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Chocolate with chili peppers unconventional beverage, but what a symphony of flavor nuances! This is how this book once was described. So far, it is the first scientific output that assesses the nature and intensity of the impact of institutional environment on organizations innovation strategies. The research includes 60 innovation variables across 127,674 organizations from 12 core and 19 additional industrial sectors as well as 368 institutional qualities of 123 economies. The findings ring wake-up bells for a number of organizations, especially those not fully utilizing the institutional potentials of their economies. Conversely, enterprises can also get out of institutional clutches by means of the most sophisticated practices for innovation. The book also invites policymakers to reconsider their efforts toward increasing innovativeness. Some innovation strategies can be associated with a lower institutional quality. So, even though any type of innovation is often seen as an elixir for growth, weak institutions coupled with alert innovators can encourage destructive outcomes. Hence, broadly shared assumptions should not always be taken for granted.

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Inga Stankevice, Ph.D. in Social Sciences, Management: Senior customer service manager at Runway International, Europe. Guest lecturer, junior research assistant, Kaunas University of Technology, Lithuania. Holds 10 scientific awards.

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