What is the Economic and R&D Footprint?
Value creation does not end at the factory gate – organizations generate impact far beyond their direct operations. They engage suppliers, drive innovation, and contribute to social prosperity. Yet traditional indicators such as revenue or workforce size capture only a fraction of these effects.
This is where WifOR Institute’s economic and R&D footprint comes in. It shows the economic contribution of companies, industries, and other organizations along the entire value chain.
Connect with one of our experts to explore how the Economic and R&D Footprint can be applied in practice:
Strategic Value for Business, Policy, and Society
The Economic and R&D footprint is a tool for analyzing and communicating economic impact.
It enables organizations to:
Convey their regional relevance and economic impact using reliable data
Empirically demonstrate their economic value and promote evidence-based regional policy
Establish a common data basis for dialogue between business, politics, and the public
Geographic precision: From local to global
WifOR’s analyses offer flexible geographic coverage – internationally in over 180 countries, nationally, or regionally.
This helps identify economic interdependencies at the relevant geographic level: from local economic areas to federal states and national markets to international supply chains and global networks of value creation.
Time Horizon: Current Status and Future Outlook
The Economic and R&D Footprint captures the current economic situation and, through its forecasting algorithm, enables data-driven future scenarios. This allows organizations to assess both their present local relevance and the anticipated effects of future investments, expansions, or structural changes. On this basis, strategic decisions can be explained transparently and backed by empirical evidence.
How Is the Economic and R&D Footprint Measured?
Calculations are based on official statistical frameworks and established input-output models, which map the economic interdependencies between companies, industries, and regions.
Possible focus areas include:
GDP contribution
direct, indirect, and induced effects
Employment effects
jobs created and secured
Labor productivity
value creation per employee compared with other sectors
R&D impact
contribution of research and development to value creation
Fiscal contribution
taxes and social contributions generated through economic activity
Investment effects
economic impact of expenditures on modern machinery or equipment
This creates a comprehensive, internationally comparable picture of economic performance and innovative capacity.
Download an example study here
Further Applications of the Economic Footprint
Companies, public institutions, and industry associations around the world use WifOR’s Economic and R&D Footprint to measure their economic impact. The following examples illustrate how these results are applied in practice – from annual reports to public-sector communications and international industry studies.
AbbVie – Economic Contribution of a Research-Based Pharmaceutical Company
AbbVie uses WifOR’s Economic and R&D Footprint to transparently demonstrate its contribution to the German economy. Including direct, indirect, and induced effects, the company contributed around 1 billion euros to Germany’s GDP and employed more than 3,000 people at its sites in Ludwigshafen, Wiesbaden, and Berlin in 2021. Worldwide, AbbVie supported approximately 48,000 jobs.
With an R&D intensity of 31%, AbbVie was more than nine times higher than the national target of 3.5% of GDP.
The results highlight AbbVie’s role as a driver of value creation, employment, and innovation – in Germany and globally.
Teva – Using the Economic Footprint for Global Reporting
WifOR’s Economic Footprint enables Teva to make its global impact on the economy and society visible.
In 2023, the company contributed around 21.1 billion US dollars to global GDP, supported 236,000 jobs and generated 8.6 billion US dollars in labor income across 26 assessed countries. Additionally, Teva’s generic medicines were projected to generate 39.7 billion US dollars in healthcare savings across 22 countries in 2024.
These numbers highlight Teva’s central role within the global economy and its importance in advancing access to affordable healthcare worldwide.
ARD – Demonstrating the Economic Significance of Public Service Broadcasting in Germany
ARD applied WifOR’s Economic Footprint to assess its economic impact in Germany.
The analysis shows that in 2022, ARD contributed around 8 billion euros to Germany’s GDP and secured approximately 55,000 jobs outside its own organization – directly, indirectly, and induced.
The results are used for internal and public reporting and highlight ARD’s economic significance for Germany’s media, cultural, and creative industries.
IFPMA – Communicating the Global Economic Impact of the Pharmaceutical Industry
The International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations (IFPMA) published WifOR’s Economic and R&D Footprint in its Always Innovating Report. The results indicate that in 2022, the global pharmaceutical industry supported around 74.9 million jobs and contributed more than 2.3 billion US dollars to global GDP.
The analysis provides a robust data foundation for communicating the industry’s global economic relevance.
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