Issue N 30 - February 2006
In this Issue:
INSME Activities
Updates on the 2nd INSME Annual Meeting
INSME Training Programmes 2006
Opportunities for INSME Members
UNIDO Training Workshop (Vienna, 8-12 May 2006)
Call for Projects
IPI and IBAN: "Give a Chance to your Projects"
Call for Papers
TCI Annual Conference on "Governance and Companies as Cornerstones of Cluster Initiatives"
SPRU Conference on "The Future of Science, Technology and Innovation Policy: Linking Research And Practice"
Asialics Conference: "From Imitation to Innovation: Asia Meets Global Challenges"
Call for Experts
UNCTAD: Trainer with Expertise on One-Stop-Shops for a job assignment in Africa
INFORMEST: experts for short and long term missions within international co-operation and service contracts
Online Resources
emedtex.net
sewasie.org
Projects and Initiatives
CORNET Project
UNIDO-ILO Training Course on SME Cluster and Network Development
Publications
Going for Growth 2006 (OECD)
Events
Highlighted events
Upcoming workshops, seminars, meetings
 
INSMEnews!
Contact the editorial staff
 
 

Dear INSMEnews Readers,

we are happy to celebrate this month the second anniversary of the INSME Association, having been set up on February 18, 2004.

The Network has grown and accomplished numerous achievements in these 2 years, and I would like to take this opportunity to linger a little bit on the core of the Association's mission.

What is our goal?

INSME IS ABOUT MAKING THE RIGHT CONNECTIONS AT THE
RIGHT TIME
The ability to build timely and stable business relationships and partnerships is crucial to make innovation happen in SMEs. INSME is about stimulating and increasing knowledge sharing and linkages among institutions, intermediaries, companies and people, involving both policymakers and providers of innovation services to SMEs. In short, it is about helping these organisations and professionals network effectively for mutual benefits.

The INSME Secretariat is involved in a number of activities (events attendance, organisation of training programmes, participations in calls for tenders, etc) aimed at this goal, and its most important being the upcoming INSME Annual Meeting in Montevideo. Join us at this event and make the most of its networking potential!

INSME IS ABOUT BUILDING BRIDGES BETWEEN DIFFERENT GEOGRAPHICAL AND CULTURAL AREAS MULTIPLYING PUBLIC AND PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
Access to knowledge, information and  technologies  is vital for all enterprises to be innovative and competitive in any geographical area. INSME is about encouraging North-South and South-South international cooperation and political dialogue for the diffusion of a culture of innovation at 360° among companies. This means establishing a network that is built around three main groups of stakeholders: the creators/providers of knowledge and innovation, those who need/use and take advantage of innovation and the  policymakers that affect this field.

The increased interest in INSME coming from less developed regions and from the private sector is a sign of the need to fill the gap between the demand and the supply of innovation, through the matchmaking of knowledge and technology exporters and importers.

These are in short the inspiring concepts of our Association. Join the Network or come and meet us at the INSME Annual Meeting 2006 in Montevideo. It will be the right occasion to make the most of our international networking potential and get to know better the people behind the INSME Association!



Ms. Simona Marzetti
INSME Association Secretary General

 


 

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INSME Activities
   Updates on the 2nd INSME Annual Meeting


24-26 April 2006

Boosting Innovation by Bridging the Knowledge Gap: a Developer-User Approach

Montevideo (Uruguay), NH Columbia Hotel

www.annualmeeting2006.insme.org 


Revised agenda:
 Draft Agenda (EN)

Spanish version of the meeting agenda now available! Interpretation into Spanish will be provided during the Conference on April 25.
La versión en espagnol de la agenda de la Reunión Anual INSME se puede descargar pulsando aqu�:
 Agenda Preliminar (ES)


Register to attend!

 Online registration form

Word format registration forms:
 INSME Members' Registration Form
 INSME non-Members' Registration Form
 Formulario de inscripción para no miembros de INSME

Take note that the Conference venue has changed. The INSME Annual Meeting 2006 will take place at the NH Columbia Hotel:
 NH Columbia Presentation [2 Mb]

Please, contact Congresos ELIS at insme@congresoselis.com.uy for hotel bookings.

The INSME Annual Meeting 2006 will offer participants:

  • A rich conference programme with speakers of the utmost calibre
  • A hall for stands exhibition and bilateral meetings for knowledge-sharing and networking
  • Visits to technological and scientific centres for getting to know better Uruguayan innovation projects and initiatives
  • Great social events: welcome dinner, Candombe Drum Show, tango lessons, Uruguay tours

For further information, contact the INSME Secretariat:
 insme2006@insme.it

 

   INSME Training Programmes 2006

Following the success of the first edition held in 2005, we are pleased to announce that the INSME Association and the SMEs Division of WIPO - World Intellectual Property Organization will organise a second training workshop on the theme:  Use of Intellectual Property as a Financial Tool. The training will be held at WIPO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland,  on 4-5-6 July 2006.

