Pilot for The Innovation Lift of SME:s in Sweden

Purpose and goal

Purpose: To test IMP³rove as platform for a powerful´Innovation leap for SMEs in Sweden´ , which will contribute to increased innovation ability at companies. Dialogue with several companies and some IMP3rove-measurements. Aim: Knowledge of innovation management in participating companies: increased understanding of the importance of systematic management of innovation work. Model and project proposal for´Innovation leap´: produced idea outline and several parallel processes about project proposals and applications are ongoing. Business opportunities: to some extent

Results and expected effects

Increased knowledge of the importance of innovation management and how models specifically adapted for SMEs should be designed and implemented to increase innovation ability. Many companies have neither knowledge of the importance of innovation management or possibility to build up structures and processes which e.g. IMP3rove is based on. Continued work on model for ´Innovation leap SME Sweden´, a number of project proposals and participation in creating a standard for innovation management system is ongoing. Expected effect: increased innovation ability particularly at SMEs

Approach and implementation

Dialogue with around 50 SME and IMP3rove-measurements have been carried out at a few of them. Not many were ready for a complex model like IMP3rove, definitions and data were not known which makes the measurement arbitrary. IMP3rove alone cannot form the basis of an ´Innovation leap´. Proposal: Long term work where measurements/analyses are preceded by knowledge followed by ´journeys´ with expert support in creating companies´ management systems and competence for continued innovation. Education/ training, tools and cross industry innovation networks are tied to the ´journey´.