David Keeble MA PhD

University Lecturer (retired end September 2001) and Emeritus Fellow of St. Catharine's College

Industrial, economic and urban geographer, especially interested in industrial location dynamics and regional economic restructuring in the United Kingdom and European Union

Biography

Career:

1963-1968: University Demonstrator, University of Cambridge
1964-2000: Research Fellow, Teaching Fellow, Tutor, and Director of Studies, St Catharine's College, University of Cambridge
1968-2001: University Lecturer, Department of Geography, University of Cambridge
1971-1979: Chair, Economic Committee, East Anglian Economic Planning Council
1984-1987: Chair, Industrial Activity Research Group, Institute of British Geographers
1989-1994: Joint-Founder and Project Director, Cambridge University Small Business Research Centre
1990-1999: Member, Rural Development Commission Economic Committee
1994-1999: Joint-Founder, Assistant Director and Director of the SME (Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise) Research Programme of Cambridge University ESRC Centre for Business Research
1996-1999: Chair, European Commission Research Network on Regionally-Clustered High-Technology SMEs in Europe

Qualifications

Research

David Keeble is an internationally-renowned researcher into industrial location dynamics and local and regional economic restructuring in Britain and the European Union. His work has focused on studying industrial migration, the creation, location and growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the clustering of high technology industry, media and business services, and regional and urban-rural differences in business growth, performance and innovativeness in the United Kingdom and European Union.

He has published over 200 research articles, reports, books and book chapters in these fields, his numerous research projects having been funded by the ESRC, UK government departments (DTI, DE, DoE, RDC), and different European Commission Directorates-General.

His work has been recognised by the award in 1985 of the Royal Geographical Society's Gill Memorial Prize, and in 2002 of the Royal Geographical Society's Patron's Medal, one of the two Royal Gold Medals awarded by the Society each year. A Special Issue of the journal Regional Studies in his honour was published in 2004 (Vol. 38, No. 8), entitled 'Entrepreneurship and Regional Development'.

Publications

Selected publications:

