Main Drivers Of Innovation Research Articles

Who drives the creation of a novel vision? The role of individual insights and the ability of “letting go”

This study investigates how novel product visions emerge as team members share and fuse their insights. Existing studies contrast the merits of two possible paths. On the one hand, a vision is mainly conceived by the creative lead, putting forward a direction and then buying-in ownership of the other team members. On the other hand, a vision emerges as a balanced collaborative effort where all team members contribute. Through the sensemaking theoretical lens, we expand this discussion by proposing that regardless of who the main driver of innovation is, what is important in vision creation is the individual’s ability of “letting go” of early insights, namely sense-breaking. We analyze the vision creation dynamics of 26 top management teams. We capture how the verbal descriptions of a vision change from individual insights to a shared concept. We show how “letting go” of earlier creations is as important as adding new ones.

CEO’s Financial Background and Corporate Green Innovation

Innovation is the primary driving force for development, and enterprises, as the main drivers of innovation, are an important part of implementing the national innovation strategy. This paper, combining the perspective of the enterprise lifecycle, thoroughly examines the differential impact of the CEO’s financial background on green innovation in enterprises at different stages of the lifecycle. This study finds that the CEO’s financial background has a significant inhibitory effect on green innovation in enterprises, and this conclusion holds true after multiple robustness tests. From the perspective of the lifecycle, it is found that when enterprises are in the mature stage, the CEO’s financial background has a strong inhibitory effect on innovation output. The impact of the CEO’s financial background on green innovation output in the growth stage is relatively weak, while there is no significant impact on green innovation in the declining period. Furthermore, based on the enterprise lifecycle, it is found that the CEO’s financial background has a stronger inhibitory effect on green innovation in non-state-owned enterprises and high-tech industries. The research findings of this paper have important theoretical value and practical significance for promoting green innovation in enterprises and implementing the national innovation strategy.

The Future of Postsecondary Education in the Age of AI

This paper examines a possible future for postsecondary education in the age of AI. The consensus view among economists is that AI is a general purpose technology (GPT), similar to the steam engine, electricity, and the internet. As a GPT, AI will be the main driver of innovation for the foreseeable future in most sectors of the economy, including education. As AI evolves, it holds the promise of fundamentally redefining the educational landscape, influencing not only current practices in institutional management and pedagogy but also shaping future trends in learning, evaluation, and accreditation. While traditional college-aged students have received significant attention in educational studies, this paper emphasizes the needs of adult learners as lifelong learners and explores how AI-driven innovations can enhance their educational experiences, offering personalized and flexible learning solutions. This paper also argues that a dramatic breakthrough is needed in the cost–value equation for education to support workforce development and lifelong learning.

The role of renewable energy alliances in enhancing corporate innovation: Evidence from China

The increasing importance of innovation-driven development requires empowering enterprises as the main drivers of innovation in emerging energy technologies. The existing literature primarily emphasizes government support for renewable innovation, with limited research on external collaborations. This paper searches and collects announcements of listed renewable energy companies regarding strategic alliances during 2009–2021 to explore whether renewable energy alliances promote innovation and their mechanism to motivate innovation efforts, using the Two-way Fixed Effects Model. The main results suggest that renewable energy alliances increase innovation output significantly. The mechanism analysis reveals that establishing renewable energy alliances indirectly enhances innovation output via transaction cost savings and alleviates financing constraints. The heterogeneity analysis indicates that factors such as firm ownership, size, knowledge absorption capacity, green investor concerns, and enterprise life cycle significantly impact the innovation incentives from renewable energy alliances. This paper enriches the research on the drivers of renewable energy innovation and provides policy insights for encouraging autonomous innovation in renewable energy enterprises.

Realizing the benefits of a hydrogen industry in Kazakhstan

The prospects of hydrogen energy in Kazakhstan are mainly seen from an export-oriented perspective. There has been limited progress toward developing hydrogen-end use in Kazakhstan. This work presents a long-term vision on hydrogen end-use in the industry, transport and power sectors of Kazakhstan. The vision is fully aligned with the recently released Carbon-Neutrality Strategy of Kazakhstan and considers the experience of several countries which have developed a hydrogen strategy. Owing to the existing use of hydrogen in the chemical sector and refineries, these two were categorized as near-term end-use areas. The steel sector, heavy-duty transport (buses, trucks and railway) and hydrogen-fueled gas turbines are identified as mid-term end-use areas, as these options have fully matured to commercial use. Industrial heating, ships, aviation, power backup power and energy storage systems are long-term options. Developing hydrogen end-use requires dealing with technologies that have just entered the market and development stage technologies that are yet to reach commercial use. Both types rely on Kazakhstan's R&D and innovation capacity to make their economy cost-competitive. The analysis of R&D support in the country revealed systematic underfunding over the years compared with countries that have higher R&D capacity. The work also presents general approaches to hydrogen R&D in Kazakhstan for industry and academia, which are the main drivers of innovation.

