Corporate Regional Engagement – Motives, fields and influencing factors

The active engagement of companies in their region was neglected in traditional theories but has been emphasised more recently. We investigate for three industries in Styria how strong and in which fields companies engage in their region and how this engagement relates to their level of regional integration. The study draws upon extensive qualitative interviews with companies, regional experts, politicians and university members. We conclude that companies engage in fields which are of central importance for their competitiveness such as the labour market and the regional innovation system. Engagement for social, environmental and quality of life aspects was found to be more cyclical and to depend on the economic situation of respective companies.