{"type":"script","doc_desc":{"producers":[{"name":"Reproducibility WBG","abbr":"DECDI","affiliation":"World Bank - Development Impact Department","role":"Verification and preparation of metadata"}],"prod_date":"2026-01-23","version":"1"},"project_desc":{"authoring_entity":[{"name":"Marcio Cruz","affiliation":"IFC","email":"marciocruz@ifc.org"},{"name":"Xavier Cirera","affiliation":"World Bank","email":"xcirera@worldbank.org"},{"name":"Diego Comin","affiliation":"Dartmouth College","email":"diego.comin@dartmouth.edu"}],"title_statement":{"title":"Reproducibility package for Technology Sophistication Across Establishments","idno":"PP_WLD_2025_516"},"data_statement":"Some data is restricted and has not been included in the reproducibility package. For more details, refer to the README file.","software":[{"name":"Stata","version":"18.5 MP"}],"scripts":[{"title":"Reproducibility package for Technology Sophistication Across Establishments","date":"2026-01","notes":"Computational reproducibility verified by Development Impact (DECDI) Analytics team, World Bank.","instructions":"See README in reproducibility package.","file_name":"PP_WLD_2025_516","zip_package":"PP_WLD_2025_516.zip","dependencies":"Stata dependencies are listed in the ado folder."}],"repository_uri":[{"name":"Reproducible Research Repository (World Bank)","uri":"https:\/\/reproducibility.worldbank.org"}],"production_date":"2026-01-23","abstract":"We study technology sophistication using a novel approach that measures the sophistication of the most advanced (MAX) and the most widely used (MOST) technologies in each of the key business functions within establishments. Using data from over 21,000 establishments across 15 countries, we find that establishments generally underutilize the most sophisticated technologies available within a business function. These MAX-MOST gaps are persistent and strongly associated with productivity both across establishments and countries. At the establishment level, there is substantial variation in both MAX and MOST, with MOST showing a more skewed distribution. MAX and MOST follow different lifecycle patterns in low-income countries and among small establishments, and they exhibit different associations with several establishment characteristics and performance indicators. This evidence underscores the different nature of the technology upgrading processes that drive MAX and MOST.","geographic_units":[{"name":"World","code":"WLD"}],"keywords":[{"name":"Technology"},{"name":"Firms"},{"name":"Business Functions"}],"topics":[{"id":"D22","uri":"https:\/\/www.aeaweb.org\/econlit\/jelCodes.php?view=jel","vocabulary":"Journal of Economic Literature (JEL)","name":"Firm Behavior: Empirical Analysis","parent_id":"D2"},{"id":" O14","uri":"https:\/\/www.aeaweb.org\/econlit\/jelCodes.php?view=jel","vocabulary":"Journal of Economic Literature (JEL)","name":"Industrialization \u2022 Manufacturing and Service Industries \u2022 Choice of Technology","parent_id":"O1"},{"id":"O33","vocabulary":"Journal of Economic Literature (JEL)","name":" Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes ","url":"https:\/\/www.aeaweb.org\/econlit\/jelCodes.php?view=jel","parent_id":"O3","uri":"https:\/\/www.aeaweb.org\/econlit\/jelCodes.php?view=jel"}],"output":[{"type":"Journal Article","description":"Journal Articles","title":"Technology Sophistication Across Establishments"}],"language":[{"name":"English","code":"EN"}],"technology_requirements":"Run time: ~ 30 minutes","disclaimer":"The materials in the reproducibility packages are distributed as they were prepared by the staff of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development\/The World Bank. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this event do not necessarily reflect the views of the World Bank, the Executive Directors of the World Bank, or the governments they represent. The World Bank does not guarantee the accuracy of the materials included in the reproducibility package.","license":[{"name":"Modified BSD3","uri":"https:\/\/opensource.org\/license\/bsd-3-clause\/"}],"contacts":[{"name":"Marcio Cruz","affiliation":"IFC","email":"marciocruz@ifc.org"},{"name":"Reproducibility WBG","affiliation":"World Bank","email":"reproducibility@worldbank.org"}],"technology_environment":"Paper exhibits were reproduced on a computer with the following specifications:\n\u2022 OS: Windows 11 Enterprise\n\u2022 Processor: INTEL(R) XEON(R) PLATINUM 8562Y+ 2.80 GHz (2 processors)\n\u2022 Memory available: 32.0 GB\n","reproduction_instructions":"Replication of this package was conducted in part through virtual verification due to data access restrictions. To reproduce the findings in this paper, a replicator must:\n1. **Secure Access to Data:** Access the datasets not included in the package. See subsection Datasets for more details.\n2. **Download and Place Data:** Once the data is accessed, users should place it in the appropriate folder.\n3. **Run the Package:** After placing the data in the folder, run the files in the order:\n      - Update the global in line 10 of the do-file \"0_master\" to your folder's location and run the do-file.\n\nSince not all underlying data are included in the package, it contains the outputs generated by the replicators. These files allow users to review and compare the results presented in the paper. A subset of exhibits was verified via virtual verification; these are identified in the reproducibility report, and the corresponding verification outputs are included in the folder 3_output\/Virtual verification.