Bank ratios are one of the best measures, because they are continuously maintained, public and reflect risk. Some common measures include: budgets, numbers of patents or on rates of peer-reviewed publications. Statistics on organizations devoted to 'R&D' may express the state of an industry, the degree of competition or the lure of progress. In the context of commerce, 'research and development' normally refers to future-oriented, longer-term activities in science or technology, using similar techniques to scientific research but directed toward desired outcomes and with broad forecasts of commercial yield. In general, research and development activities are conducted by specialized units or centers belonging to a company, or can be out-sourced to a contract research organization, universities, or state agencies. If the development is technology driven, R&D is directed toward developing products to meet the unmet needs. Market research is carried out, which establishes the needs of consumers and the potential niche market of a new product.

Without an R&D program, a firm must rely on strategic alliances, acquisitions, and networks to tap into the innovations of others.Ī system driven by marketing is one that puts the customer needs first, and produces goods that are known to sell. This is necessary as well due to the fierce competition and the evolving preferences of consumers. In a global industrial landscape that is changing fast, firms must continually revise their design and range of products. New product design and development is often a crucial factor in the survival of a company. R&D&I or R&D&i are also acronyms with the same general meaning of R&D and stand for research, development and innovation. However R&D is crucial for acquiring larger shares of the market through the marketisation of new products. R&D differs from the vast majority of corporate activities in that it is not intended to yield immediate profit, and generally carries greater risk and an uncertain return on investment.

R&D activities differ from institution to institution, with two primary models of an R&D department either staffed by engineers and tasked with directly developing new products, or staffed with industrial scientists and tasked with applied research in scientific or technological fields, which may facilitate future product development. Spending on research and development as share of GDP (2015)

Research and development mod