Why non-innovators don't innovate

Statistics Canada's Survey of Innovation 1999 collected information on the innovation activities of firms in Canadian manufacturing and selected natural resource industries. The results provide insight into why a firm chooses to take the path of innovation or opts to be a non-innovator. For most non-innovators, the perception is that innovation is not required or is irrelevant to their industry. Non-innovative firms analysed here are those that did not introduce a new or significantly improved product or process in the previous three years and that did not carry out any innovative activities during the survey period.