+49 (0) 40 428 78 2867 rajnish. tiwari@tuhh. de, stephan. buse@tuhh. de ABSTRACT Technological advancements, especially in Information and Communication Technologies
(ICT) have enhanced greatly the competition spurred by the globalization of the world economies. Even small and medium-sized enterprises (SMES) are no more immune to the challenges that the globalization brings about.
It is a remarkable, and in certain instances worrisome, situation since SMES play a key-role in most economies,
in that they constitute the largest business block and provide the bulk of employment. However, opportunities presented by the globalization
and the entwined, simultaneous pressure to innovate opens for SMES new arenas to engage in
and Labour Affairs in Hamburg and co-financed by the European union (EU). The findings of this survey are matched here against perceived opportunities
Barriers to Innovation, Globalization of Innovation, Internationalization of R&d, Research & development, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SME) This Paper should be referred to as following:
4 2. 2 Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMES...5 2. 3 Connecting SMES to Innovation...
21 4. 3 Leveraging Market Opportunities...21 5-Challenges of Global Innovation...22 5. 1 Finding Qualified Personnel...
22 5. 2 Cost Explosion in Booming Economies...22 5. 3 Protection of Intellectual Property rights...
22 5. 6 Cross-cultural Issues and Communication...23 5. 7 Acceptance Issues...23 6-Implications and Research Outlook...
R. Tiwari and S. Buse (October 2007) Page 4 of 31 1-Introduction Technological advancements, especially in Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) have enhanced greatly the competition spurred by the globalization of the world economies.
Even small and medium-sized enterprises (SMES) are no more immune to the challenges that the globalization brings about.
and in certain instances worrisome, situation since SMES play a key-role in most economies,
Innovative ideas and products are becoming increasingly important to counter the priceoriented competition from low-cost producers from emerging economies
services or processes, see e g. Herstatt et al. 2007b). ) Opportunities presented by the globalization and the entwined, simultaneous pressure to innovate,
opens for firms, also for SMES, new arenas to engage in what we may call are global innovation activities
and Labour Affairs in Hamburg and co-financed by the European union (EU The findings of this survey are matched here against perceived opportunities
while elaborating the crucial role that SMES play in the economy. 2. 1 Innovation Innovation,
For the purpose of this paper, we may regard innovation as invention and commercialization of new (or betterment of existing) products, processes and/or services (Tiwari, 2007.
Innovations usually do not take place in a given, static environment. They are rather a result of a dynamic process in an organisation that involves interplay of several internal and external factors.
Three Phases of a Simplified Innovation Process 2. 2 Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMES) The term small and medium-sized enterprises (SMES) consists of two components:
while the second component enterprise relates to the economic nature of that entity. An enterprise,
as defined by the European commission (EC) in Article 1 of its recommendation on definition of micro,
small and medium-sized enterprises, may be understood as any entity engaged in economic activity, irrespective of its legal form (EC, 2003a).
3 Phases of a Simplified Innovation Process Conception Implementation Marketing Requirement Analysis Idea Generation Idea Evaluation Project Planning Development/Construction Prototype Dev.
R. Tiwari and S. Buse (October 2007) Page 6 of 31 In a differing approach the European commission defines SMES as enterprises which employ fewer than 250 persons and
even though SMES play an important role in the national economy as discussed in the following.
which represented 99%of all enterprises in the enlarged European union of 25 countries while providing around 75 million jobs (EC, 2003b).
In Germany, according to Ifm Bonn1, SMES accounted for 99.7%of all enterprises in year 2005
Recent calculations by the authors of this paper, based on Germany's official statistics portal data, show that the high percentage of SMES amongst all enterprises continues to remain high.
As on 31.12.2006 large firms (with 250 employees or more) constituted a miniscule 0. 33%of all enterprises.
Of 3, 215,238 enterprises active on the aforementioned date an overwhelming 3, 204,519 were SMES (with less than 250 employees.
2 These data exemplarily demonstrate the key-role which SMES play in Germany's economy.
For detailed discussions on SMES'role in the German economy see Hamer (1997), Bundestag (2002), Günterberg and Kayser (2004),
and Idw (2004). 2. 3 Connecting SMES to Innovation Notwithstanding their large share in all enterprises
For instance only 39.1%of the total turn over generated by all enterprises in Germany in 2005 went into SMES'account (Ifm, 2007b.
At the same time, the increasing globalization is bringing in more competition in the home market, the traditional stronghold of many SMES.
and find themselves faced with tough price-oriented competition from low-cost producers from emerging economies in Asia
blocking international competition is not a solution to such problems (Smith, 1994). For the increased competition is ultimately beneficial for the consumer in the form of cheaper and/or better goods and services.
Consumption is the sole end purpose of all production; observed Smith, and the interest of the producer ought to be attended to,
Moreover, blocking foreign firms from doing business in the country may lead to trade retaliations abroad that could severally affect an export-oriented economy like that of Germany.
but also presents an opportunity to internationalize sales in new, rapidly growing markets and thereby to generate additional revenues.
