The importance of innovation in the scenario of technology development in Brazil

 

By Jorge Sukarie, President of ABES 

 

In the globalized world, companies seek competitive advantage in order to stand out on the international stage, and investment in innovation is the key to achieving the necessary transformation to achieve this goal. Innovation in the Information Technology sector, due to its transformational nature and its horizontal penetration in all other sectors of the economy, has been a great enabler of generating value for the business. In this scenario, it is important to pay special attention to micro, small and medium entrepreneurs who represent today the largest portion of those responsible for innovation in this sector in Brazil. 

Created mostly by young entrepreneurs, these companies are most responsible for innovation in the sector due to the very profile of the entrepreneur who enters the business with a great idea and without fear of taking risks. One of the biggest difficulties that this business model faces is precisely the lack of funding sources and the lack of support to structure themselves.

In recent years, important initiatives have emerged to help these young companies develop. As an example, we can mention the Innovative line of credit BNDES MSME (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises), aimed at companies that prove to be innovative. This initiative was created with the aim of driving innovation in the technology market while reaching these small business owners and accelerating their growth.

There must be a commitment from public entities and agencies to play an important role in this scenario, offering support programs to micro, small and medium-sized companies, giving them the necessary support and guidance for the start and development of their enterprises. In this way, entrepreneurs can accelerate and qualify their businesses to increase their chances of success and longevity.

By fostering innovation in the information technology sector, a great step is taken in achieving competitive advantages for the country's economy as a whole. The IT sector in Brazil is the seventh largest in the world and generated investments of US$ 60 billion in 2014.