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30-OCT-2018
China and Europe post double digit increases in R&D spending
- China and Europe increase R&D spending the most as global R&D investment reaches US$782bn
- 88 companies outperform industry peers on sustained financial success with modest R&D spend
- Amazon retains top spot as world’s largest corporate spender on R&D
- Apple regains top rank as world’s most innovative company from Alphabet; Netflix joins top 10 for first time, according to global survey of R&D leaders and managers
- The consumer industry saw the highest R&D spend, overtaking the software & internet industry for the first time in five years
- Alignment: 77% of fastest growing firms say their innovation strategies are highly aligned with their business strategies, compared with 54% of respondents that report the same growth, and 32% of respondents that report slower growth.
- Culture: 71% of respondents that report their companies’ revenues are growing faster than competitors say their corporate cultures are highly aligned with their innovation strategy, compared with 53% of companies that report the same growth, and 33% of companies that report slower growth.
- Leadership: 78% of companies reporting higher than peer revenue growth say their executive team is highly or closely aligned with R&D investment and innovation strategy, compared with 62% for same-growth companies, and 53% for slower-growth companies.
- Amazon maintained the top spot as the largest spender on R&D in the Global Innovation 1000 study, for the second year in a row. Sanofi and Siemens rejoined the Top 20 spenders globally.
- Apple regains the top rank as the world’s most innovative company from Alphabet, while Netflix joins the top 10 most innovative companies list for the first time, according to a global survey of R&D leaders and managers.
- The consumer industry overtook the software & internet industry for the first time in five years, experiencing fastest year-on-year growth in R&D spending (26% vs 20.6%)
- Healthcare industry in on track to become the biggest R&D spending sector by 2020.
- Computing & electronics, healthcare and automotive industries together represent 60% of global corporate R&D spending in 2018.
- China and Europe saw increases in the number of companies in the Top 1000, while North America (-5%), Japan (-6%) saw decreases.
- The complete study and information on the methodology can be found at www.strategyand.pwc.com/innovation1000
- The high-leverage innovator analysis was first conducted in 2006, finding 94 companies that fit the criteria; and 118 in 2007. For the purpose of this year’s study, we compared the list across three years: 2007, 2012, and 2017, to provide a 15-year performance window (each list draws on the previous five years of data). Only two companies qualified as high-leverage innovators in all three periods examined: Stanley Black & Decker and Apple.
- Companies defined as high-leverage innovators had the following six features: 1.They closely align innovation strategy with business strategy. 2. They create company-wide cultural support for innovation. 3. Their top leadership is closely involved with the innovation program. 4. They base innovation on direct insights from end-users. 5. They rigorously control project selection early in the innovation process. 6. They excel at each of these first five characteristics and have been able to integrate them to create unique customer experiences that can transform their market.
- Even during the 2007-2012 period, the research finds that high-leverage innovators dramatically outperformed the rest of the Strategy& 2018 Global Innovation 1000, suggesting that during the Great Recession, high-leverage innovators recovered more quickly and robustly.
- The Top Ten Most Innovative Companies, according to a global survey of R&D leaders and managers are 1. Apple; 2. Amazon; 3. Alphabet; 4. Microsoft; 5. Tesla; 6. Samsung; 7. Facebook; 8.General Electric; 9.Intel; 10. Netflix.
Press Release and Documents
Contacts
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Rowena MearleySenior Manager, Global CommunicationsUnited Kingdomrowena.mearley@pwc.com-+44 7730 598 643
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