IMPLEMENTATION OF THE ROLE OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT AS A STRATEGIC PARTNER, AGENT OF CHANGE AND INNOVATION

Companies are faced with rigorous challenges by meeting the ever-increasing needs and expectations of markets and customers. To ensure competitiveness and success, organizational managers need to accept innovation as a key organizational element. However, the main driver of innovation is human resources and to be successful it is necessary to support, plan and maintain a culture of innovation. Human resources are of little concern to people because the results of investment in human resources are difficult to quantify, difficult to see and are long-term in nature HR practitioners must have knowledge of the change process, so that they can fully understand the framework and plan for change and must have compatible leadership skills to ensure transition to increase productivity. This research is a research with a qualitative approach to the literature study or literature review used in this study. Literature review is used by looking for articles related to innovation-based HR development originating from published books, journals and all forms of writing related to the above matters. The conclusion from this literature review is that companies big or small need change agents when they want to change their structure, introduce new products/services or new technologies. A change agent helps an organization to shift to a new way of doing things and therefore we can say that a change agent is any person with the power and skills to facilitate and guide change efforts

RENAL7: Unmet Needs In Nephrology: Survey Results to Drive Innovation

Background: Renal Disease is an increasing cause of morbidity and mortality in the U.S. and around the world. Despite advances in diagnosis and therapy, as well as improvements in care technology, long-term outcomes for renal disease patients remain suboptimal. Innovation, as a science and methodology, is focused on developing solutions for advancement beyond the status quo. Central in innovation, is clear identification of opportunities for improvement. In medicine the main driver of innovation is the unmet need. We conducted a survey to identify unmet needs in Nephrology. Here we report on the results. Methods: A multi-question survey was developed by a team of practicing academic nephrologists, biomedical scientists, and innovators. The survey was distributed across the U.S. to practicing academic and non-academic nephrologists. The survey was web-based. The survey collected information on participants’ identification of unmet needs, barriers to achieving solutions to needs, and suggestions for improvement of current therapeutics and technology. Survey questions ranged from more general to specific, also addressing the specific topics of: hemodialysis, interventional nephrology, and transplantation. Results: A broad group of nephrologists responded to the survey from across the U.S. 76 % of respondents felt that Nephrology lags behind other specialties regarding innovation. In the general questionnaire, participants felt that treatment of inflammation and cardiac complications were the most significant unmet needs. The need to develop a bioartificial kidney for patients on hemodialysis was the most significant future need, recognized by 53.5% of respondents. Interestingly, at the same time, respondents felt that technical challenges and lack of investment might limit artificial kidney development. For interventional nephrology, 26% thought creating an AV fistula, which matures fast, is the most significant need. The availability of living donors was the most critical unmet need in transplantation. Conclusion: A broad survey of unmet needs was conducted across the U.S. which revealed a perspective of opportunity. Nephrology was generally felt to have lagged somewhat compared to other medical subspecialties. It was recognized however that there are unmet needs, many of which are ripe for incremental innovation; though some opportunities for revolutionary innovation exist as well. Through further analysis of this data details of specifics will provide starting points for the advance of nephrology into the future.

Historical evolution of innovations and factors of innovative transformations in the international financial market

Aim. The presented study aims to explore the historical evolution of financial innovations and identify the factors of innovative transformations in the international financial market.Tasks. The authors investigate major innovations in the international financial market; analyze historical factors of the market›s innovative transformation; consider the essence of the impact of the latest technological innovations on the market.Methods. This study is based on a historical analysis of the development of innovations in the international financial market and its most significant historical transformations.Results. It is found that innovative transformations are constantly taking place in the international financial market, predominantly as a result of the interaction between many factors. However, the main driver of innovation is the international financial market›s changing requirements for access to finance, which must correspond to sufficient supply in the market to cause radical transformations. Major innovative transformations witnessed by the markets are analyzed and possible scenarios for future transformations in international financial markets are developed.Conclusions. Conducting a comprehensive study of the historical development of innovations in the international financial market can be useful for achieving a deeper understanding of the market’s historical development and forecasting its future development in the context of innovations and factors influencing innovative transformations. However, these factors can also cause problems for the international financial market if it is not ready to adapt to changing conditions.

