Innovativeness of enterprises in Poland and their capacity to absorb innovation

Purpose – The purpose of the article is to analyse the conditions of enterprises and their capacity to absorb innovation, and more specifically the impact of the current level of innovation of entities operating in the Polish economy. Research method – The research was based on the analysis of individual innovation indicators of the Polish economy, with particular emphasis on the factors related to R&D (GUS data, European Innovation Scoreboard, Global Innovation Index, The Global Competitiveness Report). Results – Analyses indicate that the main barriers to the development and implementation of innovative solutions by enterprises result primarily from their internal conditions, as the ability to absorb innovations is related to the knowledge and skills already possessed by the enterprise. In the case of Polish enterprises, their level of innovation is still insufficient to be able to fully adapt new solutions from external sources. Originality /value / implications /recommendations – The value of the article is its approach according to which the innovativeness of entities is not only the result of innovation diffusion, but the capacity to absorb innovation is related to the pre-existing level of innovation.