Resumo

The automotive industry has been facing an unprecedented global technological transformation which has been seriously affecting its companies’ economic results in the last years. During a long lasting economic crisis reinforced by pandemic consequences, the accuracy of investments in alternative technology products and services will determine their future competitiveness and compliance to new environmental and safety standards. Countries as Germany and Brazil, which depend on their auto industry economic performance, are supporting the transition through 'green' innovation policies programs.

The way countries manage the deployment of 'green' innovation policies within their national sectorial ecosystem can enhance the competitiveness of the companies operating inside. Since innovation policy is a relatively new addition to policy-makers’ agenda and there is still an important gap for academic contribution in this field of research, despite its well-known influence in nations economic and social prosperity, the following research question is addressed: How contextual factors influence the definition and deployment of effective 'green' sectorial innovation policies?

Sectorial policies are used by governments to unblock countries’ potentials. Specific steps need to be taken for a nation to assure effective results from 'green' innovation policy deployment. The accuracy of policy objectives and the coordination of its processual steps depends on contextual factors such as the industry relevance, its dependence on the current economic system and the government comprehension of the interests preventing the development of a new technology. The understanding of the context that influences "green' innovation policy programs deployment may determine its sucess.

The study applies cases oriented comparative method to analyze the 'green' innovation policies applied for the development of the automotive sector in Germany and Brazil. This method of research provides adequate resources for the evaluation of the relation established between a setting of observed variables (e.g. sector issues, innovation policy goals, innovation policy instruments design and innovation policy governance) and their consequence (e.g. outcomes of innovation policy deployed) in macrosocial units of analysis (e.g. countries) according to particularities of their contexts.

The context is not only relevant for the definition of ‘Innovation Policy Goals’, but it has direct and indirect influence over the effectiveness of the whole program whatever can be the objectives defined on it. Brazil lower innovation capacity, for instance, put the country in disadvantage with Germany even if both targeted the same goals or if they have applied the same instruments once their programs governance depends on the innovation policy experience cumulated by a nation government and the skill and knowledge of the labor of the industry it refers to.

By comparing Brazil and Germany Automotive Industry programs it shows that, meanwhile nation’s and its local industries’ interests drive and constrain the definition of ‘National Sector Issues’ and, as a consequence, the ‘Innovation Policy Goals’, the design and deployment of the program (i.e. ‘Innovation Policy Design’, ‘Innovation Policy Outcomes’ and ‘Innovation Policy Governance’) mainly depends on the innovation capacity of the government and local industries (i.e. Automotive, Parts and Fuel industry, in this case) to manage and deliver its promises (Edler & Fagerber, 2017)

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