When I came to China in 1991, it seemed the only innovation I saw from this Confucian culture was in innovative ways to cheat on certifications and cheat customers.
Then, as the 90’s moved along, I saw another innovation chance for China. Chinese culture was so far removed from Western culture that they naturally had tons of thinking and ways to do things that Westerners had never thought of. This gave China some innovation edge in this space.
Then, as Chinese people gained more education and gained more confidence, they showed they could find new ways to do things much like Westerners. So, from a low base, I see them catching up.
The map above is from WIPO and shows really how far China has come.
China is now in top 10 for the first time.
America and Switzerland and Sweden are clearly ahead of all. But China is gradually getting higher.
Note how far back Latin America is. That surprises me, but that is the data.
Innovation in China and Much More
So, while companies once came to China for its low labor costs, then later its engineering strength, now you can come to China and find good and more mature innovative hires. See also Leadership Qualities You Need in Hires.
SHI Group searches for many different kinds of hires, but finding innovative hires is something we enjoy. Anyone can say they are innovative. We dig to find out who really has a pattern of innovation.
Furthermore, SHI Group filters out those who have innovation in stealing. We are the home of Real Data and glad to transparently share all such data with our customers. See video explaining our thoughts on value of Real Data.
As the Number 2 economy and now a top 10 innovator, China has a lot more to offer than when I first arrived long ago.