School leader trust and collective teacher innovativeness: on individual and organisational ambidexterity’s mediating role

ABSTRACT Surrounded by an environment of constantly changing social, technological, and natural conditions, today’s schools must dynamically improve and adapt to these conditions in order to survive. In this context, school leaders play an important role as the main drivers of innovation and change in education, trusting their team of teachers, and encouraging teachers’ innovativeness. Against this background, our study highlights the importance of creating an innovative working climate characterised by trust and experimentation. Our study is based on a cross-sectional, randomised and representative data set of N = 411 school leaders in Germany and applies mediated structural equation modelling. It examines the effect of school leader trust in teachers on teachers’ collective innovativeness as a prerequisite for school improvement and change, and the mediating role of individual and organisational exploration and exploitation as components of ambidexterity. The results of our analysis point to three main findings: First, school leaders’ trust in teachers has a significant direct relationship with teachers’ collective innovativeness. Second, the mediating variables of both school leader and school exploration have significant relationships with collective teacher innovativeness. Third, school leader exploration and exploitation are micro-foundations of organisational ambidexterity. By identifying manageable levers of change and providing prescriptive guidance on how schools can respond to dynamically changing environments, our study has implications for a theory of school improvement and change, for the practice of school improvement and change, and for education policy and frameworks for the training and professional development of teachers in general and school leaders in particular.

Digital inclusive finance, financial mismatch and the innovation capacity of small and medium-sized enterprises: Evidence from Chinese listed companies

As the main driver of innovation, enterprises can effectively promote the level of social innovation. This paper incorporates digital inclusive finance into the research framework of innovation in Small and Medium-sized enterprises, and investigates the impact of digital inclusive finance on the innovation ability of Small and Medium-sized enterprises through theoretical and empirical analyses. The theoretical analysis finds that digital inclusive finance can compensate for the “long-tail effect” in the financing process and help enterprises obtain financing loans. In terms of empirical analysis, this paper has conducted empirical tests by selecting the innovation data of Chinese A-share listed companies from 2010 to 2021, and the results show that: (1) Digital inclusive finance still has a facilitating effect on the technological innovation capability of Small and Medium-sized enterprises after the robustness test. (2)The mechanism evaluation finds that the digital inclusive finance segmentation indicators, i.e., the depth of use, the breadth of coverage and the degree of digitalization, are also important ways to enhance the technological innovation capability of Small and Medium-sized enterprises. (3)The innovative introduction of financial mismatch variables reveals that the financial mismatch problem in the financial market has a suppressive effect on the technological innovation capability of Small and Medium-sized enterprises. (4)Further analysis of the mediation effect of digital inclusive finance reveals that digital inclusive finance can effectively correct the financial mismatch problem in the traditional financial model and promote the technological innovation capability of Small and Medium-sized enterprises. This paper enriches the analysis of the economic effects of digital inclusive finance, while providing Chinese empirical support for digital inclusive finance to promote the innovation ability of Small and Medium-sized enterprises.

Exploring the relationship of supply chain transformational leadership and supply chain innovations performance on MSMEs satisfaction supply chain outcomes

In a complex digital era, innovative supply chain management is the key to success in overcoming logistical challenges. By implementing the latest technology, adopting innovative strategies, and managing risk well, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) can improve supply chain efficiency and effectiveness. The main driver of innovation is leadership in the supply chain. The supply chain network views transformational leadership and innovation as a source of competitive advantage. This study attempts to examine the direct and indirect relationship between supply chain transformational leadership, supply chain innovation performance, and satisfaction with supply chain outcomes. The main objective of this study is to analyze the mediating effect of supply chain innovation performance on the effect of supply chain transformational leadership on supply chain outcomes. The study uses structural equation modeling (SEM) with SmartPLS 3.0 software where primary data are obtained through a survey by distributing questionnaires. Respondents from this study were 507 leaders of MSMEs who were included in the purposive sampling criteria. The results of the instrument scale test used in this study met the standards of validity and reliability analysis. The results of the regression analysis of this study indicate that supply chain transformational leadership had a significant and positive effect on satisfaction of supply chain outcomes. Supply chain transformational leadership also maintained a significant and positive effect on supply chain innovation performance. Moreover, supply chain innovation performance provided a significant and positive effect on supply chain outcomes. There was also a partial support in examining the effect of mediating variables on supply chain innovation performance on the positive effect of chain transformational leadership. The theoretical implication of this research is that the results of this study support previous research studies which state that supply chain transformational leadership had a positive and significant contribution to satisfaction of supply chain performance and encourages the improvement of MSMEs. The practical implication of this research is that MSMEs managers must use transformational leadership to encourage increased performance and innovation because the results of this study have proven that transformational leadership in the supply chain will contribute to increased innovation and performance of MSMEs.

