Making partnerships work
This issue of eIQ focuses on making partnerships work, in both the real and virtual worlds.
Our first feature discusses ways to develop thriving open innovation and global research partnerships when your facilities and your partner’s facilities are spread out across the globe. The piece is based on discussions at this year’s Representatives’ Round Table in January, as well as the experiences of EIRMA’s global focus group during its visits to Eastern Europe and India.
The physical distribution of research resources creates issues in open innovation partnerships. But how do you get researchers within your company to work well together when they’re continents, or even entire disciplines, apart? Our second feature looks at the way that information and communications technologies can be used to bring researchers closer together – if you can only get people to want to use them. To prove it’s not all theory, we’ve also put together a toolbox of social networking tools that may be of use to your research organisation, based on the experiences of IBM and Pfizer.
Partnerships are mentioned elsewhere in this issue. Martin Curley, director of Intel Labs Europe, uses his Viewpoint to call for Europe, that other great partnership, to make a better job of exploiting its scientific excellence through improved integration of its research and innovation policies and processes.
Our intellectual property coverage looks at the issue involved in developing a meaningful yet practical set of measures to track the performance of IP management functions. There are plenty of relevant metrics available, but how do you choose the right set for your business?
Our Country Profile considers the fortunes of Spain, which has assumed the rotating presidency of the European Union during the first half of 2010. The EIRMA Annual Conference will be held in Barcelona, one of the most innovative cities in the country.
There is also a call for Europe to focus on the Grand Challenges it faces as a way of boosting its innovation performance. And there’s news of the European Institute for Innovation and Technology’s launch of its first three knowledge and innovation communities. Other news items cover the latest European Innovation Scoreboard, and the release of an updated version of the Handbook of Responsible Partnering. And there is sad news about the passing of Dr Andrew Dearing, former Secretary General of EIRMA.
In the spirit of the organisation that it serves, eIQ has been innovating again, this time with the introduction of exclusive video interviews with EIRMA members. You’ll find the first of these sets of videos linking from our lead news item, in which EIRMA members describe the biggest innovation issues they face this year.
eIQ Action Points – making partnerships work
eIQ Action Points – making the most of ICT
eIQ Action Points – from European research to value for Europe
eIQ Action Points - measuring the effectiveness of the IP management function
Leopold Demiddeleer, president
EIRMA