Presentation used at International expert seminar organised by the European Values ink-Tank, called "Small and Medium Enterprises and eir Cooperation with Science and Research".
2. 2
Overview
• Dutch data
• Back to basics: What do we know?
• SME’s, Knowledge Institutes & Government
• The shining example
• Ingredients for success
• Wrap up
3. 3
Dutch Data: turning science
into money
• entrepreneurship in education: 6 Centres of Excellence at
universities, 20 smaller projects, 80 networks
• support at universities to start business: 21 incubating
networks
• risk capital: co-finance 30 VC funds (200 mln available)
• (international) networks: EEN links SMEs and knowledge
providers across borders
• access to public purchasers: innovation procurement from
innovative SMEs (SBIR)
• vouchers
EDUCATION AND ENTERPRISE
4. 4
Philips 620 mln
NXP ASML
Akzo N
Océ DSM
Top 10 multi’s
(30%)
250 central
actors (30 %)
> 10.000
marathon
runners
1.000
“hipo’s”
(20 %)
Private research and development (€ 5 billion = 0.9 % GDP)
Bron: Technisch weekblad, WBSO, CBS
ShellThales KPN Unilever
5. 5
TNO 600 mln
(Various fields)
Groningen
Amsterdam
Nijmegen
Amst-
VU
Utrecht Leiden
13 universities
Other public
R&D labs
Delft
Rotterdam
TwenteMaastr.
Tilb.
TNO, DLO
technology
institutes
Eindh.
ECN NLR
DPI TI
M2I
TIFN
MARINDeltares
DLO
(agriculture)
Wageni
Public research (and development) (€ 5 billion = 0.9 % GDP)
CTMM
BMM GGPharma
WETSUS Holst DSTI
Bron: Technisch weekblad, CBS
6. 6
Innovation spending: € 1.5 billion
WBSO tax facility for R&D
Guarantees on SME bank loans
Guarantees on bank loans larger comp.
Innovation programmes
Soft loans to companies
Vouchers, IPC for SMEs
Education, entrepreneurship
Seed money
8. 8
SME’s & Knowledge Institutes
About SME’s:
• R&D focus: short term
• Just ‘D’ really
• Interested in how
• Markets, producebility, cost,
margin, ROI: money
• Selection at the gate
About KI’s:
• R&D focus: Long term
• Interested in why
• Find new problems when solving
them
• Little selection
• Publications, theory, proving: peer
reviewed knowledge
13. 13
Closer to home:
• Dutch photonics SME
• Focus on technology & networking
• Active in the knowledge community:
– Close proximity to knowledge ecosystem
– Graduate students
– Webinars
– Seminars
• Active in cooperation programs
– National
– International (FP7, Eurostars etc)
14. 14
What are the ingredients for success?
Policy
•Definition of success?
– ROI (GNP)
– Euros spent on R&D
– Statistics
•Innovation has a longer lifecycle than politics
•Evaluation
•Practical do’s & don’ts
15. 15
Do’s and don’ts from Dutch practical
experience
1. Open competition
2. Support for cooperation
3. SME’s have leading role
4. Make things (more) personal
5. Frustrating paperwork
6. Level of funding: (30-50%)
7. Flexibility once committed: time, allocation of budget
8. Deal with failure
9. Evaluation
Source: “Internationaal Innoveren, Subsidie Samenwerkingsprojecten Internationale Innovatie”
SME’s are fundamentally different, but can produce offspring under the right circumstances
If knowledge Institutes are Venus and Companies are Mars, than Government/ministeries are Jupiter
Closing remark, but it’s certainly not all bad and it’s often a matter of presentation
Just remember you’re a facilitator of romance hoping for offspring Parental role? Close, but Mars and Venus are mature planets capable of holding their own.
Companies & KI’s understand the nature of open competition, Open means clearly published procedures and no sneakyness: no choices for a particular technologal area , reasonable deadlines etc Make sure the rules state that cooperation is mandatory and support the cooperation with your own network, but also be available on the phone/in person KI in the lead will lead to little return on investment Be a-typical for a Jupitarian: get invloved, have the competitors appear before a committee to explain their proposal and leave time for questions. Investors also invest in entrepeneurs first and a committe can take this role. Don’t ask for things the organisation already knows or information you’re not going to use Level to high? Those projects never get terminated even if the technology doesn’t work. Too low and there is no reward for the competition Don’t focus on the planning, focus on the end-result: things will not go as planned Be firm with projects that don’t live up to their potential There’s always room for improvement
