Measurement of innovation: selection of indicators and (mis)use of scoreboards

Description

The principal measurement and monitoring tool to assess the innovation performance of the EU member states is the European Innovation Scoreboard (EIS) and its Summary Innovation Index (SII). Given the diversity among innovation systems, one should be very careful when trying to draw policy lessons from the ‘rank’ of a country as ‘measured’ by a composite indicator. By its very nature, a scoreboard can only be constructed by using the same set of indicators across all countries, and by applying an identical method to calculate the composite index. Yet, analysts and policy-makers need to realise that poor performance signalled by a composite indicator, and leading to a low ranking on a certain scoreboard, does not automatically identify the area(s) necessitating the most urgent policy actions. Analysts and policy-makers, therefore, need to avoid the trap of paying too much attention to simplifying ranking exercises. Instead, it is of utmost importance to conduct detailed, thorough comparative analyses, identifying the reasons for a disappointing performance, as well as the sources of, and opportunities for, balanced, and sustainable, socio-economic development.

Period	10 Jun 2024
Event title	The 20th conference of the International Joseph A. Schumpeter Society: "Transformation: Creative Accumulation & Creative Destruction in the Economy"
Event type	Conference
Location	Gothenburg, SwedenShow on map
Degree of Recognition	International