New markets however (may) also require products and services which are adapted to the local needs and tastes of those markets.
and cost-effective production distribution and after-sales services; see e g. Dangayach et al. 2005) and Spielkamp & Rammer (2006.
and have direct contact to customers thereby potentially gaining valuable impulses in the form of customer feedback.
and services faster Develop products and services cheaper Develop better products and services Improve competitive position Enhance profitability,
strengthen stability BARRIERS TO INNOVATION IN SMES: CAN THE INTERNATIONALIZATION OF R&d MITIGATE THEIR EFFECTS?
R. Tiwari and S. Buse (October 2007) Page 8 of 31 more informal manner and confronted with fewer intra-firm hierarchy levels than large firms,
should enable them to develop products better suited to market demands and thus bring more success. In practice,
and Hamburg Institute of International Economics (HWWA, 2004). Comparing the findings of the aforementioned surveys it would not be an unreasonable assumption that SMES in the respective countries
and other developed economies we conducted a new set of investigation. The methodology and selected results of this study are explained in the following. 3. 2 Findings of the Survey RIS-Hamburg To identify barriers to innovation in SMES in the Metropolitan Region of Hamburg we at first conducted an empirical study in form
the survey targeted mainly SMES from the fields of IT, Media, Civil Aviation, Electronics, Machinery Manufacturing, Maritime Economy, Medical Equipments, Logistics,
and Services sector. To reduce the time needed to fill out the questionnaire, respondents could choose to answer only questions from modules which,
R. Tiwari and S. Buse (October 2007) Page 10 of 31 Services; 11%Electronics; 16%IT;
Many projects were aborted in late phases, causing significant losses in the form of sunk costs and lost opportunities. 42%42%16%0%10%20%30%40
11%Communication problems; 5%n=33figure 13: Problems in International Cooperation with Universities The discussion above has brought to fore the chances and challenges that firms,
but in many other Western countries are faced with scarcity of skilled labour owing primarily to two reasons:
According to some preliminary calculations the shortage of skilled (technical) labour, primarily of engineers and scientists, is leading to a loss of over 20 billion euros a year in the form of unrealized business opportunities.
The study carried out by Cologne-based Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft (Idw) on behalf of Germany's Federal Ministry of Economics
SMES with a staff of 50 to 249 employees were found to be suffering more from this scarcity (60%)than did large firms (40%)(BITKOM, 2007b.
e g. attractive brand names or access to human capital abroad. 3. 3. 2 Financial Problems and State Support As stated in section 3. 2 the lack of financial resources
It is therefore not surprising that many SMES have started recognizing the opportunities that the globalization enables not only in the production but also in R&d.
fast-growing markets such as China and India, may offer tremendous opportunities, e g. in the form of vast pools of qualified human resources in science and technology, cheaper labour costs and access to new, fast
R. Tiwari and S. Buse (October 2007) Page 20 of 31 Setting up offshore R&d centres provides firms with an opportunity to tap into a larger talent pool
emerging economies in Asia are rapidly taking over the role of lead markets by their openness for consumption
or they may cause high opportunity costs in the form of lost business opportunities (in case of prohibition).
or is possible with significantly lower restrictions then it may make sense to locate R&d efforts in that country. 4. 3 Leveraging Market Opportunities
In addition to knowledge and cost factors there might be significant market opportunities abroad in the form of demand for localized products in fast-growing markets.
More and more people in emerging economies are having financial resources to buy high-end products (EIU, 2004), and the number of the middle class consumers is growing rapidly in emerging countries particularly China and India.
The urban incomes are set to rise significantly providing ample opportunities for the manufacturers to sell not only items of basic necessities but also of a discretionary nature (MGI, 2006.
2007). 5-Challenges of Global Innovation The section above has given us a broad overview over how global innovation may be used as a chance to mitigate the effects of innovation barriers prevalent in Germany and inter alia in advanced economies.
%The shortage of qualified personnel is also felt in the booming economy of China, where German firms are finding it increasingly difficult to recruit local technicians,
2006). 5. 2 Cost Explosion in Booming Economies The cost advantage of many emerging nations with booming economies is disappearing in many respects, for instance,
2004). 5. 6 Cross-cultural Issues and Communication Global innovation invariably involves multi-disciplinary teams of international backgrounds.
and of business environment conditions in the country concerned. 4 The investigation report is under preparation.
which do not require a high level of capital investments. Potential strategies, for instance, could be: o Cooperative agreements with local research institutions and/or firms o Outsourcing of parts of the innovation process o To limit the financial burden of setting up
This sensitization to mutual cultural issues may play a key-role in the success of an international venture.
In this respect the internationalization of R&d seems to be a useful instrument to mitigate the effects of barriers to innovation often faced by SMES in Germany, the EU or anywhere else in industrialized economies.
At the same time these global opportunities are associated invariably with challenges that need to be mastered in order to fully exploit the chances of global innovation.
as well as a profound analysis of business environment conditions of the target offshore country are prerequisites of a successful global operation.
Commission Recommendation of 6 may 2003 concerning the definition of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, Annex Title I DEFINITION OF MICRO,
SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES ADOPTED BY THE COMMISSION, European commission (2003/361/EC). EC (2003b:
The globalisation of research and development, Economist Intelligence unit. Ernst, D. 2006: Innovation Offshoring: Asia's Emerging Role in Global Innovation Network, East-West Center Special reports, No. 10/2006.
