need indicators that describe the learning of a team, a firm, a region. There are indicators of knowledge management practices, and of involvement in alliances – but not yet official statistics

Indicators ActivitiesLinkagesOutcomes R&D Invention Innovation Diffusion Learningapplied to Firms, Universities and Governments as actors in a system

Conclusions Indicators can be used for –Monitoring –Evaluating –Benchmarking and –Foreseeing the future of the knowledge system Developing and revising indicators must be a collaborative undertaking, involving users, producers, and the data providers.