IfM-Materialien 16.01.2023 | 2023 Impact of SMEs' innovation activity on their economic development in times of crisis

Which role do innovations play when companies are confronted with a crisis? This study ana-lyzes whether innovative companies fared better than their non-innovative counterparts throughout the Corona pandemic. It also examines whether crisis-induced adjustments are permanent or are reversed as the pandemic subsides. The result: innovation activities in-creased significantly during the Corona pandemic. If companies responded to the crisis with innovations in 2020, they are currently in a better economic position. If companies are severely affected by the pandemic, they are more likely to generate innovations than less affected com-panies..