Die Position Norddeutschlands im internationalen Innovationswettbewerb, Hamburg Institute of International Economics, Hamburg. Idw (2004: Mittelstand in Deutschland Stiefkind der Wirtschaftspolitik, Institut der deutschen Wirtschaft, Cologne:
Opportunities and Challenges In public-Private Partnership",in: Asia Pacific Tech Monitor, Vol. 24, No. 1, New delhi, pp. 32-37.
World Investment Report 2005: Transnational Corporations and the Internationalization of R&d, United nations Conference on Trade and Development, Geneva.
there are growing competitive pressures for enterprises of all sizes to respond quickly to the very latest developments affecting their sectors.
thus a critical factor for individual firms'success as well as for improved national performance in today's global economy. 2. Innovation is a broad term that encompasses virtually any new development in firms.
or services to meet new market demand, introducing new processes to improve productivity, developing or applying new marketing techniques to expand sales opportunities,
and incorporating new forms of management systems and techniques to improve operational efficiency. 3. Recent experience has shown that some governments have been able to engender a climate where SME innovation can flourish,
creating a more dynamic economy and greater employment opportunities. In fact, the national climate for private sector innovation has an impact on businesses of all sizes,
competition, risk-taking and appropriate financial returns on successful ventures can particularly affect small and medium-sized enterprises.
What are the policy obstacles to innovation by SMES? 4. The OECD recently conducted a survey of SME
Most respondents cited the lack of well-functioning venture capital or seed finance markets to support their research and development efforts,
or their investments in innovations. Another key issue for SMES is their ability to keep abreast of the latest developments affecting their sector.
For example, on the issue of access to financing for R&d, many respondents recommended public programmes and support for venture capital and other types of risk financing through, for example, tax incentives.
not only give SMES the opportunity to benefit from a broader pool of information resources, but would also provide a ready network of potential business partners.
but also more generally for providing a competitive foundation for national economies. Because they often lack the resources to engage in in-house training,
What are the best ways to stimulate the development of venture capital, including business angels'financing
If not, what other measures are warranted to correct market failures that affect the financing of investment in innovation,
Is there a role for large firms in financing innovation in smaller enterprises? 14. The availability to enterprises of relevant information (technical, commercial, etc.
is essential to successful innovation. SMES often have problems in finding information. What should governments be doing to support information programmes?
such as pro-innovative investment tax credits and allowances. Encourage cooperative agreements with governmentpaid R&d infrastructure (universities, research institutes.
orienting it more towards entrepreneurship. Harmonise vocational training system with innovations and technological change. Inadequate access to technological know-how Foster links between enterprises and research centres and laboratories.
Improve information networks on technological knowhow. Introduce tax incentives or tax relief for SMES. Promote the creation of joint ventures between SMES to stimulate technology transfer.
Shoaib Akhtar Abstract Innovation has been termed as the most crucial of the elements in today's globalized and competitive environment.
The present study is conducted in the context of Malaysian SMES using a sample of 870 SMES from both manufacturing and services sectors.
I. INTRODUCTION Innovation is an important tool that provides opportunities to new inventions and building of new markets (Kuhn & Marisck, 2010.
Furthermore, due to mounting competition, the capability to control the innovation and manage the innovation processes has become extremely important to governments and organizations alike because of the impact,
Clausen, et Kamairah Ismail is the Director of Technology Entrepreneurship Center, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTMTEC), Johor Bahru, Johor, Malaysia (phone:+
It has been suggested by researchers that SMES have limited innovation as compared to larger enterprises. However, this misconception has been negated by Kaufmann
They are of the view that new SMES benefit more from innovation than the mature organizations mainly due to their flexibility to accept change in their environment or industry.
Malaysia is one of the fastest growing economies of the world and is based largely on SMES that contribute almost 33 percent to the national GDP.
The importance of SMES growth and their sustainability cannot be overemphasized for Malaysian economic growth and development especially in this competitive global environment.
researchers question the role of innovation in maintaining the growth of the Malaysian economy and the role of innovation in the overall performance of the SMES.
adaptation and utilization of a value-added novelty in trade and industry spheres, regeneration and expansion of product, services and markets, making of new ways of product development and establishing new Mathematical Methods
in Engineering and Economics ISBN: 978-1-61804-230-9 145 management system. Similarly, Orlikowski (2010), Tsoukas et al (2002) and Wierdsma (2004) stated that innovation is the process of development of new outcome by adopting new ways of working and product development.
and competence of an organization to perform in correspondence to environment. Innovation is seen as a most important part of an organizational life that emerges in daily activities
in order to get the best play of day by day increasing innovation and renewal demands that is the main player between the individual and organizational knowledge..
This shows that innovation is critical for the growth of the organization in terms of its sales, market penetration, profitability and sustainability of organizations especially for small and medium enterprises.
METHODOLOGY For the present study, sample consisted of SMES belonging to both manufacturing and services sectors.
