New Delhi, January 21, 2013: A study of the global environment for innovation reveals that Indian enterprises overwhelmingly recognize that it is vital for business; but when compared with the environment for innovation in other countries, this country is outstripped by half a dozen others including US, USA, Germany, Canada, Sweden and Singapore.
GE has released the results of its third annual “Global Innovation Barometer”, a report that outlines the global context for innovation including India. The survey, conducted amongst 100 business executives in India, says that 94% of the respondents recognize and accept innovation as the urgent need for business. There is a greater societal support towards innovation with 83% of the respondents agreeing that the general public is convinced of the value innovation can bring to their day-to-day life and accepts that taking risks is part of the innovation process. The society as a whole is supportive of innovation and there is an increasing appetite for innovation particularly among young generations.
India –specific findings:
94% recognize innovation as a business priority.
55% of business executives from the 25 markets regard the Indian environment for innovation as strongly innovation-conducive.
67% of Indian business executives report that their country has a strongly innovation conducive environment.
83% believe that there is an increasing acceptance towards innovation by the Indian society.
85% believe that collaborative innovation is the key to success in India with 91% agreeing that their companies will be more successful at innovation through partnerships.
85% respondents believe that localization is the key to innovating successfully in India.
The “GE Global Innovation Barometer” was commissioned by GE and conducted by research and consulting firm, StrategyOne, to identify drivers and deterrents of innovation as well as to analyze perceptions around innovation opportunities and challenges. The report has covered 25 countries across the world.
Says Beth Comstock, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of GE “Innovators must be resilient or risk being left behind. Change has become constant and we see leaders responding by betting big on more unconventional approaches to innovation to unlock growth. At GE, we are exploring different markets, partnership structures and business models – all in the pursuit of uncovering new ways to better serve our customers and meet the world’s biggest challenges head on.”
There is a growing consensus behind the belief for innovation to embrace the specifics of local market needs. An overwhelming 85% of the respondents believe that understanding the customers and anticipating market evolution is the key to innovating successfully in India.
Adds John Flannery, President and Chief Executive Officer of GE India: “In India GE is cognizant of this trend; our building blocks of growth are governed by principles of collaboration, partnership & increased focus on localization, resulting in innovative products and solutions that are customized for India and similar markets”.
Some innovations that reflect GE’s strategy of innovation inspired by local needs include MAC series of ECG systems, Lullaby series of Maternal Infant care systems, VIVID P3 Cardiac Ultrasound imaging systems and Value Voluson- an ultrasound equipment that delivers desired functionality of existing alternatives at literally half the price in most cases.
Read the India country report here