INNOVATION TYPOLOGY: COMPARATIVE STUDY ON CENTRAL EUROPEAN COUNTRIES

Purpose: The purpose of this research article is to present the importance of innovation for sustainable development of companies in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. This paper presents the topic of specific types of innovations that are conducted by companies with the main objective focused on analysis of differences among organizations based on the country of operation, company size and company maturity. Design/methodology/approach: The research method of data collection in this research was an extensive survey of enterprises from five EU countries. The research tool was an electronic questionnaire that was distributed to representatives and management of organizations. This research was part of a research project, which was realized during the period 2015-2018. Research objectives are achieved with extensive analysis using statistical Chi square testing of significance of differences found among selected groups of companies. Findings: The analysis in our research has shown several differences between analyzed countries, where Austrian and German companies conducted product innovation significantly more than Slovak and Czech companies. 54% of large companies have conducted technological innovation recently, while smaller companies conducted mainly product innovation. Growing companies conducted all types of innovation more than mature companies. Research/practical implications: The importance of innovation in current dynamic environment pushes companies into fast decisions regarding future development. Slovak and Czech companies need to sustain their competitiveness to Austrian and German companies mainly by increasing product innovations. Large companies may face slower pace of growth. Originality/value: This unique research consisting of 1482 companies provides important view on differences in behavior of companies. The originality of the research comes from the comparison of five European countries, where SK and CZ companies are compared to stronger economies as DE, AT and CH. Identified statistically significant differences provide managers important information that can lead to specific actions in their future innovation management.