\n","datasets":[{"name":"Firm-level Adoption of Technology (FAT) Dataset","note":"This entry covers the datasets underlying the Firm-level Adoption of Technology (FAT) project, including the multi-country firm-level survey data, the technology sophistication grid rankings and validation data, relative productivity measures used for Q-cardinalization, and ISIC sectoral classifications.\n\nThe FAT survey is a multi-country, multi-sector representative firm-level survey covering 15 countries and collecting information on technologies used across key business functions. The survey files are located in 1_data\/ and include FAT0_raw_data_qje.dta and mgt_z.dta.\n\nThe technology sophistication grid data consist of expert rankings and validation exercises conducted using ChatGPT. These files are located in 1_data\/Figures_A12_A16\/ and include sector- and function-level CSV files for agriculture, apparel, food processing, retail, marketing, production planning, quality control, sales, sourcing, and related business functions.\n\nThe relative productivity dataset, located in 1_data\/ as relative_q_productivities.xlsx, contains author-generated productivity estimates used to construct Q-cardinalization indices, based on peer-reviewed academic research, structured expert interviews, industry studies, and commercial sources, following the methodology described in the appendix.\n\nThe ISIC classification data, located in 1_data\/ as isic_data.dta, provide sectoral classifications derived from establishment-level product descriptions in the FAT dataset.","access_type":"Data is publicly available but does not allow redistribution and it is not included in the reproducibility package.","citation":"Cirera, Xavier, Comin, Diego, and  Cruz, Marcio (Forthcoming). Technology Sophistication Across Establishments [Dataset]. The Quarterly Journal of Economics.","uri":"https:\/\/microdata.worldbank.org\/catalog\/8209","license_uri":"https:\/\/microdata.worldbank.org\/terms-of-use"},{"name":"Firm-level Adoption of Technology (FAT) - Poland Dataset","note":"The FAT dataset for Poland is hosted in the National Statistics Office. Some variables (see data dictionary) are only accessible in this center.  Access needs to be requested from Statistics Poland\nhttps:\/\/stat.gov.pl\/en\/\nFile location: 1_data\/\nFiles: TAS_naukowiec.dta","access_type":"Data access was granted directly to the study authors by the data owners\/managers. It was obtained with a custom data license that does not allow for redistribution and it is not included in the reproducibility package.","citation":"Cirera, Xavier, Comin, Diego, and  Cruz, Marcio (Forthcoming). Technology Sophistication Across Establishments - FAT Poland  [Dataset]. The Quarterly Journal of Economics.\n\n"},{"name":"World Development Indicators","note":"File location: 1_data\/\nFiles: country_stats_2080.xlsx","citation":"World Bank. 2024. \"World Development Indicators\" [Dataset]. Indicator accessed: Log of GDP per capita, PPP.  Accessed 2025. https:\/\/databank.worldbank.org\/source\/world-development-indicators","access_type":"Data is publicly available but does not allow redistribution and it is not included in the reproducibility package.","uri":"https:\/\/microdata.worldbank.org\/catalog\/8209","license_uri":"https:\/\/microdata.worldbank.org\/terms-of-use"},{"name":"Brazil Rela\u00e7\u00e3o Anual de Informa\u00e7\u00f5es Sociais (RAIS)","note":"These datasets were compiled by the authors using two data sources: Brazil Rela\u00e7\u00e3o Anual de Informa\u00e7\u00f5es Sociais (RAIS) 2017 and 2018 and  Firm-level Adoption of Technology (FAT) dataset for Brazil. The datasets are confidential, as they contain identifiable firm-level information (e.g., tax identifiers). Access to the underlying RAIS microdata must be requested from the Minist\u00e9rio do Trabalho e Emprego (https:\/\/www.gov.br\/pt-br\/servicos\/solicitar-vinculos-empregaticios-da-rais). See the README for additional details.\n\nFile location: Inputs\/\nFiles: RAIS_firm_level_2017.dta; RAIS_firm_level_2018.dta; FAT0_brazil.dta; FAT_treated.dta; Final_merged_RAIS_2017.dta\n\n","access_type":"Data access was granted directly to the study authors by the data owners\/managers. It was obtained with a custom data license that does not allow for redistribution and it is not included in the reproducibility package.\n","citation":"Cirera, Xavier, Comin, Diego, and  Cruz, Marcio (Forthcoming). Technology Sophistication Across Establishments - Brazil (RAIS-linked confidential data)  [Dataset]. The Quarterly Journal of Economics."},{"name":"Firm-level Adoption of Technology (FAT) Dataset - Interviewer Data","note":"These datasets include confidential information on interviewers from the Firm-level Adoption of Technology (FAT) dataset, as well as information from the original sampling frames provided by the National Statistical Offices of Brazil, Senegal, and Vietnam. See the README for more details.\n\nFile location: 1_data\nFiles: replication_C28-C29.dta; replication_tableC25-C27_brazil.dta; replication_tableC25-C27_senegal.dta; replication_tableC25-C27_vietnam.dta\n","access_type":"Data access was granted directly to the study authors by the data owners\/managers. It was obtained with a custom data license that does not allow for redistribution and it is not included in the reproducibility package.\n","citation":"Cirera, Xavier, Comin, Diego, and  Cruz, Marcio (Forthcoming). Technology Sophistication Across Establishments - Interviewer Data  [Dataset]. The Quarterly Journal of Economics."}]},"tags":[{"tag":"DOI"},{"tag":"Open Code"},{"tag":"Restricted Data"}],"schematype":"script"}