Two trends are converging: first, the world is increasingly interlinked and interdependent; second, the balance of economic power is shifting away from the traditional 'West' and towards countries such as China, India and Brazil.
As a result, traditional sources of competitive advantage are being eroded and the capacity to innovate is becoming more important.
However, globalisation is also changing the way innovation happens. Businesses are internationalising their R&D activities and sharing knowledge with external partners, and skilled people are becoming more mobile.
As a consequence, deriving value from innovation increasingly depends on absorbing ideas as much as creating them, and centres of excellence are becoming rarer as they become more excellent.
Published
December 2007
Author
NESTA
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