Evaluating innovative processes in french firms: Methodological proposition for firm innovation capacity evaluation

Measuring innovation processes is a major concern for academics and firm managers. This study proposes an innovation capacity (IC) measure framework based on a set of 15 innovation management practices. Every practice is subdivided into multiple criteria which are directly observable phenomena or facts. The statistical method of value test and a multi-criteria approach are adopted to propose a typology of four groups of innovative firms (proactive, preactive, reactive, passive). The features observed on these groups of firms allow the determination of the firms’ innovation capacity and are useful for providing recommendations and practical actions for them, with a view to reinforcing it. Data from a sample group of 39 small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in the manufacturing industry in Lorraine, France were collected via a field survey and were fed into the model to determine the innovation capacity of the companies.