Innovation Management and Usage of Knowledge Transfer in Tourism Enterprises

This paper presents an overview of issues related to the role of the chosen aspects of knowledge management in tourism enterprises. The development of tourism and achieving positive effects from it is primarily supported by the possession of tourism assets and attractions. However, to fully absorb them, it is necessary to create innovations in tourism enterprises and regions. Undertaking this subject is justified by the need to transfer the current knowledge in the field of innovation to the tourism sector. The paper aims to demonstrate the determinants of tourism enterprises’ innovation, with particular emphasis on the importance of knowledge and its transfer. The primary, quantitative research presented in the paper was conducted in Poland among tourism enterprises. 1200 tourism enterprises were tested, extracted from the population of over 12000 units placed in official databases. The main scientific goals of the study were: to recognise and empirically verify the conditions of innovation management in Polish tourism enterprises, to identify external and internal determinants affecting the formation of innovation in these enterprises and to assess the effects of introduced innovations. The study established a research hypothesis: Internal factors such as the involvement and creativity of employees in the creation and transfer of knowledge have a significant impact on the innovation of tourism enterprises. The presented results indicate that the main drivers of innovation are exogenous factors and come especially from customers’ expectations, willingness to use external sources of financing and benchmarking focused primarily on foreign enterprises. The impact of human resources and knowledge management processes on these processes is varied, and in the case of these determinants of innovation, the relatively largest impact was noted in the case of: knowledge transfer within the enterprise, efficient human resources management, creativity of employees and the creation of new knowledge resources in the company. The paper points to the need to change the approach of managers of tourism enterprises, to include roles attributed to employees in finding innovative solutions and transfer of the new knowledge. For this purpose, companies should develop these resources in terms of their quantity and quality.

Does generation matter to innovation development? A new look at entrepreneurial businesses from the perspective of resource-based view (RBV)

PurposeResearch shows that innovation is imperative for business competitiveness and that entrepreneurs are stimulators of innovation. This is particularly true for younger entrepreneurs, who are recognized as having technological savvy, high dependency on the web, low fear of change and high zeal for challenges. However, not all businesses headed by younger entrepreneurs innovate, and research on younger entrepreneurs' innovation is lacking. This study assessed the main drivers of innovation in a sample of young Canadian entrepreneurs leading businesses in the initiation phase.Design/methodology/approachA sample of young Canadian entrepreneurs leading businesses in the initiation phase has been employed. This study is based on younger entrepreneurs and draws on the definition of generations Y and Z (Taylor and Keeter, 2010). It examines the initial stage of a business, up to 3 years. The sample includes 100 adults (65% female), whose ages ranged from 18 to 34 years. The drivers to innovate included external support (e.g. mentoring, funds, accelerators) and internal factors, including psychological attributes (i.e. risk-taking) and entrepreneurial motivations. Regression and structural equation modeling analyses have been conducted.FindingsThe findings revealed that entrepreneurial motivations for achieving self-fulfillment and contributing to the world, which are prevalent among younger generations, fostered innovation both directly and indirectly through the mediating effect of external support and risk-taking. External support fostered innovation not directly but through the mediating effect of risk-taking; in contrast, internal factors directly propelled innovation. This finding demonstrates the significance younger generations attribute to internal factors over external factors in the quest for innovation.Practical implicationsThis study can be an intriguing starting point for future studies to examine in more depth the intertwined role of external and internal factors in accelerating innovation among younger entrepreneurs. Studies could examine various psychological attributes and professional and business capabilities (Zahra, 2021) as well as external factors.Originality/valueOur findings add to this literature in stressing the need to strengthen risk-taking among younger entrepreneurs, which is affected by external support and produces innovation; and reinforce the relevance of the resource-based view in revealing younger entrepreneurs' avenues to develop innovation, pinpointing external support as contingent on motivation and demonstrating the role of risk-taking in the pursuit of innovation.

