The Transfer of knowledge as a key driver for value creation

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• The Transfer of knowledge as a key driver for
  value creation
• Aleardo Furlani
• CEO, Innova, Italy, INSME Board Member
• Dubai April 2nd, 2009

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• Aleardo Furlani
• IESE, Master in Business Administration (MBA)
  (1987)
• Gemini Consulting (1987-1992)
• CEO of Innova SpA since 1993
• Member of INSME Board since 2007

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We all know the classical sources of Knowledge
for SMEs

• Technology transfer
• Open Science
• Licensing
• Collaborative
• Spin off
• But, also mobility, technical training
• Clients
• Suppliers
• Internal

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but the dynamics of knowledge transfer are so
fast to change

• Technology is getting more and more similar to a
  commodity
• Organizational Innovation is considered as
  important than Technological Innovation
• Companys boundaries are more questionable than
  in the past
• Even the profit is getting a controversial source
  of value (e.g. what is the value of a Company?)

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The European industrial districts/1

• European pre-industrial markets were driven by
  distinctions of taste. The innovation system
  driven by consumer market product
  differentiation price differences between
  quality and common.
• Craft skills, design and knowledge of local
  market still the core of the craft based product
  innovations food, textiles, leather, as well as
  wood and metal products.
• Craft-based regions share embedded skills and
  market understanding. Industrial districts in
  Denmark, Northern Italy, Spain and Portugal
  product innovations, low innovation cost.  

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The European industrial districts/2

• Industrial districts good at low-tech new
  product creation, based on craft skills.
• Tacit knowledge, limited ability in new
  science-based consumer market products, strong
  interaction with large corporations both
  downstream and upstream.
•  

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SME Knowledge Strategy
A typical Cluster industry issue
Titanium Golfing Sunglasses These advanced unisex
sunglasses weigh just 8g. Brown shatter-proof and
scratch-resistant lenses offer 100 UVA, B and
C-protection. Incorporating light Stabilising
Technology specially developed for golfers to
enhance vision in frequently changing light
intensity Eyeglass frames fabricated from
shape-memory alloys have optimized elastic
properties, which exhibit a combination of
shape-memory and elastic properties.
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Sources of knowledge for SMES/1
Cluster value-added chain ? SMES can fill the
are gaps in the value-adding chain that exist in
the regions economic drivers. ? Information
spillovers (typically imitation) ? Specialization
and division of labor among enterprises (low
transaction costs due to proximity of transacting
partners) ? Development of skilled labor
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Sources of knowledge for SMES /2
Achieving new strategic linkages with the RD ?
Leveraging EU, national and regional public
funds ? Cluster-Academia collaboration exchange
meetings, symposia, seminars, and workshops ?
Deploying collective technology projects
(regional research and development projects) ?
Support the take up of new businesses (business
re-vitalization)
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Sources of knowledge for SMES /3
Knowledge about new Market channels through ?
Learning about overseas market channels and
international opportunities ? Participating to
Business Matching Events ? International trade
missions ? Knowledge about the technical Norms(
the new trading barriers) ? Defining new
international development business models
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Sources of knowledge for SMES /4
Knowledge transactions with Financial
Institutions ? Bridging to Bank financing,
benchmarking low-interest financing ?
Participating to guarantee mechanisms, through
business alliances and Consortia ? Learning how
to interact with venture funds and regional
venture capitals ? Valorize the SMEs intangible
assets
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Sources of knowledge for SMES/5
Personnel training ? Fostering the
acquisition of development skills in a
comprehensive and continuous manner ? Human
Resource Programs for Small and Medium
Manufacturing Enterprises ? Developing practical
human resource training content responding to the
collective needs of SMEs financing,
internationalization, trading, partnership
building .
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Sources of knowledge for SMES /6
A common denominator how to benefit from the
Networks ?Participate to networks dealing with
technology/solutions whose impact is significant
for the SME.Examples -Trade networks
-Sector groups -Information networks
-Associations, Clusters -Collective Projects
? Networks foster complementary relationships
and increase SMEs knowledge exposure.
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Networking the external source of knowledge
for SMES/1

• NETWORK organization whose members , on
  a voluntary basis, exchange information and
  knowledge in such a way that their individual
  autonomy remains intact
• In organizational studies, networking is regarded
  as a strategic inter-organizational response to
  a globalized and increasingly dynamic and complex
  business environment inhabited by more
  sophisticated consumers
• SMES should therefore learn how to benefit from
  their participation to Networks.

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Networking the external source of knowledge for
SMES/2

• Networks are knowledge transfer facilitator
• A great deal of the formal co-operation between
  SMEs is likely to be in the form of networks (the
  new SMEs competence)
• Focus on core competence leads to placing
  non-core activities outside the enterprise.
• Financial resources are less and less amount,
  solutions can be available under stricter
  conditions.
• Networks as a result of an increasingly
  knowledge-based economy (Collective Innovation
  Projects in France) .

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Networking (the new SMEs competence)

• We have to teach SMES how to perform in Networks
• (Source of the graphic Fraunhofer Institute)

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What SMEs should learn about how to get knowledge
from Networks
? Long-term commitments through transparent
human networks, yield short-term specific
results ? Openly cooperate and participate to the
demand-offer dynamics( the network market) ?
Strive for deployment and self-sustaining
activities ? Reputation and competence are the
hard currencies in the Network context ?
Successful knowledge transfer involves
establishing relationships, gaining information
from these relationships, and maintaining these
relationships.
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Successful Networking

• Networks have a tendency towards entropy that
  constantly must be fought
• Networking provides opportunities for interaction
  among peers, leading to a mix of people together
  that will transfer that social capital into a
  successful project
• Networking can lead to a collective leadership
  development rather than individual leadership
  development.
• Social capital satisfying social needs and
  bearing a substantial improvement of living
  conditions in the whole community

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Successful Networks

• Learning points at this stage show that
  successful Networks are characterised by
• Common strategic intent between host organisation
  and the Network node
• Development focus
• One host organisation
• Personal leadership
• Orientation towards making the job simple and
  manageable
• Social capital Passion and social
  needs/networking motivation

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Conclusions

• Learning points at this stage show that
• Knowledge transfer is a value creator for SMEs
  but it is carried out through improvisation
• SMEs can knowledge from different sources
  (multimodal KT)
• Enhancing knowledge exchange implies enhancing
  the comprehension of own value chain and own
  traded knowledge
• Working in Network for SMEs requires professional
  management and behavioral skill and a strategic
  vision.