Innovation Bootcamp 2011 summaryLast spring we at Business Arena Ltd. started to talk about how important it would be to gather people together to discuss what is going on and what can we do to boost up youth employment as well as innovation processes in universities.

We wanted to contact people who work with job-relations, innovation fields or in regional development organisation and invite them to share the experiences and expertise, discuss the success stories as well as non-success stories and solve the common challenges they face in their daily jobs.

We wanted to help the participants to form the foundation to their own model and help them to find the tools and steps they need to do to start their local change.

Business Arena ltd. spezialises in helping universities build these much needed co-operation and activation models! We innovate and then test and test again the tools needed in the process.

Goald of this event was:

• Activating and speeding up innovation processes• Anticipating education needs of businesses• Building co-operation with local entrepreneurs• Boosting flow of knowledge within your organisation

WHO WAS INBusiness Arena crew:

Mikko Markkanen, CEO of Business Arena

Päivi Pekkala, Innovation Bootcamp Project ManagerBusiness Arena

Mikko Korpela,Project Manager at Business Arena

Rauli Sorvari, Business Arena Case Coach

BUSINESS ARENA LTD.

Business Arena Ltd is the leading builder of change in the Finnish academic environment. We help universities and polytechnics turn their campaign promises into a reality. In a process like this – as always – learning is the key!

Business Arena operates as an enabler of learning

The focus of our actions is to boost learning by empowering interaction between people. Our tools include energizing learning events, powerful communication, sales activities, and effective leading of networks. We help develop strategies and structures that support creating, sharing, transferring, and utilizing knowledge in everyday activities.

Riikka Reitzer, Innovation Manager at Jyväskylä University, Ideasta Ilmiöksi -project

Jani Lehtinen, Project Specialist at Jyväskylä University of Applied Sciences, Ideasta ilmiöksi -project

Ideasta Ilmiöksi -operation is part of the KOHINA -project, which aims to create uniform project-, and the innovation culture at the University of Jyväskylä and the Jyväskylä University of Applied Sciences.

In addition, the project wants to promote entrepreneurship and the conditions for the emergence of a profitable business, especially among students.

More information: www.ideastailmioksi.fi

Sanna Kangosjärvi, Business Oulu, DRAIVI Primus -project

Johanna Lämsä, Business Oulu, DRAIVI Primus -project

DRAIVI Primus -project focuses on the corporate and educational cooperation between the student and the current work context.

The project is to develop lasting business models between companies, expecially SMEs, and institutes.

Raisa Valve, Development Manager at Helsinki University, Lahti Palmenia unit

Valve works as a Development Manager for the University of Helsinki Education and Development in the Lahti Palmenia unit. She is responsible for the development carried out within the framework of projects and training courses in Palmenia Welfare Data and life course -development program.

She is actively involved in the development of the area of welfare services throught research and development projects.

Antti Vettenranta, Director, Business Services at Laurea University of Applied Sciences, TULI -project Coordinator

TULI -project is funded and coordinated by Tekes and itʼs a program that helps researchers and communities to identify research-based scientific idea or commercial potential.

The program also provides support for commercialization. TULI -projects aim is to create a new research-based business licensing agreements, know-how transfer and new ventures. The program focuses on the commercialization of research results in Finnish universities, polytechnics and research institutes.

Matti Pihlajamaa, Project Manager of OPIN Ovi -project

Opin Ovi- project is a common information, advice and guidance service model for businesses and education in Western Uusimaa.

2 days of brainstorming and deep thinkingWe started the Innovation Bootcamp -event at Sokos Hotel Alexandra. Participants were from different organizations around Finland. There was also Frank from Germany, so we were able to rehears our english skills during the event as well.

WORKSHOP 1

After nice breakfast, it was time to start the conversations and think what is really the problems in universities.

Problem Tree

Rauli presented the Problem-tree tool to the group and also told another tool called Toyotaʼs 5 Whys.