Global Value Chain Participation and Green Innovation: Evidence from Chinese Listed Firms.

Green innovation is one of the most important approaches to prevent environmental pollution and foster sustainable development. Embedded in the global production networks, manufacturing firms have been found not only to be the main drivers of innovation but also the main polluters in developing countries. However, relatively few studies have systematically considered the effect of global value chain (GVC) participation on green innovation in the context of developing countries. By using a panel dataset of Chinese listed manufacturing firms, this study conducts panel data fixed-effect analyses and uses the instrumental variable two-stage least square model to investigate the effect of GVC participation on firms’ green innovation performance. The results show that increased GVC participation leads to improved green innovation performance of Chinese firms. Meanwhile, further heterogeneity analyses show that the impact of GVC participation on green innovation is more pronounced for firms with greater financial constraints, state-owned firms and firms in labor- or pollution-intensive industries, located in the eastern regions of China. Therefore, this study sheds light on the implication that actively participating in GVC is the key to promoting sustainable growth when facing the need for transformation in developing countries.

Диджитализация предпринимательской деятельности как стратегия перехода к модели smart-предприятия

The modern dynamic development of the global economic system depends on many factors, but the phenomenon of digitalization plays a major role in this process. The phenomenon covers techniques and technologies, households and enterprises, management and production, as well as various aspects of society in general, i.e. everything from digital identity cards to cryptocurrencies. After three major industrial revolutions of the XVIII–XX centuries, the modern society is entering the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. It is based on advanced information and communication technologies, databases, and artificial intelligence. These technologies open up enormous opportunities for the modern entrepreneur to increase productivity, competitiveness, and added value. Artificial intelligence and new generations of robots will eventually lead to smart enterprises and the so-called Industry 4.0. Entrepreneurs must adapt to the new situation by introducing digitalization business strategies into their production and economic activities. This research features the digitalization of entrepreneurial activity in the global economic system. The research objective was to identify the main factors that affect the development of smart enterprises. It featured factors and structuring tools that develop digitalization business strategies. The author defined the concept of digitalization in the activities of business entities at the present stage of global economy and established the development factors, as well as the tendencies of the formation of smart enterprises. The research relied on standard methods of gaining scientific knowledge to define various aspects of digitalization in connection with the development of smart enterprises and the policy of Industry 4.0. The study clarified the term of digitalization as a multidimensional process that brings the real and virtual world together, thus becoming the main driver of innovation and changes in the economy. Its development depends on many different factors, which can be structured as follows: 1) The Internet of Things and The Internet of Everything; 2) ubiquitous connectivity (hyperconnectivity); 3) cloud-based apps and services; 4) big data analytics and big data as a service; 5) automation and robotization; 6) multichannel and all-channel models of distribution of goods and services. The leading trends in digitalization and smart enterprises included the change in management, transition to strategic management, convergence of multidimensional technologies, and modernization of human capital.

Half a Century of Technological Advances in Pulmonary Drug Delivery: A Personal Perspective

The last half century of pulmonary product development is reviewed in the context of the main drivers of innovation, technology development, and the advancement of science. A perspective on development timeframes, patent lifetimes, and the odds of success of developing of new inhaler technologies is presented.

The Perceptions of digital technology at a New Zealand tertiary institution.

The way educational institutions view certain technology has changed dramatically over the years, especially with the world lockdown in 2020. Understanding how digital technology is seen in an educational institution is the path to finding out how to improve and enhance the learning experience for students. A study by the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) showed “digitalisation has been one of the main drivers of innovation in educational practices in the classroom in the past decade.” (Vlies, 2020)
 
 The study examined how different members of a New Zealand tertiary education institution perceive digital technology in their respective areas of study. It examined how technology is viewed by students from differing degrees and levels, as well as how these views differ within the undergraduate and postgraduate levels of study. The perception of educators was also examined to see how different departments view the tools they use in their respective programmes and how it differs from both past and present students. The methodology behind the research was using a mixed-method research approach to gain both qualitative and quantitative data. This method would allow for the Sequential Explanatory Strategy (Terrell, 2012) to interpret the study. The strategy is done via the collection and analysis of quantitative data followed by the collection and analysis of qualitative data. The quantitative data collection used an online survey to collect a large, population of anonymous participants.
 
