The economic system is the result of the interaction of economic, political, ideological, social, cultural and other elements. It consists of businesses, institutions, management and control mechanisms, motivation factors, information flows, and so on. It also depends on the geopolitical position in the world, the cultural level and traditions, the originality of development, the different levels of national property status, the size of the territory, the size of the markets, the population, the extent of natural resources, and so on. The economic system (ES) is subject to constant changes in its elements and structures due to changing climate, political, social, environmental conditions. The adaptive ability of the ES, the building of flexible institutional structures and the ability to adapt to changed conditions is the key to long-term sustainable growth. The development of information and communication technologies, the global integration of goods and services markets as well as financial markets, the growing specialization of companies in the field of activities with an emphasis on added value, new demanding organizational forms and the increasing differentiation of demand, represent a challenge for the world. The Slovak Republic has gone through a difficult path of transition from a centrally controlled to a market-based economic system, implying a fundamental transformation of the economic, legal and institutional framework. A precondition for economic development is the efficient functioning of markets that require institutional quality, ensuring the fairness of transactions between entities, protection of property relations, compliance with contracts and law enforcement. The aim of the paper is to analyze the economic development of the Slovak economy on the basis of the development of selected macroeconomic variables and to find out whether the Slovak Republic is ready to adapt to technological, demographic and climatic changes, and to what extent the labour market, the state or the business sphere is adequately prepared.