The idea of the Problem-tree is to find the core problems under the ”usual” ones. The 5 Whys works the same way. It really puts people to think what is the problem behind the problem and what is the problem behind that problem and so on..

Participants were divided to tree different groups; 1) Networks 2) Youth unemployment 3)Innovation processes in universities.

In every table participants started to think what are the problems & challenges they are facing in their daily jobs? In their own organisations, networks and regions? What is the purpose of our work? Where does the justification to our work come from in the field of innovations and competitiveness?

5 WHYs tool really helped the groups to go deeper in the problems. Problem threes started to form itʼs shape and there was mainly problems listed but also some solutions.

”No fund””No energy””No time.”

These are the usual problems. What are the REAL problems?

WHY, WHY, WHY, WHY, WHY???

”Too much same kind of development and agents donʼt know about each others.”

”Lack of real need to do co-work.”

”How to make the need invisible?”

”Lack of openess to do mistakes.”

”No fund, no energy, no time.. what are the REAL problems?”

”People have wrong attitude; Why should I change my way of doing.”

”Trust development - Agensyʼs need to built the trust with the businesses and entrepreneurs.”

”Lack of trust, because lack of communication and understanding.” - Problems in contacting the businesess.

”Not to think big, but to start think small.”

”Thatʼs why itʼs called netWORKING:”

Thoughts

”What is the objectives, what is the outcome in these ”networking activity?”

After morning workshop we left to innovate to a very beautiful farm resort Hiekkaharju Manor.It was time to find the solutions to our problems that we had found earlier.

Hiekkaharju Manor

Thoughts

”Networking and interaction are the solution to the problem tree.””Walk the talk.”

”The attitude or a feeling that I can do it!””Trust is the key thing if you want to use sosial capasity.” ”Create an athmosphere where you can share your ideas, even the bad ones.” ”We have to find win-win situation.””We need to get political backing.”

What is the objective? What do we need to be solution driven? What do we need to be MORE?”

We need..information motivating individualsself esteemtrustright athmosphereattitude

Showcases of different innovation, co-operation and learning models

The Might of a Donut - Technology transfer services as ambassadors for the STP/Incubator - Riikka Retizer

We wanted to convey the R&D –staff of the universities of the importance and possibilities of technology and expertise transfer by actively going to them.

We convinced the staff by informing and discussing in a positive atmosphere, through example cases and possibilities to test and practice on their own business ideas.

The technology transfer staff of the universities and local pre-incubator environment Protomo together with the outsourcing services bought from small innovative companies are responsible for the action.

This action has turned out to be an effective way to inform, influence and move the scientific society towards exploiting research results in the business life.

A lesson learned: Go to potential customer, the idea owner.

We strongly believe that universities have research results, inventions, software and expertise which have value to companies. Yet, relative to the significant amount of money put into research, too few research results find their way into business.

The scientists donʼt bring their research results to be commercialized because they:- are not aware of the technology transfer service- donʼt recognize or know their personal advantages for getting involved in

technology transfer- doesnʼt even think about putting research results into commercial use- are used to publish not to patent (“open source” versus “right to ban the use”)- lack the time to go into commercialization of R&D- have not gained entrepreneurial motivation, partly because success stories

from their own social environment are missing - donʼt know how to utilize their knowledge and research results effectively to

respond to the existing needs of companies. There is the lack of well established way to use research results to answer the needs of companies.

”Mountain didnʼt come to us, so we went to the mountain.”

Thoughts

”What does innovator people actually talk with the inventors?”

”Get them the information which is relevant.”

”The system and structures are already there but they just need to know them.”

True story from Oulu, DRAIVI Primus - Sanna Kangosjärvi

DRAIVI Primus -project develops lasting business models of companies and institutions for cooperation between SMEs. With the help of new approaches we increase the capacity of enterprises and to facilitate their development.