Participation is for free. The working language will be English and French. The draft programme will be available in the next issues of this newsletter.

A training programme on other issues related to innovation in SMEs is likely to take place at IPI premises in Rome, Italy, in November 2006. Updates will follow in the next months.

If you are interested in attending or getting more information, please contact the INSME Secretariat:
Mr. Mariano G. Cordone
 secretariat@insme.it
Phone: +39 06 80972.472

Is your organisation interested in partnering with INSME for the co-organisation of a training programme on innovation in SMEs related issues in your region? Then read details for applying at:
 http://www.insme.org/

 

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Opportunities for INSME Members
   UNIDO Training Workshop (Vienna, 8-12 May 2006)

INSME Members can benefit of a 10% discount on the participation fee for the UNIDO Training Workshop on "Measuring, Benchmarking and Managing of Industrial Enterprise with UNIDO Pharos Suite" (Vienna, Austria, 8-12 May 2006), organised in collaboration with INSME Full Member GOLEM IMS GMBH.

Details on this UNIDO Training Workshop can be found at:
 http://www.win2biz.com/eng/workshop.htm

For enquiries concerning the discount, contact the INSME Secretariat:
Mr. Mariano G. Cordone
 secretariat@insme.it
Phone: +39 06 80972.472

Additional opportunities are available for INSME Members by logging into the Members Area of the INSME portal:
 http://www.insme.org/

 

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Call for Projects
   IPI and IBAN: "Give a Chance to your Projects"

IPI (Italian Institute for Industrial Promotion, INSME Member) and IBAN (Italian Business Angels Network) invite young entrepreneurs working in the textile and clothing sector to present their innovative projects to potentially interested economic players, like investors, other companies, institutional organisations.

Presentations will take place in the framework of the Fashion Net International Conference in Artimino (Prato, Italy) on March 30, 2006.

Project proposals have to be sent by 6th March. So do not miss this chance!

Selected participants will have the opportunity to:

  • Have a scheduled meeting to promote his own project to potential investors
  • Get in touch and lay down the basis for future collaborations with other enterprises, international research centres, interested organisations and stakeholders of the textile & clothing sector and Fashion value chain
  • Have a project summary published, in anonymous form, in the IBAN website, in the Business view section.

For information on how to apply, please refer to Fashion Net website:
 http://fashionnet.insme.org/

 

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Call for Papers
   TCI Annual Conference on "Governance and Companies as Cornerstones of Cluster Initiatives"
The Competitiveness Institute (TCI), a not-for-profit alliance of cluster practitioners, invites experts (from academics, businesses and institutions) to submit papers for its Conference on "Governance and Companies as Cornerstones of Cluster Initiatives" to take place in Lyon, France on October 9-13, 2006.

Papers are invited on any of the issues falling under the conference theme, that is governance and business involvement in cluster initiatives trough the different stages of cluster initiatives:

  • Objectives of cluster initiatives
  • Obstacles
  • Defining a strategy
  • Setting up an action plan

Deadline for paper submissions: 5 May 2006

For details on themes and application procedure, please refer to TCI website:
 http://www.competitiveness.org/article/articleview/742/1/71/

 

   SPRU Conference on "The Future of Science, Technology and Innovation Policy: Linking Research And Practice"

This conference, which will take place in Brighton (United Kingdom) on September 11-13, 2006, will try to explore empirical, theoretical and applied policy approaches that can enable to conceptualise the contradictory nature of modern science, technology and innovation, and thus provide practical policy guidance.

SPRU (Science and Technology Policy Research, University of Sussex, UK) is particularly interested in contributions that address the intersections of science, technology and innovation and take forward-looking approaches in investigating their impacts on society.

SPRU would also like to attract papers from scholars at an early stage in their career and in innovative agenda-setting papers that take the opportunity to critically engage with well established, but possibly limited, theoretical frameworks. Interdisciplinary papers and contributions embracing international or comparative perspectives are also invited.

Deadline for paper submissions: 17 March 2006.

For further details, please visit:
 http://www.sussex.ac.uk/spru/1-1.php?output=html&refer=4844&oftype=announcement&fromdept=1&id=12675

 

   Asialics Conference: "From Imitation to Innovation: Asia Meets Global Challenges"


Asialics is a network of scholars, practitioners and policymakers with a shared interest in learning, innovation and competence building system in Asia. Its 3rd International Conference will be held in Shanghai, China, on April 16-19, 2006.