The Mathematical Methods in Engineering and Economics ISBN: 978-1-61804-230-9 146 result is presented in Table 1. Table 1 Significance of Innovation for Growth of Firm in opinion of Managers To replace products To improve product To extend product
Services SMES Sector Mean Std. Dev. Manufacturing 1. 5461 1. 28777 To replace products Services 1. 0696 1. 19622 To improve product Manufacturing 2. 3775 1. 04685 quality Services 1. 6917
1. 32562 To extend product Manufacturing 2. 2247 1. 11048 range Services 1. 5143 1. 26809 To open up new Manufacturing 2. 2989 1. 13428 markets
or increase market share Services 1. 6289 1. 27987 N 870 To assess whether the sampled SMES were involved in any activities related to R&d,
managers were asked about their response on a dichotomous scale. The result is shown in Table 3. Table 3 R&d Activities of SMES In-house R&d Outside Acquisition of R&d External knowledge Response Training%%%No 59.4 88.4 84.9
The results also suggest that the manufacturing companies are involved more in research and development activities than their counterparts in the services industry.
Mathematical Methods in Engineering and Economics ISBN: 978-1-61804-230-9 147 3 Kanter, R. M. 2006.
and make competition irrelevant. Boston, MA: Harvard Business school Press. 5 Hamel, G. 2002. Leading the revolution:
Sustainable heritage in a rapidly changing environment. In: Docherty, P.,Kira, M. ans Shani (Rami) A b s. Creating sustainable work systems.
Balancing Efficiency and Flexibility in Dynamic Environments. Organization Science. Vol 21, Nol 6 november-December. Pp. 1263-1273.20 Foss, N. J.,Husted, K. and Michailova, S. 2010.
evidence from Malaysian small and medium enterprises. Paper presented at the 20th International Business Information management Conference (IBIMA.
Evidence on the role of public policy, ETLA Discussion Papers, The Research Institute of the Finnish Economy (ETLA), No. 820 27 Salim,
International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management, 8 (1), 36-56.29 Lin, C. Y. Y,
influence of business strategies and environment. Nankai Business Review International, 1 (3), 297-316. Mathematical Methods in Engineering and Economics ISBN:
978-1-61804-230-9 148 32 Clausen, T. H.,Korneliussen, T, . & Madsen, E. L. 2013).
Small and medium enterprises (SMES) competing in the global business environment: A case of Malaysia.
the nature and microfoundations of (sustainable) enterprise performance. Strategic management journal, 28 (13), 1319-1350.
Mathematical Methods in Engineering and Economics ISBN: 978-1-61804-230-9 149
Published on Horizon 2020 (http://ec. europa. eu/programmes/horizon2020) Innovation in SMES Horizon 2020 actively supports SMES by providing both direct financial support,
Development & Innovation environment for SMES, including through the establishment and facilitation of a range of support services,
A range of actions contributes to building innovation management capacity for Small and Medium Enterprises.
processes, services, marketing etc.)is done. It launches companies into new markets, promote growth, and create high returns of investment.
The SME instrument addresses all types of innovative SMES so as to be able to promote growth champions in all sectors.'
which provide indirect support to SMES in the form of tailored services and projects (innovation management capacity building, IPR management,
moreover, Horizon 2020 provides direct support to the Enterprise Europe Network 3, a key player in improving SMES'access to funding opportunities.'
'Innovation in SMES'funds additional activities intended to support entrepreneurship, internationalisation, and improving access to markets (through the COSME programme 4). Furthermore, this challenge supports the second EUREKA/Eurostars Joint Programme Initiative 5 (2014-2020),
that provides funding for market-oriented transnational collaborative R&d projects, spearheaded by R&d performing SMES established in any of the 34 EUREKA Member-States that participate to Eurostars.
COSME (EU Programme for the Competitiveness of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises 4 Enterprise Europe Network 3 The Eurostars programme 5 Official Eurostars communication 8
. europa. eu/enterprise/initiatives/cosme/index en. htm 5 http://www. eurostars-eureka. eu/6 http://ec. europa. eu/research/era
EN HORIZON 2020 WORK PROGRAMME 2014 2015 7. Innovation in small and medium-sized enterprises Revised This Work Programme was adopted on 10 december 2013.
IPORTA 2-Increasing the quality of IP advisory services to SMES...15 INNOSUP-4-2014:
27 1-Establishing services Enhancing the innovation management capacity of SMES in the Enterprise Europe Network...
'29 3-Capturing innovation impulses from emerging economies...30 4-Capabilities for Design-Driven Innovation in European SMES...
34 9 Assessing the Investment Potential of SMES Emerging from Phase I of the SME Instrument 34 10-Eureka Annual Membership Fee...
35 HORIZON 2020 WORK PROGRAMME 2014-2015 Innovation in SMES PART 7-Page 4 of 37 Introduction Exiting the economic crisis
The innovation capacity of industry depends not only on large enterprises with market power but crucially on ambitious entrepreneurs and small enterprises aiming for radical innovations and fast growth.
Horizon 2020 and the Competiveness and SME programme (COSME) will be the major instruments to provide direct support and a favourable environment for growth of SMES.
The major contributions from Horizon 2020 to SMES competitiveness are: the provision of financial support to own innovation projects by the SME instrument,
and to access specific financial instruments for technology and innovation based enterprises. The domains of major activities of the COSME programme are:
and providing better innovation support services to SMES. In addition the analysis of current SME innovation activities and their future development are covered themes by innovation in SMES.
Similar activities to these were funded so far by the‘Entrepreneurship and Innovation Programme'(EIP) as part of CIP.‘
services, marketing etc.)is done. It will launch the company into new markets, promote growth, and create high return on investment.
The SME instrument addresses all types of innovative SMES so as to be able to promote growth champions in all sectors.