The project will create more meeting places for students and business representatives and consolidate contacts between companies and educational institutions. Also this project increases knowledge of working life for young people as well as those who work with them and diversificate of entrepreneurship education and awareness as well as raise enterprises' awareness about trained specialist of the area.

DRAIVI Primus -projects first pilot is to develope corporates information technology capabilities.

Thoughts”People didnʼt know what we do.””Smaller steps, bigger change.” ”Now the businessess know where to contact, if they need a right kind of person to do the co-operation.”

What trends and strategic signals are we hearing?

What problems needs preemptive thinking & action?

What are the leverage points for a big systematic change? How to lead the system, the network? How to lead and yet, not to lead?

What is the key on smart resource management and success with tools that are so dependent on the crowds and networks.

1st group - Youth unembloyment

Sanna, Johanna, Matti, Mikko M. and later also Riikka and Rauli were part of this group. There was lots of discussions about DRAIVI Primus -project and what they are doing in that and what should they do in the future. Questions like ”who is continuing the project and how?” and ”what are the problems in the field of youth unembloyment?” were asked.

This group outcome was that there needs to be more these kind of meetings where you can discuss with other people from different organisations who somehow work with the same issues so you can reflect your own work and have new ideas and feedback from others. In short, there needs to be more meetings/events and awareness about the career counceling services especially to the companies.

2nd group - Innovation in Universities

Second group was formed with these people: Riikka, Frank, Antti, Raisa, Isto, and Mikko K. This group greated the ”Innovation Door” and looked up things in 4 different perspective; Sosiocultural level, policy level, institutional level and business level. ”What we need to do all of these levels?” was the main question. The last product this group made, was 4 areas what needs to be done: 1) Identifying right questions + utilize / search for opportunities, 2) Promoting concrete opportunites, 3) Effecting attitudes and 4) Achieving results.

Workshop 2 - 2 groups - The Next Top Model

1st group working

2nd group working

Thoughts from wednesday morning

”Yesterday was complex. It wasnʼt easy to figure out what to do.”

”It was hard, but fun. i was thinking the Mexican Innovation Cemetary Party.”

”Frankʼs model was very helpful; 4 circles of life. Now I can see the world we are living in.”

”We need more Bootcamps that different actors meet and develope new models.”

”The last point needs the attention.”

”People just donʼt get it. We donʼt have to create something new, we just need to figure out how the people start to use the models.”

Walk the talk!

What does everything we have talked about means in practice. What do we need to do in our daily jobs.

Building your own roadmap

What did we learn? How to transfer new knowledge and new ideas into action? How and where to use this group and network?

”What 3 things am I going to take into action in 1 mount and in one year?”

Next steps!

”Organize next Innovation Bootcamp and maintain the Innovation Learning Network on Facebook.” -Päivi

”Open discussion with policymakers in EU level and figure out how to use this network gatered here.” - Mikko M.

”Discriving the concept, IB summary and promote our models in TCI Conference.” - Rauli

”Reflect structure with Business Arena, understand more about the doughnut and Innovation Academy with finnish organization” - Frank

”Regional commercialation. Who is responsibles and what?” - Riikka

”Working parnership model.” - Matti

”How to develope regional wellbeing cluster, evaluation of our cluster work and after one year everyone inside the cluster knows what we

are doing.” - Isto

In one year to be just one member in the organization/network and organizer but not the one who does everything.” - Sanna ja Johanna

Thoughts:

”This really forces you to think.””There is also a place eaven for a bad idea.”

”People do things based on our thoughts and ideas. You were creating ideas already.”

”How to find the co-workers and the space where to discuss like here in Innovation Bootcamp.”

”Natural guidance. How far do you lead, or guide. Leaving space for the flow.”

THANK YOU!

NEXT INNOVATION BOOTCAMP

MAY 2012 Germany

OCTOBER 2012 Finland

CONTACT INFORMATION

Päivi Pekkala, Project Manager of Innovation Bootcamp

+358 (0)45 135 0692

paivi.pekkala@businessarena.fi