Download EIA's Policy Playbook on Innovation and Global Competitiveness

Since 2003, EIA's staff, sector associations and corporate members have focused closely on the significant structural changes taking place in the world economy and in the high-tech industry in particular. Because of our unique alliance structure, EIA and its wide array of member companies are positioned to accurately portray the reality and trends. We are also in a position to develop and advocate policies to address the long-term viability of our innovative sectors.

We started our broad examination with one strong belief: EIA, as an organization, is committed to developing a truly open trading system. With this as our foundation, we have a responsibility to our industry and to the U.S. to address the concerns raised by critics of globalization. The economic recovery that saw slower job growth than expected raised questions for many about the real benefits of increased productivity, the free market system and offshore outsourcing.

To answer these questions, EIA launched a major initiative: Together with our project partners from the public policy field, industry and academia, we have taken a broad look at the benefits of open markets and the trends in high-tech manufacturing, design, engineering and research & development, here and around the world. A unique exercise known as Prosperity Games™ – essentially war games for the business world – was a coalescing step in early 2004 for our initiative, as we brought together members of our board, legislators, Administration staff, industry experts and thought leaders for two days and emerged with the outline for our first policy playbook, The Technology Industry at an Innovation Crossroads.

As a follow-up to our first highly successful playbook, EIA plans to develop smaller, issue-specific booklets for the 109th Congress. These will be released throughout the course of the Congressional sesion and will allow EIA to highlight a number of specific areas we believe are critical to the survival of the U.S. innovation economy.

Our hope is that the recommendations included in our playbooks and the message of innovation that we continue to advance at every opportunity will promote public discussion and facilitate meaningful debate, toward the development of a national technology vision and strategy. The lack of an overarching vision, combined with inadequate investment in innovation, contributes to short-term and false choices that could potentially lead to the critics' prophecies of a decline in U.S. competitiveness. The core value of a knowledge-based company or society should be innovation, which at its heart is creativity plus risk-taking.

We must respond to the challenge and plan. If we don't determine what tomorrow will look like, others will determine it for us.

We invite your comments, and we invite policymakers and regulators to examine these recommendations and work towards strengthening our innovation economy.

To get involved in EIA's initiative or for more information, please contact Storme Street.