Information and Communication Technologies ICT-37-2014/2015 Open Disruptive Innovation Scheme 45.00 43.00 5ii.
Climate action, environment, resource efficiency and raw materials SC5-20-2014/2015 Boosting the potential of small businesses for eco-innovation and a sustainable supply of raw materials 17.00 19.00 13.
-2015 SME business model innovation 11.00 14. Secure societies Protecting freedom and security of Europe and its citizens DRS-17-2014/2015 Protection of urban soft targets and urban critical infrastructures 7. 00
which it is presented (new products, processes, design, services and technologies or new market applications of existing technologies).
feasibility of concept and the like to establish a solid high-potential innovation project aligned to the enterprise strategy and with a European dimension.
Bottlenecks in the ability to increase profitability of the enterprise through innovation shall be detected and analysed during phase 1 and addressed during phase 2 to increase the return in investment in innovation activities.
The proposal should contain an initial business plan based on the proposed idea/concept. The proposal should give the specifications of the elaborated business plan
which is to be the outcome of the project and the criteria for success. Funding will be provided in the form of a lump sum of EUR 50.000.
Projects should last around 6 months. In phase 25, innovation projects will be supported that address the specific challenges identified
and growth underpinned by a strategic business plan. Activities should focus on innovation activities such as demonstration, testing,
Proposals shall be elaborated based on an business plan either developed through phase 1 or another means. Particular attention must be paid to IP protection and ownership;
and services as well as access to the financial facilities supported under Access to Risk Finance of this work programme. 5 For topic PHC-12-2014/2015,
and phase 2. This service will be accessible via the Enterprise Europe Network and delivered by a dedicated coach through consultation and signposting to the beneficiaries.
disruptive and competitive solutions seizing European and global business opportunities. Market uptake and distribution of innovations tackling the specific challenges in a sustainable way.
Increase of private investment in innovation, notably leverage of private co-investor and/or follow-up investments.
market seize, IP management, sales, return on investment and profit). Type of action: SME Instrument The conditions related to this common call are provided below and in the General Annexes,
innovative companies create the majority of new jobs in the European economy. A strong rationale exists for public support to SMES'innovation activities
subsidised loans, equity and a wide range of innovation support services. However, SMES receiving innovation support often remain dissatisfied with the services they receive;
while at the same time the public expects a higher return from the support provided. While major new drivers for SME innovation, like online collaboration or reverse innovation, are recognised hardly by the public support provided,
established support services assist mainly clearly defined technical projects within single enterprises. Public support pays much less attention to the creation of favourable ecosystem for SME innovation in which public enterprises, SME intermediaries, direct and indirect customers, end-users,
suppliers and enterprises with complementary skills are encouraged to collaborate for radical innovation that may not yet be described
and formulated as project. Emerging innovation trends help SMES overcome some of the size disadvantages they face.
Where appropriate, a highly specialised support service may be established at European level to complement existing national and regional services.
Generally, the actions are designed to provide opportunities to Member States and regions to enhance their services through collaboration,
peer-learning and uptake of new approaches. In addition several actions will focus on the identification further development and dissemination of skills and expertise among SMES.
The Enterprise Europe Network present in all European regions and co-financed by them and the Member States is expected to play an important role for catalysing such development processes.
and services that require combining different competences and innovative solutions. The development of new industrial value chains calls for the collaboration and integration of different innovation actors, including large enterprises and especially SMES, across different sectors towards the implementation of a joint vision.
SMES need help to generate take up and better capitalise on all forms of knowledge, creativity,
new business models, service innovation and design. The potential of clusters, that represent favourable ecosystems for innovation,
innovation and entrepreneurship across different regions and value chains shall be promoted. The coordination and facilitation shall be led by cluster organisations and other intermediary organisations,
& Documents at the Participant Portal at http://ec. europa. eu/research/participants/portal/desktop/en/opportunities/h2020/topics/2350-innosup-1-2015. html
and underpin future economic growth, jobs, and progress towards a resource-efficient economy. Further leverage and complement support for innovation in SMES and other funding,
which may be provided by national or regional authorities (including under the European Structural and Investment funds) and/or by private investors (upfront or as follow-up investments).
Contribute to regional smart specialisation strategies by capitalising upon concentrated and complementary competences for the development of new industrial value chains and emerging industries with a clear EU added-value.
Provide a clear and measurable contribution to the innovation performance of the supported SMES in the short-term as revealed by indicators such as numbers of new or significantly improved products (goods and/or services), processes, new marketing methods,
Improve the business environment of the supported SMES by establishing open collaboration spaces that can involve innovation actors from different sectors and countries.
In particular, the services offered by this helpdesk should follow closely the recommendations stemming from a document prepared as a follow-up of the external evaluation of the Helpdesk.
http://ec. europa. eu/enterprise/policies/industrial-competitiveness/industrial-policy/intellectual-property-rights/index en. htm HORIZON 2020 WORK PROGRAMME 2014-2015
training, materials and promotion to the demand and to better reach the target group. In particular
The services offered by this helpdesk should follow closely the recommendations stemming from a Commission document prepared as a follow-up of the external evaluation of the Helpdesk.
and should follow the target group's demand for initial IPR services as established e g. through analysis of helpline requests,
or feedback from trainings and from cooperating business services organisations. Depending on the demand of the target group the activities may be provided in the most demanded EU languages.