Keeble, D. (2003) 'British SMEs in the 21st Century: North-South and Urban-Rural Variations in Performance and Growth': in: A. Cosh and A. Hughes (eds.) Enterprise challenged: policy and performance in the British SME sector 1999-2002. Cambridge: ESRC Centre for Business Research, University of Cambridge, 87-102
Nachum, L. and Keeble, D. (2003) Neo-Marshallian Clusters and Global Networks: the Linkages of Media Firms in Central London, Long Range Planning, 36, 5, 459-480. doi:10.1016/S0024-6301(03)00113-4
Nachum, L. and Keeble, D. (2003) MNE Linkages and Localised Clusters: Foreign and Indigenous Firms in the Media Cluster of Central London, Journal of International Management, 9, 171-192.
Athreye, S. and Keeble, D. (2002) Specialized Markets and the Behaviour of Firms: Evidence from the United Kingdom's Regional Economies, International Regional Science Review 25, 1, 38-62
Athreye, S. and Keeble, D. (2002) Sources of Increasing Returns and Regional Innovation in the UK, Regional Studies 36, 4, 345-357
Keeble, D. and Nachum, L. (2002) Why Do Business Service Firms Cluster? Small Consultancies, Clustering and Decentralisation in London and Southern England, Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, NS, 27, 1, 1-24
Nachum, L. and Keeble, D. (2002) Why Being Local Just Isn't Enough, Business Strategy Review, 13, 1, 37-42
Keeble, D. (2001) University and Technology: Science and Technology Parks in the Cambridge Region, ESRC Centre for Business Research, University of Cambridge, Working Paper 218, 30 pp
Keeble, D. and Kattuman P. (2001) The Density of Small and Medium-Sized Local Units: A Key to EU Regional Development? Ch 4, pp. 103-125 in European Commission, Enterprises in Europe, Sixth Report, Eurostat, Luxembourg
Nachum, L. and Keeble, D. (2001) External Networks and Geographic Clustering as Sources of MNE Advantages: Foreign and Indigenous Professional Service Firms in Central London, ESRC Centre for Business Research, University of Cambridge, Working Paper 195, 47 pp
Lawton Smith, H., Keeble, D., Lawson, C., Moore, B. and Wilkinson, F. (2001) University-Business Interaction in the Oxford and Cambridge Regions, Tidjschrift voor Economische en Sociale Geografie 92, 1, 88-99
Athreye, S. and Keeble, D. (2000) 'Technological convergence, globalisation and ownership in the UK computer industry.' Technovation 20: 227-245
Keeble, D. (2000) 'Collective learning processes in European high-technology milieux.' in: D. Keeble and F. Wilkinson (eds.) High-technology clusters, networking and collective learning in Europe. Aldershot: Ashgate, 199-229
Keeble, D. (2000) 'North-South and urban-rural differences in SME performance and behaviour.' in: A. Cosh and A. Hughes (eds.) British enterprise in transition: growth, innovation and public policy in the small and medium sized enterprise sector 1994-1999. Cambridge: ESRC Centre for Business Research, University of Cambridge, 87-100
Keeble, D. and Wilkinson, F. (eds.) (2000) High-technology clusters, networking and collective learning in Europe. Aldershot: Ashgate, 263 pp
Keeble, D. and Wilkinson, F. (2000) 'High-technology SMEs, regional clustering and collective learning: an overview.' in: D. Keeble and F. Wilkinson (eds.) High-technology clusters, networking and collective learning in Europe. Aldershot: Ashgate, 1-20
Longhi, C. and Keeble, D. (2000) 'High-technology clusters and evolutionary trends in the 1990s.' in: D. Keeble and F. Wilkinson (eds.) High-technology clusters, networking and collective learning in Europe. Aldershot: Ashgate, 21-56
Nachum, L. and Keeble, D. (2000) 'Localised clusters and the eclectic paradigm of foreign investment: film TNCs in central London.' Transnational Corporations 9(1): 1-37
Bryson, J., Henry, N., Keeble, D. and Martin, R. (eds) (1999) The economic geography reader: producing and consuming global capitalism. Wiley: Chichester, 481 pp.
Keeble, D. (1999) 'Urban economic regeneration, SMEs and the urban-rural shift in the United Kingdom.' in: E. Wever (ed) Cities on the threshold of the 21st Century. Utrecht: Utrecht Urban Research Centre.
Keeble, D., Lawson, C., Moore B. and Wilkinson, F. (1999) 'Collective learning processes, networking and 'institutional thickness' in the Cambridge region.' Regional Studies 33: 319-332.
Keeble, D. and Wilkinson, F. (1999) 'Collective learning and knowledge development in the evolution of regional clusters of high-technology SMEs in Europe.' Regional Studies 33: 295-303.
Keeble, D. and Wilkinson, F. (eds) (1999) Networking and collective learning in regionally-clustered high-technology SMEs in Europe. Final Report to DG XII, European Commission. Cambridge: University of Cambridge, ESRC Centre for Business Research, 144 pp.
Keeble, D. and Wilkinson, F. (eds) (1999) 'Regional networking, collective learning and innovation in high-technology SMEs in Europe.' Special issue of Regional Studies 3(4): 295-400.
Nachum, L. and Keeble, D. (1999) Neo-Marshallian nodes, global networks and firm competitiveness: the media cluster of central London. Working Paper 138. Cambridge: University of Cambridge, ESRC Centre for Business Research, 60 pp.
Keeble, D. (1998) Local industrial development and dynamics: the East Anglian case. Working Paper 96 Cambridge: University of Cambridge, ESRC Centre for Business Research, 56 pp.
Keeble, D. (1998) 'North-south and urban-rural variations in SME growth, innovation and networking in the 1990s.' in: A. Cosh and A. Hughes (eds) Enterprise Britain: growth, innovation and public policy in the small and medium sized enterprise sector 1994-1997. Cambridge: University of Cambridge, ESRC Centre for Business Research, 99-113
Keeble, D. (1998) 'Growth objectives and constraints.' in: A. Cosh and A. Hughes (eds) Enterprise Britain: growth, innovation and public policy in the small and medium sized enterprise sector 1994-1997. Cambridge: University of Cambridge, ESRC Centre for Business Research, 49-55
Keeble, D., Lawson, C., Lawton Smith, H., Moore, B. and Wilkinson, F. (1998) Collective learning processes and inter-firm networking in innovative high-technology regions. Working Paper 86 Cambridge: University of Cambridge, ESRC Centre for Business Research, 47 pp.
Keeble, D., Lawson, C., Lawton Smith, H., Moore, B. and Wilkinson, F. (1998) 'Internationalisation processes, networking and local embeddedness in technology-intensive small firms.' Small Business Economics 11: 327-342
Keeble, D., Lawson, C., Moore, B., Lawton Smith, H. and Wilkinson, F. (1998) 'Inter-firm links between regionally-clustered high-technology SMEs: a comparison of Cambridge and Oxford innovation networks.' in: W. During and R. Oakey (eds) New technology-based firms in the 1990. Volume IV, London: Paul Chapman, 181-196
Keeble, D., Lawton Smith, H., Lawson, C., Moore, B. and Wilkinson, F. (1998) 'Contrasting regional innovation systems in Oxford and Cambridge.' in: J. de la Mothe and G. Paquet (eds) Local and regional systems of innovation, Boston: Kluwer Academic Publishers, 125-148
Keeble, D.E. (1997) 'Small firms, innovation and regional development in Britain in the 1990s.' Regional Studies 31(3): 281-293 [also published as Working paper 42. ESRC Centre for Business Research, University of Cambridge, 1996]
Keeble, D.E., Bryson, J.R. and Wood, P. (1997) 'The creation and growth of small business service firms in post-industrial Britain.' Small Business Economics 19(4): 345-360