Using firm level data from the Irish Community Innovation Survey 2008-2010 we analyse the importance of eight skill sets for the innovation performance of firms. We distinguish between radical and incremental innovation. Our results suggest that there is substantial heterogeneity in the importance of skills for different types of innovation and that some skills are best sourced from outside the firm while others are best developed in-house. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.