Innovation is the name of the game

The IPA has long advocated for innovation, particularly within the SME sector as a means to lift productivity. There is a chapter in our Australian Small Business White Paper dedicated to this topic so we are very hopeful that the discussion becomes more than government rhetoric.

In the White Paper, the IPA argued that Australia has needed a public policy rethink to realise the massive potential for innovation in the SME sector to achieve increased national productivity and economic prosperity.

The White Paper proposes a number of initiatives to promote increased innovation across the Australian SME sector, including more government support for research and development by small and medium-sized firms, and government support for firms to adopt existing technologies and innovation.

The IPA believes there needs to be better links between cutting-edge research universities and industry. Firms should also be encouraged to adopt continuous improvement methodology to embed incremental innovation as this will generate large productivity improvements more quickly.

The IPA has recommended that the government could provide tax breaks for companies acquiring new technologies not developed in-house, along with a tax allowance for companies investing in intellectual property protection in-house, and a tax allowance for companies that generate licensing income from new in-house technologies.

Innovation policy needs broad support to ensure Australia as a country and as an economy gets a real move on and realises its potential as a smart nation.

The IPA team will stay across all developments in the area of innovation policy.

If you have not had the opportunity to read the Australian Small Business White Paper, I would encourage you to do so. It can be accessed on the IPA website at www.publicaccountants.org.au/whitepaper.