Sources of innovation and ideas in ICT firms in Australia

This paper examines a sample of the Information and Communication (ICT) firms in Australia drawn from a wide range of product and services providers in the Sydney region. It researches the sources of information and ideas that firms utilize to sustain their competitive position through innovation. While the firms in the survey varied in size in terms of turnover, number of employees and level of business activity, most see themselves as innovative. Not all firms utilizes the same sources of innovation-related knowledge and most used research and technology organizations (RTOs) or other publicly funded sources of information for help with ‘technical’ (standards ect) or trade issues. While ICT firms are often regarded as leading edge developers of new ideas, this research indicated that ICT firms still see their sales force, customers and suppliers as the most important sources of innovation knowledge and ideas