Canon recognised as world leader in Innovation and Knowledge Management

The survey recognises global leaders who have gained competitive advantage by effectively transforming enterprise knowledge into wealth-creating ideas, products and solutions.

A panel of Global Fortune 500 senior executives and internationally-recognised knowledge management experts chose the 2003 Global MAKE Winners - which includes Canon and a number of other internationally famous brands - by rating them against eight key knowledge performance indicators which are visible drivers of competitive advantage:
•Creating a corporate knowledge driven culture
•Developing knowledge workers through senior management leadership
•Delivering knowledge-based products/solutions
•Maximising enterprise intellectual capital
•Creating an environment for collaborative knowledge sharing
•Creating a learning organisation
•Delivering value based on customer knowledge
•Transforming enterprise knowledge into shareholder value

"These companies are building portfolios of intellectual capital and intangible assets which will enable them to out-perform their competitors in the future," said Rory Chase, managing director Teleos, the independent knowledge management research company who conducted the survey.

Canon's commitment to innovation and excellence is reflected in the fact that about 7.9% of its global turnover is spent on R&D and the company is currently ranked number two in the US for the number of patents registered.

Gordon Jones, President of Canon Middle East, said "The key to Canon's continued growth, market leadership and strategic competitive advantage is its strong investment in its people, through training and ongoing skills development, and in intellectual capital, through R&D."

He added, "We also have a strong focus on customer relationship management (CRM), as shown by the recent introduction of new IT systems and policies to strengthen our support and administration of the Canon Middle East Warranty initiative. By focusing 100% on our customers, we aim to increase revenue, heighten employee productivity and strengthen customer loyalty. We are proud that our commitment to innovation, knowledge management and continual development has been recognised through the Global MAKE study."

The MAKE survey found that organisations devoted to growth through innovation and knowledge management create shareholder value twice as fast as their competitors.

The survey also found that Total Return to Shareholder (TRS), Profits (as a percentage of assets) and Return on Capital Employed (ROCE) were clear metrics to demonstrate the fact that knowledge-driven organisations yield big dividends, for example the TRS for the 2003 Global Make Winners and Finalists, for the ten year period 1992-2002, is double that of the Fortune 500 company median, while profits as a percentage of assets for the Winners and Finalists is more than five times that of the Fortune 500 company median (Canon's 2002 profit as a percentage of assets was six times better than the Fortune 500 median). The average ROCE of the Winners and Finalists is 60% greater than the Financial Times Global 500 company median.
The fact that Canon achieved record financial results for the third consecutive year this year adds further weight to Teleos' theory that innovation and sound knowledge management practices promote financial strength.