Training on Corporate Innovation Management System for Competitiveness Erasmus Project

Project Title

Training on Corporate Innovation Management System for Competitiveness

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for vocational education and training

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2015

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: Research and innovation; Enterprise, industry and SMEs (incl. entrepreneurship); Entrepreneurial learning – entrepreneurship education

Project Summary

The development and application of intelligent manufacturing technologies and equipment have increased demand for efficient innovation, largely for breakthrough innovation. The process is referred to as the 4th Industrial Revolution. This need can only be met if there is a large number of professionals able to implement innovation and there is an appropriate framework for ensuring the effectiveness of innovation management. This framework is granted by the CEN/TS 16555-1 “Innovation Management System” (IMS) European standard.

In order to provide a large number of professionals, there is a need for cost-effective online training services. Thus, the 4th Industrial Revolution has a significant market demand for our educational service to be spread worldwide. Our project was a step towards our long-run goal that more and more companies could efficiently apply the IMS standard, thus increasing their innovation capability and efficiency.

The main goal of the InnoMe – Training on Corporate Innovation Management System for Competitiveness (2015-1-HU01-KA202-13551) Erasmus+ project, therefore, was to develop an educational material mainly for the management of SME-s to support the establishment and management of an innovation process controlling system based on the CEN/TS 16555-1 IMS standard.

The aim of the standard is to give guidelines to the introduction, development and operation to the frameworks of systematic innovation management activities of organizations. The implementation of the standard ensures the growth of their competitiveness. The standard-based IMS can be integrated into the larger corporate management systems (e.g. ISO 9001) which have the common base of a dynamic PDCA system.
The 27-month-long project has realized three intellectual outputs, which are closely related to each other, being parts of a complex system; however, they can also be viewed as independent elements. Each output is available in Hungarian, Slovak, Polish, Romanian and English and accessible from the project’s website: http://innovationdevelopment.eu/. The first two outputs consist of 3-3 units.

1 – Elaboration base of IMS

1.1 Competence catalogue of innovation managers
Competence profile of innovation managers responsible for successful operation of the IMS based on the standard was elaborated on the basis of a survey carried out in the 4 partner countries. Altogether 450 completed questionnaires and 32 personal interviews were analysed. Relying on the results, a separate report for each country as well as a summarizing report were elaborated.

1.2 Online questions database
A questions database customised for the scope of the standard have been developed so that companies/decision makers can assess innovativeness within their organisation. The database contains a total of more than 150 questions that can be filtered according to the corporate sector (Automotive, HR, Education / Training, Other) and filling manager position (senior / middle manager).

1.3 Guidebook
The Guidebook supports the understanding and practical utilization of the IMS standard with examples and good practices in 350 pages. Main topics are: innovation in the European Union, innovation policy in Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia, types of innovation, context of organization, leadership for innovation, planning a successful innovation, innovation driving factors, innovation management techniques, steps of a CEN/TS 16555-1 audit.

2 – Training

2.1 Joint Staff event
A 5-day-long innovation management training was organized in Budapest in order to test the content of the Guidebook as basis for a training on innovation management. Besides testing, the 40-hour training aimed at improving the knowledge, skills and competences of employees of InnoMe project consortium members in the field of innovation management.

2.2 E-learning
Using the Guidebook as a source of information, the e-learning tool provides employees with the skills, knowledge and competences needed for the establishment and maintenance of an innovation management system at their organization according to the IMS standard.

2.3 Blended learning courses
Blended learning courses on innovation management have been organized in each partner country to test the e-learning tool. The e-learning training were complemented with face-to-face classroom sessions. The training materials have been finalized according to the feedback received from the participants.

3 – Online brainstorming platform
At the final stage of the project, an online brainstorming platform was developed to assist people separated in space to share their ideas related to particular questions or issues.

The project has been implemented by six partners covering a wide range of economic sectors (HR, education and training, consultancy, car industry):
• TREBAG Ltd. (coordinator), Hungary
• ASTRA, Slovakia
• Nowoczesna Firma S.A., Poland
• EAPTP, Romania
• Babes Bolyai University, Romania
• Magyar Suzuki Corp., Hungary

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 256373,95 Eur

Project Coordinator

TREBAG SZELLEMI TULAJDON- ES PROJEKTMENEDZSER KFT & Country: HU

Project Partners

• UNIVERSITATEA BABES BOLYAI
• Nowoczesna Firma S.A.
• The Employers Association of Professional Training Providers from Romania
• Magyar Suzuki Zrt.
• ASTRA – ZDRUZENIE PRE INOVACIE A ROZVOJ