English versions are essential. The Commission considers that proposals requesting a contribution from the EU of around EUR 4 million would allow this specific challenge to be addressed appropriately.
Establish support services and cooperation structures with intermediaries (like the regional consortia of the Enterprise Europe Network
and system of National Contact Points for the different parts of Horizon 2020) and other relevant organisations enabling them to provide initial guidance to SMES.
technology transfer and/or research cross-border activities. 12 http://ec. europa. eu/enterprise/policies/industrial-competitiveness/industrial-policy/intellectual-property-rights/index en. htm HORIZON
IPORTA 2-Increasing the quality of IP advisory services to SMES Specific challenge: Managing Intellectual Property rights (IPR) is a difficult task, especially for Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SME) or individual inventors.
Such enterprises or individuals frequently do not have the knowledge or human resources to effectively use
and manage IPR. Such entities would be able to better use their intellectual capital if:
1. they had more knowledge, including basics of IPR, and guidance on how to better use professional legal consultants;
and 4. National Intellectual Property Offices (NIPOS) would provide better IPR services to SMES. Scope:
and provide better services to SMES, including providing information on the business use of European level rights (Unitary Patent,
The activities should include the communication and trainings on the business use of the European level rights (Unitary Patent, European Trade mark, Community design),
or individual inventors and how to offer services to this target group. The initial pilot implementation of new services by NIPOS can be included as well as the update of the analysis of current SME needs for IPR support services.
The future beneficiary consortium should take care of the joint website www. innovaccess. eu. Upgraded or new services and trainings for the target group will be provided by the national IP offices to be implemented either by the NIPOS themselves or by the business support providers.
Where needed professional legal attorneys should be trained to tailor their advice and to build IPR strategies matching the needs
http://ec. europa. eu/enterprise/policies/industrial-competitiveness/industrial-policy/intellectual-property-rights/index en. htm HORIZON 2020 WORK PROGRAMME 2014-2015
Innovation in SMES PART 7-Page 16 of 37 As appropriate, the activities should be provided jointly with business support service providers,(e g. the Enterprise Europe Network, private consultancy) and the different IPR Helpdesks.
and expand business support service providers'intellectual asset services in conjunctions with NIPOS. 70%of the provided grant should be spent on joint actions described above directly with the national IP offices using the provisions of financial support
and exchange materials with other Commission services IPR projects: IPR helpdesks and the transatlantic portal.
Upgrade or create new services and trainings for the target groups according to the needs of SMES.
or indirectly benefitting from the upgraded or new services and trainings. Existing IP, like the common website (innovaccess),
skills and innovation support services from both public and private service providers across Europe more effectively accessible for SMES."
and award the label might provide services to participating managing entities of innovation voucher programmes which enhance the quality of delivery
and quality of services available to SMES, Enhance the opportunities of excellent researchers and other specialists to transfer their knowledge transnationally
and SMES benefitting from support the programmes still often remain dissatisfied with the services received15.
and they have to be driven demand, launched at the moment agencies themselves recognise the need to revise programme formats.
It is the objective of this action to make available to national and regional innovation agencies these two methodologies as elements of a permanent peer learning environment
when need and opportunity for policy learning in agencies arises. While peer learning is open for all relevant topics only the'Twinning+'methodology as well as the quality management scheme for innovation agencies based on EFQM are recognised as learning methods.
Innovation support services are addressing this challenge traditionally by two interventions that are combined often:(a) the provision of networking space for personal meetings
'Social media and other web-based services challenge these existing approaches and ask for their revision. The british‘connect'platform is the first publicly financed innovation platform on the web that creates a protected space for companies to display their competences, interest and skills,
However, it becomes evident that only a small number of enterprises using the platform have already the skills to draw full benefits from the opportunities.
In that respect they could benefit from a new generation of support services that assist to create value from online collaboration with a group of contacts
make such new services accessible for enterprises in sectors that are typically not yet benefitting from innovation support;
curriculum and training courses for staff currently providing brokerage services in established networks or SME agencies.
Tests of services shall be undertaken on platforms that are open and bring together already a critical mass of enterprises and innovation stakeholders.
Establishing such platforms will not be supported. The nature of the topic online collaboration suggests that the training modules are established as web-based self
New services assisting online collaboration for innovation help SMES to access a broader range of potential innovation partners and mobilise them in a timely manner for concrete projects.
but not limited to the services of Enterprise Europe Network is enhanced. Resources in public innovation support are reoriented from information and brokerage functions
which can to a large extend be automated to higher value added functions like the identification of opportunities and the animation of project development.
and implementation of evidence base for R&i policies and supporting various groups of stakeholders is excluded from the delegation to EASME
and will be implemented by the Commission services. HORIZON 2020 WORK PROGRAMME 2014-2015 Innovation in SMES PART 7-Page 21 of 37 resource optimisation or networking (Vanhaverbeke et al.
and the services supporting them professionalised. At the same time financial and management reporting need to catch up with the logic of open innovation.
and explain the identified case studies. The management modules should focus on (1) Strategy dimension,(2) Entrepreneurship skills,(3) Resource needs,
It will be delivered in cooperation with the Enterprise Europe Network which will initiate, broker and monitor the coach-SME relationship as well as provide participating companies with access to the wider Network service offering.
the coaches should have the opportunity to exchange ideas and experience with each other to grow the competencies within the coaching network.
