Abstract: With the penetration of industry boundaries becoming stronger, cross-border competition is intensifying. Enterprises need to adjust their innovation strategies at any time to maintain their growth. The deep reason why enterprises are difficult to adapt to the environment is not lack of innovation capability, but lack of adaptability. Usually, enterprises can change the output process of innovation by adjusting the innovation modes, so that they can continue to adapt to the environment. Compared with relying solely on exploitative or exploration to achieve change, enterprises that can balance the relationship between the two modes are more likely to adapt to the environment. Therefore the problem about how to balance innovation modes has been pending. As a new paradigm, ambidexterity refers to the ability of organizations to conduct heterogeneous and even contradictory behaviors simultaneously. As far as innovation is concerned, these contradictory abilities are usually summarized as exploitative innovation and exploratory innovation. Currently, there are two main viewpoints on how to solve the balance problem of innovative direction behavior, one ispunctuated equilibrium model, the other is ambidexterity model. Punctuated equilibrium theory argues that the limited resources and capabilities of enterprises will cause the conflicts between exploratory innovation and exploitative innovation. It is easier for enterprises to make breakthroughs in innovation by flexible switching innovative direction. Ambidexterity theory argues that enterprises need to pay attention to both exploratory innovation and exploitative innovation in order to achieve sustainable growth. In recent years, some scholars have begun to explore the appropriateness and validity of ambidexterity behavior in different situations, and generally believe that punctuated equilibrium and ambidexterity are completely different mechanisms. But to a certain extent, they neglect the time attributes of the growth of enterprise capacity, and they cannot solve the contradiction faced by the implementation of the two types of strategies at the same time. In fact, the balance of innovation is not set up in the beginning, and there is not enough evidence to prove that its development follows a linear path. On the contrary, it may be an experience-driven growth path. With the introduction of complex adaptive system (CAS) into organizational theory, enterprises, as adaptive subjects, can constantly enhance their ability to predict behavior outcomes during the growth process of their life stages, and they can rearrange and combine internal resources to improve their innovation competitiveness.On the one hand, this paper intends to carry out research on the following path. Firstly, the innovation output of the two balanced modes is inspected from the two indicators of innovation efficiency and innovation effect, and the limitations of the two balanced modes are explained from more dimensions. Secondly,by combining with the life cycle of enterprises, through the analysis of innovation efficiency and innovation effect, this paper clarifies the phase characteristics and logic of innovation in different periods. Finally, according to the above results, from the perspective of complex adaptive system, this study explores the adaptive law and evolution stage of innovation balance. On the other hand, this paper adopts the following methods. Based on the data of listed 2914 companies in manufacturing industry from 2007 to 2015, this paper empirically analyses the innovation efficiency and effect of enterprises at different stages by unbalanced panel regression. Besides, combined with the theory of complex adaptive system (CAS), an ambidexterity growth framework is built. The results show that the punctuated equilibrium is helpful to improve the efficiency of innovation, but ambidexterity improves innovation effect. Combining enterprise life cycle theory, the enterprises of growing period have better innovation efficiency but worse effect, but the innovation of mature enterprises has higher effect and lower efficiency. Accidently, the recession enterprises’ innovation effect and efficiency get good performance. Finally, based on complex adaptive system (CAS), this paper analyzes different stages of innovation with ambidexterity balance. There are three stages among the evolution of the ambidexterity balance. The level of adaptability depends on the matching and cohesion of the direction of innovation activities and the efficiency of implementation. The efficiency of innovation is high and the effect is poor, which means that the system corresponds to the "orderly" state, and will be destroyed when it is impacted. On the contrary, it also means that the system is in a "chaotic" state. The good effect of innovation output while maintaining high efficiency represents that the system is in the "chaotic edge" state, that is, innovation balance can quickly adapt to the complex and changeable business environment. The choices of innovation balance depend on experience to drive spiral upward along such a path.It provides some references for enterprises to balance the ambidexterity innovative behavior. (i) When enterprises balance the two kinds of strategies of innovation, they should pay attention to the self-ability which is constantly changing with the change of enterprise resource and accumulation of knowledge. Instead of mechanically balancing the relationship between the two innovation strategies, enterprises should combine their own capabilities with the internal and external environment from a dynamic perspective, learn quickly and respond to changes in timely. (ii) The changing market demand will bring about a new round of innovation and discovery. Enterprises can get rid of the old cycle and meet the new life cycle when innovation is more effective. Growing-up enterprises should not only be satisfied with acquisition of operating skills or processes of new technologies, but more importantly, they should constantly strengthen their awareness of learning and enthusiasm for innovation to lead the improvement of technological capabilities. Mature enterprises should face up to their lack of knowledge, and strengthen communication, integration and cooperation between the two types of innovations. Enterprises in recession should properly increase innovation investment to drive themselves into a new cycle because of their more effective innovation. (iii) With the improvement of balance ability, more complex organizational structure is needed to cope with short-term synergy and long-term adaptability. For solving conflicts in the process of innovation, enterprises must constantly improve their culture, organizational structure and leadership style, so as to coordinate the dynamic ability of innovation balance.

Key words: ambidexterity, innovation balance, adaptive growth, life cycle, complex adaptive system