16/12/09 | Innovation

From knowledge to innovation

Innovation has always been key to Europe's success, and many of the world's most important and enduring innovations carry a "made in Europe" label. Innovation remains the lifeblood of the knowledge-based economy which the EU is working to construct. However, with growing global competition and given the innovative performance of the EU's main rivals, not to mention the global economic crisis and the social and environmental challenges ahead, Europe needs to raise its game in the innovation stakes.

"I am passionate about innovation," declared [34 KB] European Commission President José Manuel Barroso at the first-ever Innovation Summit in October. "It is our only means of tackling the major societal challenges that we face […] Above all, it will help us to build a strong and sustainable model of growth."

Barroso went on to outline the priorities of the next European Commission: "In the next five years, I want a greater focus on industry-driven, applied R&D. We need this because, while Europe is very good at producing ideas, we are not good enough at bringing them to market."

"In spring next year, we will present a new EU Reform Agenda for the next decade with innovation at its heart," he added. A European Innovation Act [52 KB] could form an integral part of the new Agenda,according to a recent policy review by the European Commission, which has highlighted some key areas for action: financial support for innovation, improving market conditions, promoting market uptake, and investing in people.

Broadening the concept of innovation

To help chart a course forward, the European Commission's Enterprise and Industry DG appointed a special business panel made up of experts on innovation to provide a business perspective on future priorities for EU innovation policy. The group authored its final report, entitled 'Reinvent Europe through innovation [3 MB] ', using what it called a 'co-creation' process which drew on the opinions of external thought leaders and other stakeholders through meetings and an on-line Web 2.0 style forum.

The independent report, released on the occasion of the first European Innovation Summit, has been welcomed and applauded by experts as a "blue print" and a "strategic vision" for the future.

While acknowledging that Europe has no shortage of ideas and that "more technology is not the solution", the group's final report outlines a five-pronged approach to enhancing the EU's innovative capacity by enabling Europe to move from being a knowledge society and becoming an innovation one.

First, the report suggests that Europe needs to broaden the concept of innovation - to encompass both business and social innovation - and to gear it towards "compelling social challenges". "Europe faces unprecedented challenges […] Incremental change and business innovation alone are not enough. Social innovation explains 75% of innovation success," describes the document. "Breaking the mould requires collaborative, cross-cutting responses reaching out to business, public policies, research, education and training, public services, finance and NGOs."

To address this, the business panel suggests that the EU should construct its actions around compelling social challenges, create social funds for innovation, and encourage intergenerational co-operation around innovation, among other things. European civil society has welcomed this recognition of innovation's social dimension.

Need for speed

Secondly, the group stresses the importance of speed and synchronisation in order to maximise the uptake of innovative technologies. "Speed and scale are everything in innovation. Europe's current structures and institutions respond too slowly and in a fragmented way, meaning that ideas generated here are developed more successfully by others elsewhere," the report explains.

To speed up Europe's responsiveness to new ideas, the document recommends that EU action is not only constructed around social challenges, but should be done in such a way as to promote coordination and rapid roll-out. In addition, public procurement should be reconfigured to encourage innovation.

Thirdly, the document urges Europe to invest significantly in future infrastructure. "Current economic stimulus packages are still too focused on buildings rather than other types of infrastructure, on concrete rather than broadband networks, and on old industries not new ones," the report observes. "Moreover, such infrastructure investments fail to realise the disruptive nature of new technologies or to capitalise on how emerging technologies interact with and enable wider economic and social change."

The group proposes that all Europeans need universal access to ultra-fast broadband and smart energy-grid connections. In addition, the EU needs to facilitate the creation of infrastructure for emerging technologies.

Fourthly, Europe needs a radical new approach to financing innovation "which transforms the fragmented short-term approach of governments, private finance and long-established companies," points out the report. "European policy must address the current weaknesses of financing innovation through new partnerships to share risk."

The group recommends that the European Investment Fund should be broadened to encompass social innovation and to promote more cross-border partnerships. In addition, the EU should seed some venture capital funds and encourage the emergence of more private funds.

And, finally, the EU needs to facilitate greater collaboration through such mechanisms as Web 2.0 technologies and virtual networks and labs. "Innovation feeds on collaboration, the combination and confrontation of different ideas, perspectives and experiences. The EU can support the shift from closed processes to the power of networks," the report notes.

The text only of the articles can be republished as long as the source of the article is quoted: Enterprise & Industry magazine (http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/magazine/index_en.htm), © European Union, 2008 - 2012