FIS3 Advanced Grant

Project Title: Public Procurement as an Innovation Policy: Design, Competences and Outcomes.

Principal Investigator: Giancarlo Spagnolo.The project is funded by the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MIUR).

Total funding: €1.806.966,40.

Duration: 2026-2031.

Short Description: Public procurement can play an important role in fostering innovation, yet the effectiveness of public procurement of innovation (PPI) and the factors that determine its success remain insufficiently understood. This project will  provide a comprehensive assessment of PPI, examining its impact on firms’ innovative activity and identifying ways to improve procurement policies.

The research analyzes how public procurement affects firm-level innovation, exploiting policy reforms and regulatory changes to identify causal effects. It investigates the role of procurement design, including scoring auctions and green procurement criteria, and evaluates how procurement officers’ skills and experience influence innovation outcomes. The project also examines the effectiveness of the main PPI instruments introduced by the European Union, drawing on newly constructed datasets and advanced econometric methods to assess their determinants and long-term impacts. These analyses are complemented by case studies, structured interviews, and a large-scale survey of procurement professionals and suppliers across Europe. 

By generating new evidence on how procurement can stimulate innovation, the project hopes to both advance academic knowledge and provide practical guidance for policymakers. More effective innovation-oriented procurement may enhance public spending efficiency and generate substantial social benefits through the positive spillovers associated with innovation.

Conference organization: 

Post-Doc:

Papers