研發投資一直是電子產業競爭力的基礎,根據過去線性模式的文獻,研發投資對企業績效具有正向影響,然而,研發投資是否越多越好呢?對於企業而言,經理人更在意的是研發投資的極限為何?在什麼時點研發投資的成本會超過研發投資的效益?因此,本研究以台灣上市(櫃)之電子產業為對象,透過縱橫資料(panel data)進行分析,探討研發投資與企業績效之曲線關係。實證結果顯示,研發投資與企業績效存在先遞增後遞減的倒U型曲線關係。此外,在創新績效部分,實證結果發現公司研發密集度的最適水準約為15.12%~16.81%,而在市場價值部分,公司之最適研發密集度水準為11.53%,因此,若投入過多的研發,反而導致創新產出與經營績效下降。最後,我國電子業之研發密集度約為3%~4%,比較最適研發密集度水準,本研究認為我國電子業在研發投資方面仍有很大的成長空間。
R&D investment has long been the firm foundation of the electronics industry's competitiveness. According to some prior literature on the linear model, R&D investment has a positive effect on innovation performance and company performance. However, there is still some question concerning whether more R&D investment is always better. As to enterprise, managers are more concerned about the limits of R&D investment. When do the costs of R&D investment exceed the benefits? This study uses Taiwan's electronics industry as a research sample and examines the curvilinear relationship between R&D investment and firm performance.In contrast to the inclusive findings of previous research, this study uses a panel data approach and shows that R&D investment has an inverted U-shape relationship with firm performance. The deferred effect lasts five years. Moreover, regarding innovation performance, the optimal R&D intensity ranges from 15.12% to 16.81%. Regarding market value, the optimal R&D intensity is about 11.53% for sample firms. Therefore, excessive investment in R&D will lead to decline in a company's performance. Finally, the R&D intensity of Taiwanese electronics industry is about 3% to 4%. This study concludes that the Taiwanese electronics industry still has great potential for additional R&D investment compared to the optimal R&D intensity level.