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Glossary of innovation terms |
Source: Innovation & Technology Transfer (Special Edition) October 2002 |
| benchmarking | the measurement of performance against à best practice as a means of setting goals for improvement - applied by firms to business processes (e.g. within their sector), or by national or regional policy-makers (e.g. in relation to support for the creation of à new technology -based firms) |
| best practice | the methods and achievements of the recognised leader(s) in a particular field |
| business angel | a particular type of à informal investor, usually a successful entrepreneur, who is willing to invest in high-risk, high-growth firms at a very early stage, and adds value by supplying hands-on business advice |
| cluster | a grouping of large companies, à small and medium-sized enterprises and universities or à large public research institutions operating in a particular sector and region - designed to stimulate innovative activity by promoting intensive interactions |
| commercialisation | the process by which the results of research projects are converted to marketable products or services, either by the inventors or by third-party developers |
| community patent | a single affordable patent offering a guarantee of legal certainty for the protection of à intellectual property rights throughout the European Union - long-standing proposals for such a patent remain blocked by certain Member States |
| entrepreneurial innovation | a market-oriented approach to innovation policy which addresses not only the suppliers and immediate users of new knowledge but also indirect beneficiaries, end-users and intermediaries |
| entrepreneurship training | courses, especially for researchers and university students, designed to equip them to à commercialise new knowledge by founding their own à spin-off companies |
| European patent | a mechanism for the protection of à intellectual property rights in multiple signatory states on the basis of a single application to the European Patent Office (EPO) - has the same legal effect as a national patent in each of the designated states, so protection is not uniform |
| exploitation | see à commercialisation |
|
governance (of innovation) |
issues related to the involvement of stakeholders - scientists, industry, consumers and public authorities - in the process of innovation policy design, implementation and evaluation |
| incubation | "one-stop" delivery of business support services for new firms, often linked to a university or à large public research institution - traditionally, the package includes inexpensive accommodation, but virtual incubation is becoming more common |
| indicators | quantifiable factors which serve as proxies for underlying behaviour of interest to policy-makers or others- a country's high-tech patent applications per million population is one indicator of its innovative capacity |
| industrial liaison office (ILO) | a unit within a university or à large public research institution which interacts with industrial users of its à intellectual property, for example, by negotiating licensing agreements - ILOs are also well placed to support à spin-offs since they have close research and business links |
| informal investors | often the only available source of finance for high-tech à start-ups - they include entrepreneurs' friends and families, and à business angels |
| innovation | the conversion of new knowledge into economic and social benefits - now acknowledged to take place as the result of complex long-term interactions between many players in an à innovation system |
| innovation expenditure | defined by the Community Innovation Survey as business spending on the full range of innovation activities - in-house R&D, outsourced R&D, machinery and equipment linked to product and process innovation, acquisition of patents and licenses, industrial design, training, and the marketing of innovations |
| innovation finance | all of the sources of finance available to high-tech à start-ups in their early stages of growth - includes à seed capital funds, à informal investors, banks and à venture capital funds |
| Innovation Relay Centre (IRC) network | Europe-wide networks of local à technology brokerage agencies, specialising in support for transnational à technology transfer |
| innovation system | the local, regional or national environment for innovative activity - in addition to companies it includes the à research base, à innovation finance, business support services and schemes, and the networks through which these components interact |
| innovative firm / company | defined by the Community Innovation Survey as a firm that has introduced new or improved products, processes or services within the previous three years |
| intangible assets | that part of a company's real worth formed by its staff and their skills, knowledge and creativity - fundamental sources of wealth and value in a knowledge-based economy (see also à tacit knowledge) |
| intellectual property (IP) | the original inventions and proprietary knowledge of a company or an individual |
| intellectual property rights (IPR) | defined rights to the exclusive exploitation of à intellectual property granted by a national or supra-national authority - most commonly, patents, trademarks and industrial designs |
| initial public offering (IPO) | the "flotation" of a company through the open sale of its shares in a stock market - the conventional exit route for early investors such as à business angels and à venture capital funds |
| knowledge base | the accumulating sum of knowledge on which the advance of a particular industrial sector relies - includes not just codified knowledge but also à tacit knowledge and knowledge embedded in plant and equipment |
| large public research institutions (LPRI) | publicly-funded bodies, usually specializing in a particular scientific field - together with universities, they are the main components of the à research base of a regional or national à innovation system |
| lifelong learning | continuing education, including in company schemes - an essential means of accelerating assimilation of new technologies |
| "linear model" of innovation | an over-simplified (and largely discredited) view of innovation in terms of simple transfers of specific technologies from the à research base to industry - now superseded by the à "systemic model" of innovation |
| mobility | in the context of innovation, mobility refers to the temporary transfer of skilled staff between industry and the à research base, between regions, and between scientific disciplines, and to schemes to promote such transfers |
| new technology - based firms (NTBF) | à spin-offs and other high-tech à start-up companies |
| open coordination | a method for spreading à best practice in the field of national policy-making in order to achieve convergence on EU goals, based on benchmarking, target-setting and à peer review |
| peer review | the exchange of tools, methods and experience between policy-makers on the basis of information about relative performance |
| research and development (R&D) | creative work undertaken systematically to increase the stock of knowledge and its application - includes basic research, applied research, and experimental development |
| research base | a region's or country's universities and large public research institutions - the academic science and technology resources from which its industry draws new knowledge |
| seed capital | seed capital funds invest relatively small sums in à start-ups at the earliest stage, often to finance feasibility and market studies - many universities and large companies have established dedicated seed funds to stimulate à spin-off activity |
| small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) |
an SME is defined by the European Union as an independent company with fewer than 250 employees and either an annual turnover not exceeding  40 million or a balance sheet not exceeding 27 million |
| spin-off/spin-out | a new company established to à commercialise the knowledge and skills of a university or corporate research team |
| start-up | a newly formed company |
| supply chain | a large company, its primary and secondary suppliers and contractors - innovation spreads relatively easily along supply chains (see also à cluster) |
| "systemic model" of innovation | recent understanding of innovation takes account of its dependence on complex, ongoing interactions between many individuals, organisations and environmental factors - à research and development is no longer viewed as the "source" of innovation but as one of a number of essential elements |
| tacit knowledge | knowledge that has not yet been codified, but remains embodied in researchers and in companies' owner-managers and key employees (see also à intangible assets) |
| technology audit | a formal method for evaluating a company's technology assets and requirements |
| technology-based firm | includes not only companies operating in high-tech sectors but, increasingly, technology users in traditional manufacturing and service sectors |
| technology brokerage | a professional service offered by the à Innovation Relay Centre network and others, involving the national or transnational matching of technology assets in one company or research centre to technology requirements in another |
| technology foresight | the process of assessing the future needs and opportunities for the economy of a region or country, in the light of technological and market trends |
| technology transfer | the transfer of technology or know-how between organisations through licensing or marketing agreements, co-development arrangements, training or the exchange of personnel |
| technology valley | a large scale à cluster, normally supported by a national or regional policy initiative, in which a critical mass or industrial and research activity in a particular field leads to self-sustaining innovation-led economic development - Silicon Valley is the classic case |
| university-industry interface | open and continuous interaction between industry and the à research base is now acknowledged to be a critical element of the à innovation system - universities are adding the diffusion of knowledge to their traditional missions of education and research (see also à industrial liaison office) |
| utility model | a registered right for technical inventions, entitling the owner to forbid third parties from exploiting an invention - more flexible and less onerous than a patent, but lasting for a shorter period |
| venture capital | high-risk, high-return investment - venture capital funds are essential as a means of financing the rapid growth of à new technology-based firms |
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