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Chapter 10 New Horizons for Innovation Policy and Evaluation

  • Jari Kuusisto and Stephen Flowers
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The Evolving Innovation Space
This chapter is in the book The Evolving Innovation Space

Abstract

The chapter draws together implications of the work and looks ahead to the future of innovation policy and evaluation. We recognise the profound changes in the realm of innovation, and the shift from traditional, narrow approaches to a more inclusive and dynamically complex perspective. This transformation is influenced by a broader understanding of innovation, the impacts of crisis, climate change, and the evolution of societal structures. It highlights how outdated assumptions about innovation are being challenged by realities that include diverse contributors beyond just firms and traditional markets. Innovation is increasingly understood as embedded in the complexity of modern societal structures, characterized by deep interconnectivities. This creates a need for new policy evaluation frameworks and concepts. The ones that are flexible, dynamic, capable of addressing the multifaceted impacts of innovation across economic, environmental, and social domains. These frameworks must also account for the intersectionality present in modern societal issues, which are interwoven rather than discrete as well as the exponential, rather than linear, effects of innovation. Such approach reflects a shift from promoting technological advancement in isolation to fostering a broader range of innovations that include services, environmental sustainability, and social inclusivity. Finally, evaluations should not only seek to measure economic impacts but also how well policies promote inclusivity, environmental sustainability, and social equity.

Abstract

The chapter draws together implications of the work and looks ahead to the future of innovation policy and evaluation. We recognise the profound changes in the realm of innovation, and the shift from traditional, narrow approaches to a more inclusive and dynamically complex perspective. This transformation is influenced by a broader understanding of innovation, the impacts of crisis, climate change, and the evolution of societal structures. It highlights how outdated assumptions about innovation are being challenged by realities that include diverse contributors beyond just firms and traditional markets. Innovation is increasingly understood as embedded in the complexity of modern societal structures, characterized by deep interconnectivities. This creates a need for new policy evaluation frameworks and concepts. The ones that are flexible, dynamic, capable of addressing the multifaceted impacts of innovation across economic, environmental, and social domains. These frameworks must also account for the intersectionality present in modern societal issues, which are interwoven rather than discrete as well as the exponential, rather than linear, effects of innovation. Such approach reflects a shift from promoting technological advancement in isolation to fostering a broader range of innovations that include services, environmental sustainability, and social inclusivity. Finally, evaluations should not only seek to measure economic impacts but also how well policies promote inclusivity, environmental sustainability, and social equity.

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Preface V
  3. Contents VII
  4. Chapter 1 Introduction 1
  5. Part 1: Innovation Policy and Practice Today
  6. Chapter 2 What Do We Know about Innovation Policy? 15
  7. Chapter 3 Frascati Manual and Evolution in the Collection of Data on Work to Create New Knowledge 33
  8. Chapter 4 Societal Impact Evaluation at the Novo Nordisk Foundation 51
  9. Chapter 5 A Monitoring and Evaluation System for Complexity: A Case Study of the Brazilian National Innovation Policy 71
  10. Part 2: Innovation Policy and Practice Tomorrow
  11. Chapter 6 The Evolving Innovation Space: Variety of Innovations, Actors, Activities and Diffusion Mechanisms 103
  12. Chapter 7 Evaluating Inclusion as a Multidimensional Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Objective 123
  13. Chapter 8 Assessing Equity in R&D using the Inclusion-Immediacy Criterion 141
  14. Chapter 9 Free Innovation: Theory, Policy and Evaluation 155
  15. Chapter 10 New Horizons for Innovation Policy and Evaluation 171
  16. List of Figures 191
  17. List of Tables 193
  18. Index 195
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783111188218-010

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Preface V
  3. Contents VII
  4. Chapter 1 Introduction 1
  5. Part 1: Innovation Policy and Practice Today
  6. Chapter 2 What Do We Know about Innovation Policy? 15
  7. Chapter 3 Frascati Manual and Evolution in the Collection of Data on Work to Create New Knowledge 33
  8. Chapter 4 Societal Impact Evaluation at the Novo Nordisk Foundation 51
  9. Chapter 5 A Monitoring and Evaluation System for Complexity: A Case Study of the Brazilian National Innovation Policy 71
  10. Part 2: Innovation Policy and Practice Tomorrow
  11. Chapter 6 The Evolving Innovation Space: Variety of Innovations, Actors, Activities and Diffusion Mechanisms 103
  12. Chapter 7 Evaluating Inclusion as a Multidimensional Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Objective 123
  13. Chapter 8 Assessing Equity in R&D using the Inclusion-Immediacy Criterion 141
  14. Chapter 9 Free Innovation: Theory, Policy and Evaluation 155
  15. Chapter 10 New Horizons for Innovation Policy and Evaluation 171
  16. List of Figures 191
  17. List of Tables 193
  18. Index 195
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