Cluster nodes as a unit for value co-creation: The role of information technologies in competitiveness of the oil and gas industry

Abstract

Both the national competitiveness paradigm and cluster theory have prompted decision-makers in emerging countries to take a closer look at the cluster approach, and to consider the possibility of using this approach to boost economic growth. However, this has not led to wider use of cluster analysis as a major instrument for studying complex economic processes in these countries. The reason for this is that the majority of the reviewed concepts of cluster development implemented in emerging countries, such as Kazakhstan and Russia, use of the cluster approach based on foreign experience disregarding the importance of initial local conditions. Thus a more formal study of clusters in emerging countries, taking into account the impact of institutional factors and the individual structural uncertainty of economic systems, recurrent crises and market shocks, is required This research fills the gap by proposing a cluster node as a unit of analysis that allows subdivision of any big industrial and commercial groups, of economic sectors, and of multinational enterprises (MNE) and other structures, into interconnected nodes of a smaller scale, and applying this up to the smallest nodes that are of interest to researchers. This concept will create theoretical foundations for the transformation of national economic clusters, which is strategically important for national governments seeking to attract foreign investments (FDI) and increase local content, thus attracting MNEs to invest in national economies. This research demonstrates how the concept of cluster nodes can be applied to the analysis of linkages between oil and gas industry (O&G) and industries responsible for the development of information and communication technology (ICT) in Kazakhstan.