Clusters as vehicle to Internationalisation

Karin Gjerløw Høidahl, Norwegian Innovation Clusters

19.June 2015

NORWAY

Population: 5 156 451 (Oct 2014)

Area : 385 155 km2

Coastline ( mainland): 25 148 km

Inhabitants per km2

land area: 16,71 ( 2013)

(Annual Coffee Consumption per capita:7,2 KG )

• Global competition increases in most industries

• High costs must be compensated with higher expertise, efficiency and speed of innovation!

• Global technological and marketing development

• Development and ambitions of the clusters

• SMEs holds many of the answers

• 99 per cent of the Norwegian business community consists of small and medium-sized companies (SMEs)

• SMEs represent half of the productive work in Norway

• 80 per cent of SMEs does not achieve growth

DOBLIN

Innovation Norway

Oslo Main OfficeRegional offices

We give local ideas global opportunities

Regional offices in every countyOffices in more than 30 countries

GoalIncreased competitiveness in

regional clusters throughlong-term internal and external collaboration

www.innovationclusters.no

POLICY – FUNDING - IMPLEMENTATION

Ministry ofTrade and Industry

Ministry of Local GovernmentAnd Regional Development

Linking policies

Innovation agencies: Linking roles and resources

Selection criteria

Clusters’ resources

Relations and cluster identification

Position and potential

Ownership and leadership

Goals, strategies and impacts

Implementation plan

The cluster The cluster project

FundingPart-financing of project management and network building (50%)

AdvisoryFollow up of projects at regional and national level, Strategic dialogues

and external project advisors

Knowledge and skillsProgram meetings, seminars, and relevant workshops

NetworkingCluster to cluster cooperation nationally and international, Offices

abroad, Enterprise Europe Network

ProfilingNorwegian Innovation Clusters as a brand, “Norwegian Clusters”

magazine, support through the service strategic positioning

How do we support the clusters?

10

LOCAL FOCUS

The inner life of the cluster

Motivate for collaboration

Trust-building activities within the cluster

Study tripsVisits from other clusters

Limited commitment

ORIENTATION

Continous focus on «inner life»

Analysis phase

Development of common international strategy

Participation in, delegations, exhibitions, conferences, internatuional projects,

Part commitment

INTERNATIONAL

The international dimension is a natural part of the collaborationA common international strategy

International lincages within, competence, innovation, technology, market. access

Focus on developement of glogal busiiness models

MULTINATIONAL

The cluster takes the step out internationally with the companies

The cluster and companies have core activities in several countriesMultinational strategy developmentThe cluster takes on an active role as developemnt agent in countries where the cluster have core activities

GLOBAL

Development of global innovation system

Driving force in a global perspective

The companies are leading in a global context

Development of standards and common framework conditions in a global perspective

• Internationalisation of clusters are not the same as internationalisation of individual companies

• Internationalisation of clusters are so much more than study trips and trade fairs

• Internationalisation of clusters are not only export promotion

• Clusters have individual needs, that varies over time

• Need for different competencee and different types of support.

• Clusters are not just sums of individual companies..

Strategic dialogues between the cluster managers and the missions abroad

Trans-National Call for Proposals for the Internationalisation of SMEs through Clusters

• Innovation Express represents a common European approach for supporting the internationalization of SMEs through cluster initiatives.

• Innovation Express is a joint call for proposals

• The call is funded by national/regional funding agencies to initiate, develop or enhance transnational cooperation activities – leveraging cluster organizations (or similar) to develop proposals for their SME members.

• A broad variety of innovation activities, including technology/knowledge transfer, training, feasibility studies, strategic analysis and mutual benchmarking are supported, as well as stages of international cooperation .

http://www.bsrstars.se/project/bsr-innovation-express/

Results of the 2nd BSR Innovation Express 2014

• The call attracted 84 applications

• 54 were approved

• – resulting in 35 new international collaboration projects, involving more than 1200 SMEs in the Baltic Sea Region.

To learn more about the collaboration projects : http://www.bsrstars.se/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/BSR-Innovation-Express-2014_overview-of-projects.pdf

Potential applicants can meet and develop project ideas in a Cluster-2-Cluster Conference and Matchmaking event

The 2014 event attracted 300 participants representing 150 clusters from 24 countries, and 433 cluster-to-cluster meetings

To learn more about this years event : https://www.b2match.eu/cluster-to-cluster-2015

• Internationalisation of clusters can include a wide set of strategies and acitivities, customized for:

• The cluster as a whole and/or for groups of businesses • Different phases in the clusters development • Exploring new markets and/or bringing new knowledge home

• Internationalisation strategies for clusters means collaborative actions aiming at upgrading the international orientation of cluster partners – and the attractiveness of the cluster environment