ETD

• business model innovation
• digital transition
• digitalisation
• firm-level innovation
• green transition
• industry 4.0
• innovation policy
• institutional quality
• Italy
• managerial capability
• national recovery and resilience plan (NRRP)
• new institutional economics (NIE)
• next generation eu (NGEU)
• twin transition

This thesis analyses how Italy’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP), within the Next Generation EU (NGEU) framework, influences firm-level innovation outcomes. Using the lens of New Institutional Economics (NIE), the study examines how institutional design, governance quality, and administrative capacity shape firms’ engagement with public innovation policies. The empirical analysis relies on a firm-level dataset collected by Centro Studi Tagliacarne, Unioncamere, and applies probit models with Average Marginal Effects to assess the relationship between NRRP participation and different forms of innovation, including digital technologies and business model innovation. The results show that NRRP participation is associated with higher innovation engagement, particularly in digital transformation, and that institutional quality and managerial capabilities play a key role in moderating these effects. The findings highlight the importance of reducing administrative barriers and strengthening institutional capacity to enhance the effectiveness of large-scale recovery and innovation policies.