-Awareness raising regarding the recruitment opportunities for SME instrument coaching towards appropriately qualified individuals,-Creation of information materials, setup of dissemination events,
either participating in the consortium or as third party enterprises, mainly SMES. This topic allows for the provisions of financial support to third parties in line with the conditions set out in part K of the General Annexes.
and strategic focus promises significant impact on economic growth and job creation, and has the potential to act as a catalyst by contributing to and/or leveraging other activities supported,
-initially proposed services to be developed to the target group and to a relevant part of the legal profession;
IPORTA 2-Increasing the quality of IP advisory services to SMES INNOSUP 6 2015: Capitalising the full potential of online-collaboration for SME innovation support INNOSUP-7-2015:
1-Establishing services Enhancing the innovation management capacity of SMES in the Enterprise Europe Network Lack of innovation management capacity is recognised as an important barrier to creating economic impact (competitiveness, growth and jobs
and coaching services to beneficiaries to address this need. The Enterprise Europe Network is a European-wide network of public
public-private and private providers of support services to SMES established for the period 2008-14 under the Competiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP.
For the period 2015-21 the Network will be reestablished under the Competiveness and SME programme (COSME),
A large number of members in the network provide already a range of innovation support services.
The network is most well-known for services related to partnering for business and innovation. The Enterprise Europe Network is a
therefore a suitable structure to introduce services Enhancing the innovation management capacity of SMES and make available to SMES higher quality innovation support services where these are absent or unaffordable on local markets.
It is proposed that all information and partnering services of the network, including those specific to Horizon 2020,
will be financed under the COSME programme in order to reduce the administrative complexity of projects. A contribution of Horizon 2020 to the Network should exclusively be allocated to new and additional innovation support services,
like those enhancing the innovation management capacity of SMES. This action will establish and provide the above mentioned services addressing in general SMES with significant innovation activities and in particular the beneficiaries of the SME instrument.
The services will be provided in the current Enterprise Europe Network in the year 2014 and as distinct element of the Enterprise Europe Network (2015-21.
To that end the action is broken down in two elements: I. Service provision in 2014 In 2014,
under the Enterprise Europe Network established for the period 2008-2014 2000 SMES across Europe shall receive a 7-day service package that includes an innovation management capacity assessment,
a gap analysis and the provision of 5 days of targeted services to address recognised gaps.
The assessment could be based on the IMP rove methodology or methodologies already introduced in the regions that comply with the definition of innovation management
000‘service package assignments'shall be allotted to the coordinators of the Enterprise Europe Network consortia.
They shall be reimbursed according to the same system of annual productive hours used in the framework partnership agreement of the Enterprise Europe Network consortium.
the coordinators of the 2008-14 Enterprise Europe network projects on behalf of the regional and national consortia.
The detailed list of coordinators and maximum grant amounts is provided on the Enterprise Europe Network website (http://een. ec. europa. eu). Timeframe:
Service provision in 2015/16 2015/16 will be the first phase of operation of a renewed Enterprise Europe Network.
The legal base for the COSME programme foresees that the Enterprise Europe Network could be used to deliver actions addressing SMES from other EU programmes under the condition that these programmes provide the necessary additional funding.
The Enterprise Europe Network for the period 2015-21 will be established through an open call for proposals to be published in late 2013 in the COSME programme.
This open call will include the requirement‘Provision of services to enhance innovation management capacity of SMES,
and its services in the regional ecosystem of SME support in order to minimize market distorting effects.
or a key compatible with the key used for the operations of the Enterprise Europe Network under COSME.
Countries not participating in the COSME programme will be invited to propose the establishment of Enterprise Europe Network-Business Collaboration Centres on a self-financing basis. In case the countries are associated to Horizon 2020 the Business Collaboration Centres would be eligible
Specific grant under the framework partnership awarded to the Enterprise Europe Network following the 2014 call under COSME.
and profitability of SMES receiving the services as compared to a control group. Innovation processes will be conducted more efficient and more effectively.
Indirect impact is expected from the introduction of high quality innovation management capacity assessment and support services in all regions across Europe.
and SMES'demand is priced frequently out by the high daily rates paid by large enterprises for high-quality consulting.
since late 2012 the launch phase of the not-for-profit IMP rove-Academy by covering the costs of administrative structures,
Several Member States have integrated services provided by the IMP rove academy in their national/regional SME support system
Transferring the IMP rove project into an independent legal entity shall increase flexibility to reply to needs from regions and Member States while at the same time operating the tools in stable environment with highly qualified staff.
The IMP rove European Innovation Management Academy has the potential to assist the delivery of the coaching and mentoring services related to the SME instrument in three respects:
First, by providing a capacity building environment for the innovation advisors (staff of Enterprise Europe Network) that work in regions with a weakly developed consulting base and no own assessment and consulting tools;
and the‘services enhancing the innovation management capacity of SMES'.'HORIZON 2020 WORK PROGRAMME 2014-2015 Innovation in SMES PART 7-Page 30 of 37 To cover specific costs of operation,
and the services‘enhancing the innovation management capacity of SMES'Furthermore the support provided would secure the quality of the benchmarking by accelerating the inflow of new data sets allowing to replace the oldest data collected in 2008/09.
