Back to History Current Version

Innovation Vouchers

Last registered on August 30, 2016
View Trial History

Pre-Trial

Trial Information

General Information

Title
Innovation Vouchers
RCT ID
AEARCTR-0001556
Initial registration date
August 30, 2016

Initial registration date is when the trial was registered.

It corresponds to when the registration was submitted to the Registry to be reviewed for publication.

First published
August 30, 2016, 12:36 PM EDT

First published corresponds to when the trial was first made public on the Registry after being reviewed.

Locations

Country
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Region

Primary Investigator

Name
Jonas Heite
Affiliation
Contact Primary Investigator

Other Primary Investigator(s)

Additional Trial Information

Status
On going
Start date
2016-04-18
End date
2017-11-01
Keywords
Finance & Microfinance
Additional Keywords
JEL code(s)
Secondary IDs
Abstract
Innovate UK started an Innovation Vouchers programme in 2012 to provide support SMEs for their innovation activities. The programme provides SMEs from all sectors financial support of up to £5000 (excluding VAT) for engaging the services of experts from academia, research and technology organisations or the private sector to pursue a certain innovative project within the firm. The programme was conducted in several rounds each year. The evaluation of the programme focuses on the three most recent rounds (Rounds 11-13).

The Innovation Vouchers programme operates as a Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT), which is designed to evaluate causal evidence on the impact and effectiveness of the programme.

In particular, the project team aims to answer the following key questions:
1) Do businesses that are given an Innovation Voucher have more collaboration with external partners than those not given one?
2) Do businesses that are given an Innovation Voucher have more innovation activities than those not given one?
3) Do businesses that are given an Innovation Voucher have a higher innovation output than those not given one?
4) Do businesses that are given an Innovation Voucher have better business performance indicators than those not given one?

Within the analysis, several outcome measures are taken into consideration in order to analyse the impact of the Innovation Vouchers programme.

Hyothesis 1: Innovation vouchers have a positive effect on a firm’s collaboration with external partners.
Primary indicator: Percent of innovation activities conducted with the help of external partners.

Hyothesis 2: Innovation vouchers have a positive effect on a firm’s innovation activities.
Primary indicator: Percent of firm's turnover spent on innovation.

Hyothesis 3: Innovation vouchers have a positive effect on a firm’s innovation output.
Primary indicator: Percent of turnover coming from new or improved products or services.

Hyothesis 4: Innovation vouchers have a positive effect on a firm’s business performance indicators.
Primary indicator: Business turnover.
External Link(s)

Registration Citation

Citation
Heite, Jonas. 2016. "Innovation Vouchers." AEA RCT Registry. August 30. https://doi.org/10.1257/rct.1556-1.0
Former Citation
Heite, Jonas. 2016. "Innovation Vouchers." AEA RCT Registry. August 30. https://www.socialscienceregistry.org/trials/1556/history/10472
Sponsors & Partners
Experimental Details

Interventions

Intervention(s)
Intervention Start Date
2016-04-18
Intervention End Date
2017-11-01

Primary Outcomes

Primary Outcomes (end points)
Percent of innovation activities conducted with the help of external partners
Percent of firm's turnover spent on innovation
Percent of turnover from new products/services
Business turnover [in £]
Primary Outcomes (explanation)

Secondary Outcomes

Secondary Outcomes (end points)
Secondary Outcomes (explanation)

Experimental Design

Experimental Design
The Innovation Vouchers programme operates as a Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT).
Experimental Design Details
Randomization Method
Randomly allocated by innovation voucher portal
Randomization Unit
Firm
Was the treatment clustered?
No

Experiment Characteristics

Sample size: planned number of clusters
2100 firms
Sample size: planned number of observations
2100 firms
Sample size (or number of clusters) by treatment arms
1600 firms treatment
Minimum detectable effect size for main outcomes (accounting for sample design and clustering)
Supporting Documents and Materials
IRB

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs)

IRB Name
IRB Approval Date
IRB Approval Number
Analysis Plan

Post-Trial

Post Trial Information

Study Withdrawal

There is information in this trial unavailable to the public. Use the button below to request access.

Request Information

Intervention

Is the intervention completed?
No
Data Collection Complete
Data Publication

Data Publication

Is public data available?
No

Program Files

Program Files
Reports, Papers & Other Materials

Relevant Paper(s)

Reports & Other Materials