Innovation, Democracy & Progress

A recent article in Management Today ranks the worlds countries in terms of innovation...........

Rank Country Score*

1 US 5.80
2 Germany 4.89
3 UK 4.81
4 Japan 4.48
5 France 4.32
6 Switzerland 4.16
7 Singapore 4.10
8 Canada 4.06
9 Netherlands 3.99
10 Hong Kong 3.97
11 Denmark 3.95
12 Sweden 3.90
13 Finland 3.85
14 UAE 3.81
15 Belgium 3.77
16 Luxembourg 3.72
17 Australia 3.71
18 Israel 3.68
19 South Korea 3.67
20 Iceland 3.66
21 Ireland 3.66
22 Austria 3.64
23 India 3.57
24 Italy 3.48
25 Norway 3.48
26 Malaysia 3.47
27 Spain 3.38
28 New Zealand 3.35
29 China 3.21
30 Kuwait 3.14
31 Estonia 3.12
32 Czech Republic 3.10
33 Chile 3.03
34 Thailand 3.01
35 Slovak Republic 2.97
36 Hungary 2.88
37 Mexico 2.88
38 South Africa 2.87
39 Portugal 2.86
40 Brazil 2.84

Is it a coincidence that out of the first 28 only one is not a democracy (U.A.E) ? - Not in our view. The very essence of innovation requires an informed debate amongst equals where every one's view is respected and listened to. This ideal is not always easy to reproduce with an overbearing Senior Manager present or a colleague who is both verbose and loud but if we are to innovate successfully we need to engender such a culture. This is much easier when the political culture is democratic and inclusive.

As Project Managers it is in our vested interest to provide conditions to promote discussion and the free flow of ideas if we are to innovate with success.