ABCNetwork

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ABC-Network
WP2 Improvement of cluster management
Namur 21-23 May 2007
Gérard Garin Nada Matas-Runquist
Véronique Graff Denis Mottet
With the support of
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ABC-Network seminar Benchmarking analysis
(D6) Barriers to innovation and networking Best
practices in agro-biotech cluster management and
governance Denis Mottet Agrobiopôle wallon 22
May 2007 Parc Crealys - Belgium



With the support of
3
ABC Network
WP2
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• Introduction - Objectives of the benchmarking
  study
• Methodology
• Definitions
• Selection of the clusters
• Structure of the benchmarking questionnaire
• Results and answers analysis
• Description of the benchmark clusters
• Cluster benchmarking analysis
• Barriers to innovation and networking
• Best practices in cluster management and
  governance
• Services provided by the clusters Most
  effective ones for SMEs
• Specificities of agro-food and agro-biotech
  clusters challenges to meet
• Conclusions

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• Introduction
• Agro-food sector 1 of the major industrial
  sector in Europe
• but agro-food/agro-biotech clusters different
  from other industrial sectors
• highly concentrated scientific resources gtlt
  scattered technological resources/producers
• poor collaboration between researchers and
  industry
• SMEs have very limited culture of innovation and
  partnership
• ? clustering process in agro-food/agro-biotech of
  great importance!

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• Introduction
• ABC-Network - objectives
• strengthening the knowledge of
  agro-food/agro-biotech clustering process. ?
  benchmarking study
• such surveys focusing on these specific issues
  focused on the agro-food/agro-biotech sector
  never performed
• basis for final recommendations to the EC

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• Methodology definitions
• cluster cluster initiative
• Organised regional or multi-regional sectorial
  network among independent companies and
  associated institutions (in a broad sense
  economic partners) aiming at improving
  innovation performance and international
  competitiveness
• (sources Cluster Initiative Greenbook, CLOE
  project, etc.)
• Agro-food and agro-biotech
• - in a broad sense related to the whole food
  industry
• Including genetic improvement, food packaging,
  etc.
• - agro-biotech ? agro-food agro-biotech more
  emphasis on science

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• Methodology selection of the clusters
• 30 clusters initially selected by the
  ABC-Network partners regarding 4 criterions
• focused on agro-food and/or agro-biotech
• location (in order to have representatives or
  large geographic areas)
• reputation
• level of collaboration with an ABC-Network
  partner
• Clusters contacted by ABC-Network partners end
  2006 early 2007

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• Methodology structure of the questionnaire
• To make appear the feelings about barriers to
  innovation and networking and best practices in
  cluster management and governance
• 49 questions 6 main fields (? objectives of
  project and B. study)
• General profile of the cluster
• Barriers and best practices to innovation and
  networking
• Governance system
• Strategy of the cluster
• Results and impacts of the clusters
• Services offered by the cluster
• 3 kinds of questions
• Multiple-choice questions
• Open questions
• Ranking questions (Totally disagree 1 ? Tot.
  agree 5)

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• Methodology Results and answer analysis
• 14 partially or fully completed questionnaires
• Tendencies! No statistically significant results
• Best practices free and open-questions ?
  cluster managers personal advice
• Results mainly presented in a graphical form
• answers to open questions summarised
• (NB NRC Number of Replying Clusters)

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• Description of the benchmark clusters
• 14 answering clusters

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• Cluster benchmarking analysis
• Barriers to innovation

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• Barriers to innovation
• Financial barriers
• Lack of attractiveness of agro-biotech sector
  regarding other sectors ? difficulty to finance
  high level research
• Lack of awareness on public funding or long
  delays to obtain the subsidies
• In some regions lack of RD public funding for
  specific associations like agro-food co-operatives

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• Barriers to innovation
• Technological barriers
• In emerging countries the lack of new
  technological device manufacturers ? importation
  at high prices
• Implementation of new technologies expensive
• ? working with old-fashioned material barrier
  to innovation
• - Agro-food traditional techniques ?
  limitations from legal and market structures
  constrains

