Evaluating research, technology and development in Canadian industry: Meeting the challenges of industrial innovation

Abstract

Canadian firms respond to the challenges and opportunities of global competition by increasing their research productivity and the rate of innovation. The competitive edge for Canadian industry must now be based on a new appreciation of the dynamics of R & D, as well as management practices and strategies which are relevant to the systems which underpin innovation. New R & D and management models are being adopted by firms to cope with the dynamic and complex nature of innovation, the growing importance of transactions and linkages within innovation systems and the range of financial, human, social and environmental factors which now impact on technology assessment and decision-making. Given this new paradigm, evaluation techniques are being created and adopted by Canadian industry which provide them with a greater understanding of the value of their research and enhance the agility of their technology management. But, these developments are not confined to industry. Of equal importance is the convergence of evaluation methods used in both industry and governments to assess research and technology. The methods used by industry are now the techniques employed by governments to assess their own R & D and to formulate industrial S & T policies and strategies.