 The online survey was conducted using the Qualtrics software and was administered amongst the population of the university. A particular focus was put on the undergraduate population, being the largest group of students, given their reliance on distance learning as a result of the lockdowns in New Zealand in 2020/21. The survey featured a multitude of questions to collect a mix of quantitative and qualitative data.
 
 The findings from the initial survey highlighted departments at the institution that have a stronger positive outlook towards using a higher amount digital technology in their curriculum. There was a subgroup that still preferred a more practical, face-to-face approach. In response to a question regarding whether digital technology adoption may be lagging in certain programmes/disciplines, the majority of participants gave the unknown response with the second-highest group saying it was likely. The main reason participants gave for the lag of adoption of digital technology was the underfunding of programmes, with some participants further suggesting a possible correlation between underfunding, understaffing and inadequate training. The latter coheres with the OECD study, with training being one of two key aspects of education policies: “First, teachers need sufficient training to deploy and teach about digital technologies. Second, countries need a standard for digital skills and literacy for students.” (Vlies, 2020)
 
 Ongoing follow-up interviews are currently being conducted to supplement the data from the online survey results. This study will be of interest to curriculum developers, decision-makers, policymakers, future students, educators, technologists, and other educational institution staff.

КОНЦЕПТУАЛЬНИЙ ПІДХІД ДО SMART-ПАРАДИГМИ В ЦИФРОВІЙ ЕКОНОМІЦІ

The purpose of the work is to study the SMART-paradigm in the digital economy and draw certain conclusions. The paper defines the influence of information and communication technologies on the development of the digital economy. Thus, in recent decades, information and communication technologies have become the main driver of innovation and stimulating changes in organizations (companies, other institutions) and the development of innovative production in smart factories. This situation contributes to the development of innovations and the formation of the SMART-paradigm. The paper studies the evolution of the formation of the concept of "SMART" and systematizes the directions of the concept of the SMART- paradigm (smart environment, smart country, smart city, smart housing, smart country). In scientific sources, it is noted that the SMART-paradigm is characterized by: self-adjustment, self-adaptation, self-configuration, self- control, self-healing, independent functioning, which is the source of self- organization and the process of new quality and the development of structures and systems that require "smart organizations" that support the development of e-commerce technologies and digital business using the high-performance computing systems and networks needed to dynamically respond to changing economic trends. It is substantiated that the emergence and development of the SMART- paradigm is due to the replacement of the industrial economy with a digital economy with the increasing influence of digital technologies on business processes of companies and production. The paper notes that SMART- technologies involve the use of computer systems and microprocessors to perform daily tasks and exchange information. SMART-technologies today are directly interconnected with a person, with analogues of his replacement in the process of their functioning. The "human component" in the content and functioning of SMART-technologies is constantly demonstrated. The problems of the development of SMART-technologies in modern conditions (legal, organizational, methodological, informational) are systematized and investigated. It is determined that the development of SMART-technologies contributed to the formation of the principles of the SMART-paradigm in the digital economy - smart organization, smart company, smart factory.

Особенности и приоритетные направления развития инновационных процессов в Республике Узбекистан

The article is devoted to the formation and development of the innovation system of the Republic of Uzbekistan. The article examines, analyzes and describes the human factor, demography and changes in the labor market, the reasons and factors affecting the formation and development of the innovation system, problems and solutions that are the main drivers of innovation in the country. According to the results of the analysis carried out by the author, it has been established that statistics show that the existing trends in the system of innovative activity persist, there is an increase, but in practice there is a very weak growth of this activity. Based on these results, the necessary priorities are proposed for the rapid growth and development of innovative activities in the country.

Global trends and competitiveness of the food industry

Food industry has a strategic role in the global economy and it greatly contributes to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, but at the same time it causes significant ecological pollution and resource depletion. Maximizing the benefits and minimizing the costs of the food industry is therefore a challenging task. The subject of this paper are contemporary global trends and factors of competitiveness of the food industry. The purpose of the paper is to determine what contributes to the competitiveness of the food industry and to analyze recent global trends in the food industry in order to draw conclusions about the role and contribution of this industry to sustainable development and competitiveness. The analysis has shown that innovation in the production and processing of food and also diversification of the supply are key contributing factors. The main driver of innovation in the food industry are new consumer expectations and requirements. Consumers are increasingly concerned about their own ecological footprint, which increases the demand for those food products whose production has a minimal negative effect on the environment, and they often choose products of enterprises with socially responsible business practices.