8158.0 - Innovation in Australian Business, 2006-07 Quality Declaration 
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 22/08/2008   
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Contents >> Business practices related to innovation >> SOURCES OF IDEAS AND INFORMATION FOR INNOVATION

SOURCES OF IDEAS AND INFORMATION FOR INNOVATION

Key inputs for innovation are ideas and information. Innovation-active businesses were asked to report the sources of ideas and information used for developing or introducing new goods, services, processes or methods. Businesses could select more than one source and a ranking of importance was not required.

INNOVATION-ACTIVE BUSINESSES: Sources of ideas or information for innovation(a)(b), by employment size - 2006-07
0-4 persons
5-19 persons
20-199 persons
200 or more persons
Total
%
%
%
%
%
Within this business or related company
50.0
57.1
71.8
83.1
55.5
Clients, customers or buyers
44.4
43.9
43.2
41.4
44.1
Suppliers
26.7
40.6
26.9
29.4
31.7
Competitors and other businesses from the same industry
28.4
31.2
27.9
35.2
29.4
Consultants
12.7
17.4
30.6
35.4
16.7
Universities or other higher education institutions
2.8
2.0
3.5
4.4
2.6
Government agencies
3.4
4.6
5.9
6.9
4.1
Private non-profit research institutions
1.7
0.8
1.9
1.9
1.4
Commercial laboratories/research and development enterprises
2.5
1.4
1.6
4.6
2.0
Websites, journals, research papers, publications
34.6
30.4
25.2
19.7
31.8
Professional conferences, seminars, meetings, trade shows
23.0
24.3
25.1
27.1
23.8
Industry associations
16.5
20.9
23.6
23.0
19.0
(a) Proportions are of innovation-active businesses in each employment size category.
(b) Businesses that were innovation-active were for the sources of ideas and information used for innovation. Businesses could identify more than one source.


The most frequently reported sources of ideas or information for innovative activity by innovation-active businesses were Within the business or related company (56%); Clients, customers or buyers (44%); and Web sites, journals, research papers, publications and Suppliers (both 32%). Universities or other higher education institutions at 3% were among the least frequently reported sources of ideas or information by innovation-active businesses.

The use of Consultants as a source of ideas or information increased with each successive employment size range. Conversely, Web sites, journals, research papers, publications as a source decreased with each successive employment size range.

Across industry, with the exceptions of Construction and Retail Trade, the most commonly reported sources of ideas or information was from Within the business or related company. For Construction, the most frequently reported source was Clients, customers or buyers and for Retail Trade, it was Suppliers.

The use of Universities or other higher education institutions and Government agencies as a source of ideas or information for innovation was relatively low across most industries, apart from the Health Care and Social Assistance, where 9% of innovation-active businesses sourced ideas from Universities or other higher education institutions and 16% from Government agencies.







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