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• Barriers to innovation
• Cultural barriers
• Particularly in agro-food sector and for SMEs
• Innovation seen as a cost
• NOT as opportunity to
  develop activities or
• take up new challenges
• Prefer traditional business feel
  uncomfortable with innovation
• SMEs generally lack of experience in running
  research or in research partnerships with
  universities
• Universities and companies very different way of
  working
• objectives, timeframe, confidentiality
  issues

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• Barriers to innovation
• Governance and management barriers
• - Unstable governance structure
• Lack of international connections (of the cluster
  managing body or cluster companies)
• Lack of leadership in looking for global
  opportunities

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• Barriers to innovation
• Other barriers
• In some regions innovation is not the priority
  and support to clusters very limited (legal
  limitation)
• Legal framework and the slow decision process of
  official authorities
• Geographic isolation of the country or cluster
  region
• Delocalisation of the RD units outside the
  cluster area
• Limited presence of food industry and agro-food
  RD in the cluster area

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• Barriers to networking

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• Barriers to networking
• Cultural barriers
• Lack of confidence between the cluster members
• Diverging interests and working habits of RD
  institutions and companies
• Lack of experience in collaborative research
  projects (particularly for SMEs)
• Lack of RD interest of some companies

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• Barriers to networking
• Managerial and governance barriers
• Networking building-up and management tough
  matters! Difficult to find a cluster manager with
  the needed skills and expertise
• Everybody very busy focused on its own work
  
  spending time for networking ? concrete
  outcomes?
• Particular effort required to prospect
  international opportunities
• Cluster level some influent members try to lead
  the strategy of the cluster in a way that suit
  them (in detriment to other cluster members)

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• Barriers to networking
• Financial and other barriers
• Lack of financial support for networking
  activities
• Geographical isolation
• Lack of SMEs critical mass in the cluster, too
  many large companies
• Lack of public research centres or food industry
  linked to agro-food in the cluster area

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• Best practices in cluster management and
  governance (1/2)
• Strong cluster management team
• Real involvement of the cluster members
• Presence of a high-level and independent
  committee guarantying the fairness of the
  selection of the projects
• Continuity and stability of the cluster
  management team and actions
• Business-driven strategy
• Diagnosis of the sector specific needs

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• Best practices in cluster management and
  governance (2/2)
• Merging of complementary cluster-related
  institutions
• Offering broad technological and scientific
  resources (not only in biotechnology)
• Support for co-operative projects between
  business, RD and official institutions
• Centralisation of information on different topics

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Services provided by the clusters Most
effective ones for SMEs
Most effective services for companies
services chosen by a minimum of 3 clusters upon
12 Services proposed by min 6 clusters upon
13 (number of clusters)
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• Specificities of agro-food and agro-biotech
  clusters challenges to meet
• Rmk distinction agro-food and agro-biotech more
  theoretical, not so clear in the practice, often
  interconnected
• Change of the cultural approach in the agro-food
  sector (very traditional and less open to
  innovation
• To link agro-food related companies to biotech
  centres in order to use biotech applications
  (technology transfer)
• Understanding of the market needs and increase of
  innovation through cooperation with other sectors
  like health and the packaging industry
• Reduce the financial barriers by attracting
  investors
• The communication and information efforts to the
  public have to be intensified. Thanks to
  co-operation with the authorities and the press
  with the objective to reduce the public concerns
  about the agro-biotech sector

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• Conclusions (1/6)
• This benchmarking study probably the first one.
• In the line of ABC-Network objectives deepen the
  knowledge of the cluster dimension of
  agro-food/agro-biotech basis for future policy
  recommendations.
• Allowed us to identify a large range of
  agro-food/agro-biotech clusters in Europe and at
  the global level
• Depict advises of agro-food/agro-biotech cluster
  managers concerning barriers to innovation and
  networking best practices in cluster management
  and governance and specific challenges these
  clusters have to meet
• Unexpected results
• pointing the existence of legal barriers in the
  innovation and networking process
• divergence between the services proposed by the
  clusters and their assessed efficiency towards
  companies

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• Conclusions (2/6)
• Barriers to innovation
• Mainly financial, technological and cultural
• Cannot always be solved by the cluster managing
  body itself
• Can more depend on official authorities,
  availability of funds, the companies and research
  institutions themselves
• Nevertheless valuable actions from cluster
  managers
• - promoting innovation towards the cluster
  members (RD performers, companies)
• - Informing official authorities and Business
  Support Organisations on the encountered barriers
  in the cluster
• Essential role of clusters!

