China has recognized the need to put its giant economy on a path toward developing an innovation culture, an initiative that could position it to challenge the U.S. as a global leader of innovation. But despite a massive investment in research and development, the nation faces some significant barriers to reaching its goal.

In a recent survey, The Conference Board and InnovationOne found that business leaders who are “high innovators” make innovation a strategic imperative. Their companies foster a culture of innovation, while making measurement of innovation capabilities and capacities an integral part of their approach.

There are early signs that China is indeed moving in this direction. According to The Conference Board’s 2018 C-Suite Challenge survey, Chinese CEOs believe they have measurement systems in place to strategically manage their innovation. In fact, our research finds that compared to the U.S., twice as many CEOs in China say they have an actual process in place for measuring innovation.

While China is poised to become an innovation challenger, will it out-innovate its global competitors?

For the answer, and the full analysis, please click here to read the full editorial in Techonomy by Conference Board economists Ataman Ozyildirim and Janet Hao.