USA: Survey on innovation shows it remains a priority and even or especially in a downturn

[BCG]Results of the Survey:

Innovation remains a strategy priority for the majority of companies, but the number that consider it a top priority is falling

Most companies expect to raise innovation spending in 2009, but they are growing increasingly cautious

Rejecting a growing sensitivity to costs, companies are increasingly leveraging rapidly developing economies (RDEs)

Simultaneously, companies are increasing their emphasis on innovation geared toward lowering production costs

Companies consider a risk-averse corporate culture and lengthy development times to the two biggest forces holding down their return on innovation spending

Customer satisfaction and overall revenues growth are the two main gauges that companies use to determine the success of their innovation efforts

C-level executives are more satisfied with the return on innovation spending than the rest of the company.

CEOs are the visible champions of innovation at most companies, yet fewer than 30 percent of respondents identified them as such, reflecting a void in leadership and a real opportunity for many companies

For the third straight year, respondents ranked the evergreens - Apple, Google and Toyota - the most innovative companies, with Apple the hands-down winner once again

While Companies should certain take a critical look at their innovation spending in the downturn, they should not make blanket reductions or adopt too defensive a stance. Indeed, the downturn offers an excellent opportunity to make bold strategic moves that can position a company for an economic rebound and fundamentally strengthen its long-term competitive position

Innovation 2009: making hard decisions in the downturn