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• Conclusions (3/6)
• Barriers to networking
• Mainly cultural and managerial
• Origin communication, collaboration,
  partnerships mainly lead by human factors.
  Nevertheless other factors can interfere
• Triple helix networking (companies, RD
  performers, BSO/official institutions) difficult
  and long-term process
• importance of clusters and good cluster
  managers!

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• Conclusions (4/6)
• Best practices in cluster management and
  governance
• Each situation is specific ? only indicative
  guidelines
• But general tendencies
• Having a strong and stable cluster management
  team
• An external control from an independent committee
• A more business-driven strategy?

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• Conclusions (5/6)
• Most efficient services for SMEs
• Depending on the orientation of the cluster but
  general tendencies
• Development of specific tools for networking and
  innovation support
• Project engineering
• Setting-up, management and animation of networks
• Strategic and competitive intelligence services
• External networking
• Territorial marketing
• Working groups
• Financial funds management

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• Conclusions (6/6)
• Clusters challenges to meet
• Some challenges common to most type of clusters
  whatever sectorial positioning
• - performing a high-level cluster animation
• - increase the level of commitment of the members
  in the cluster activities
• - increase collaboration between cluster members
• - etc.
• Challenges more linked to the agro-food or
  agro-biotech sectors
• - higher innovation-minded actors
• - trans-sectorial co-operation (health, packaging
  ...)
• - improvement of the sector attractiveness for
  investors
• - improved awareness of the public regarding
  innovation in the sector

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• Clusters have an essential role to play in
  favouring innovation in agro-food/agro-biotech!

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• Some literature (1/2)
• CLOE project (Cluster Linked over Europe)
  Karlsruhe Germany Linz Austria Lyon France
  Tartu Estonia Wermland Sweden Timisoara
  Romania Kaliningrad Russia Nottingham UK
  (2006) Cluster Management Guide Guidelines for
  the Development and Management of Cluster
  Initiatives. URL http//www.clusterforum.org
• European Commission - Enterprise
  Directorate-General (2002). Final report of the
  expert group on enterprise clusters and networks.
  URL http//europa.eu.int/comm/enterprise/entrepre
  neurship/support_measures
• The Gallup Organization (for European Commission)
  (2006). 2006 Innobarometer on clusters role in
  facilitating innovation in Europe Analytical
  report. URL http//cordis.europa.eu/innovation/en
  /policy/innobarometer.htm
• Ketels, C. Lindqvist G Sölvell Ö. (2006).
  Cluster Initiatives in Developing and Transition
  Economies (www.cluster-research.org )
• Lécole, J-F. (2004). Le soutien des collectivités
  locales aux réseaux dentreprises, quelles
  politiques, quels résultats? Synthèse de
  létude CINER-KATALYSE. URL  www.katalyse.com

With the support of
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• Some literature (2/2)
• Lepage, V. (2004). La politique de soutien aux
  clusters dans une région en restructuration,
  évaluation de 3 années dexpérimentation en
  Région Wallonne. Article presented for the
   XLème Colloque de lASRDLF , Brussels 1-3
  September 2004.
• Nöster, M. Gruber, M. Feindt, S. (?). How to
  initiate kooperative networks Practical
  guidelines for industry associations, development
  agencies and SMEs.
• Sölvell, Ö. Lindqvist G. Ketels C. (2003). The
  Cluster Initiative Greenbook. URL
  www.cluster-research.org/greenbook.htm)
• Stewart, L.S. Luger, M.I. (2003). Best practices
  in the Implementation of Cluster-Focused
  Strategy. Office of Economic Development, Kenan
  Institute, UNC-Chapel Hill. URL www.oed.unc.edu

With the support of
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• Thank you for your attention!
• Complete study soon available in electronic and
  printed version
• Agrobiopôle wallon www.agrobiopole.be
• Contact denismottet_at_agrobiopole.be
• graff_at_agrobiopole.be
• ABC-Network www.europe-innova.org/ABC-Network

With the support of