Indirect impact is expected from the introduction of high quality innovation management capacity assessment and consulting services in all regions across Europe.
In an increasing number of regions the initial introduction in the context of the Enterprise Europe Network of the described action should lead to integration of the toolbox in regional innovation support.
Germany 3-Capturing innovation impulses from emerging economies During the next decades growth of the world economy will be concentrated in emerging economies with a small
and service innovation activities towards the needs of clients in emerging economies and identify new business opportunities for such product even in mature markets.
and methods for European innovation and SME internationalisation support agencies to provide better services to their clients that allow them to capture the potential of reverse innovation.
but are limited not to, case studies (in print, audio or video) for awareness and analysis, methodological guides to capture consumer preferences in emerging economies, guides to cooperation with local science, technology and innovation agents,
tools to support the enterprise in identifying gaps and building-up internal capacities for reverse innovation and others.
and services that are attractive to customers, and can make a business stand out among the competition.
However, the lack of design management skills is a significant barrier to the wider adoption and integration of design into Europe's businesses.
and of design-led innovation incubators. Making such support services available more widely will improve business'ability to use design as a driver for innovation.
This calls for improvement in the design innovation competencies of business-development organisations, incubators and other intermediaries in all EU Member States and Associated Countries.
The objective of this action is to create the capacity to deliver support for design-driven innovation for businesses throughout Europe.
and other actions to improve the capabilities for design-driven innovation among business development organisations, incubators and other intermediaries.
Enterprise and industrial innovation opportunities, in terms of products, services and organisational innovation, and innovation processes are getting more diverse by the integration of advanced IT and internet.
Even in the enterprises themselves, in particular in SMES, the concept of innovation is focused often overly on product and technological innovation while strategic changes in market presence (the'sales,
and extension of the 2013 Business Innovation Observatory, is the regular analysis of evidence to develop better tailored policy responses to the opportunities and needs of European businesses innovation.
and trends in Europe as well as enhance learning across the EU, Associated Countries and between the relevant stakeholders (National authorities and support services).
Enterprises no longer want to exploit only knowledge developed at home in foreign markets, but seek to source new ideas and technologies worldwide and to tap into knowledge generation and the pool of scientists and qualified workers in third countries.
To capture the growth opportunities notably in developing countries and emerging economies enterprises innovate specifically for these markets building on local expertise and inventiveness.
Seizing an opportunity in third countries can, at the same time, result in a remarkable business success also in the home market and globally.
This development is driven mainly by large enterprises and especially multinational firms, but not exclusively. More and more young, fast-growing SMES are established with an international business concept("Born Globals")that rely on an international innovation network.
However, there is generally very little known about SMES in global research and innovation processes and relatively few SMES are internationalised at all.
Many opportunities remain untapped. An international conference in 2015 will launch a debate and collect evidence on how European SMES are involved in international R&i.
It shall bring together all relevant stakeholders to discuss how SMES can benefit from the dynamics
and opportunities of international R&i activities and networks and how they can be supported to engage in globalised innovation processes.
The Group has been set up to provide stakeholder input on the overall Horizon 2020 scientific and technological strategy, with respect to maximising the SME relevance and impact of the various work programmes and activities.
and implementation of evidence base for R&i policies and supporting various groups of stakeholders is excluded from the delegation to EASME
and will be implemented by the Commission services. 22 This activity directly aimed at supporting the development
and implementation of evidence base for R&i policies and supporting various groups of stakeholders is excluded from the delegation to EASME
and will be implemented by the Commission services. HORIZON 2020 WORK PROGRAMME 2014-2015 Innovation in SMES PART 7-Page 34 of 37 Indicative budget:
Expert contracts 9 Assessing the Investment Potential of SMES Emerging from Phase I of the SME Instrument This action will establish a group of investment specialists, operating in a personal capacity,
to assess the investment potential of SMES emerging from Phase I of the SME Instrument24.
The work of the expert group will be essential to get a better overview of the investment-readiness landscape in Europe,
to ensure that entrepreneurs are prepared better to negotiate effectively with potential investors, to increase the number of investments made into early-stage firms
and to ensure a greater commercialisation of scientific knowledge in Europe. The experts concerned will be qualified highly
with specialist expertise in the field of financial instruments such as bankers, venture capital (VC) and other risk-capital fund managers, business angels,
and individuals working in corporate VC, family offices, accelerators and incubators. They will be selected on the basis of objective criteria.
This action is linked to an investment readiness measure (Call H2020-BIR-2014 in the Access to Risk Finance Work Programme
processes and services developed by industry, SMES and first time industry applicants. This study will assess to what extent the pilot has been implemented in 2015, its first year,
and the impact of the Programme in terms of new products/processes/services introduced into the market two years after the project's completion.
markets concerned by the new products/processes/services, difficulties faced to go to the market. Moreover, the study will analyse the complementarities in terms of impacts for the participants in Eurostars-1 projects with other Horizon 2020 initiatives in particular SME Instrument Phase 2 projects and 25 Article 11.2
. 06 of which half from 02.040203 and half from 08.020203 0. 06 of which 0. 03 from 02.040203 and 0. 03 from 08.020203 Corporate communication (see Part 17 of the work programme) 0. 03
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