Innovation Rankings: The Position of Poland Compared with Other Countries Undergoing Transformation

The aim of the study is to assess the position of the Polish economy in the selected innovation rankings, which were prepared both for European countries and for some other countries in the world. The position of the Polish economy is evaluated in comparison with those of other European countries which are transforming their economies. The choice of the countries for the study was conducted in accordance with the classification of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. In a series of its reports - ‘Transition Report’, it allocated the Polish economy to the group of the countries recognized as ‘Central Europe and the Baltic States’, along with Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Slovakia and Slovenia. Our study consists in the review of literature as well as an analysis of secondary data, i.e. some selected innovation rankings. The research hypothesis goes as follows: despite the fact that Poland remains one of the fastest growing economies in the EU and it is doing very well when faced by the global financial crisis, it cannot rise to the modern challenges of improving the innovation in its own economy.