Sub-themes:
- Understanding Innovation Networks in Asia
- FDI and Technology Diffusion Innovation management in the Global Context in Asia 
- Appropriate IPR Strategy in Asian Countries
- Innovation Policy in Asian Countries
- Management of Innovation in Asian Firms

Deadline for paper submissions: 15 March 2006.

For further details, please visit:
  http://www.asialics.org/call.asp

 

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Call for Experts
   UNCTAD: Trainer with Expertise on One-Stop-Shops for a job assignment in Africa

The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) is looking for a trainer with expertise on one-stop-shops for a 3-month job assignment in Africa.

UNCTAD's project focuses on enhancing national capacity in investment promotion so as to ensure successful integration of African countries into the regional and global economy.

Qualifications required:

  • an advanced university degree in business administration or related field
  • several years of work experience in the area of investment promotion
  • a comprehensive knowledge about the function and management of One-Stop Shops
  • a training experience in the field of investment related issues
  • fluency in English and French

For further information or to send your CV, please contact UNCTAD:
Ms. Glenda Napier
Associate Economic Affairs Officer
UNCTAD, DITE/Division on Investment, Technology and Enterprise Development
Investment Policy Reviews Section
Palais des Nations, E-9053
1211 Geneva, Switzerland
Phone: +41 22 917 5600
 glenda.napier@unctad.org
 http://www.unctad.org
 http://www.unctad.org/ipr

 

   INFORMEST: experts for short and long term missions within international co-operation and service contracts

INFORMEST, Service and Documentation Centre for International Economic Co-operation (Italy), is seeking experts for short and long term missions within international co-operation and service contracts in Central and Eastern European Countries, NIS, China, Mongolia and Vietnam.


Experts will have minimum ten-year experience in one or more of the following fields:

  • SME development
  • Business support services for SMEs
  • TA at governmental level on SME development strategies
  • Financial instruments and credit facilities for SMEs
  • SME needs analysis and training design and implementation
  • EU policies regarding SME sector
  • EU structural funds programming and implementation
  • e-business, e-marketplaces, e-government, b2b, b2g, b2c
  • EU procurement and contractual procedures

Interested consultants may apply by sending a presentation letter and CV to:
 experts@informest.it.

For further information, please refer to:
 http://www.informest.it/experts/

 

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Online Resources
   emedtex.net

Euro-MEDiterranean Partnership Network in the TEXtile-Clothing Sector

Emedtex.net is an electronic marketplace aimed at assisting the business cooperation among the Euro-Mediterranean textile and clothing enterprises. These can upgrade their market knowledge as well as evaluate and benchmark company's performance through:

  • A Supply-Demand matching tool, enabling the matching between contractor's orders and subcontractor's offerings;
  • An Evaluation Benchmarking System (EBS), allowing a company to evaluate its financial and technical performances and to compare them to those of reference companies;
  • An Online Instructor, a knowledge base and training tool helping textile practitioners, whether they are expert, apprentice or beginner, to get acquainted with the textile industries.

Emedtex.net is managed by the Paris Chamber of Commerce and Industries (CCIP), supported by a group of textile-clothing associations and experts, technology providers, research institutes and universities from 3 European (France, Germany and Greece) and 7 Mediterranean countries (Algeria, Cyprus, Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, Syria and Tunisia). It is partially funded by the European Commission, through its EUMEDIS Programme (Euro-MEDiterranean Information Society).

Emedtex.net is in English and French.

 

   sewasie.org

SEWASIE - SEmantic Webs and AgentS in Integrated Economies

This is a new, intelligent Web search engine that delivers closely targeted results to entrepreneurs searching for cheaper suppliers, potential clients and new markets.

The concept of ontology is critical for this search engine. In simple words, an ontology defines the terms used to describe and represent an area of knowledge. For SEWASIE, ontologies related to specific industry sectors have been identified, so as to  limit the search to sites that are really useful. The SEWASIE prototype has ontologies for two specific industry sectors, mechanical engineering and textiles.

Sewasie.org has been developed within the Information Society Technologies (IST) priority of the European Commission's Sixth Framework Programme (FP6) for Research and Technological Development.

 

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Projects and Initiatives
   CORNET Project

COllective Research NETworking, an initiative funded by the European Commission within the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6).

23 organisations representing 17 European countries are involved in this project, whose aim is to increase the efficiency of Collective Research policy and practice in Europe, by means of transnational calls for projects and knowledge sharing between different national programmes. Collective Research is that carried out by research centres, universities, development agencies, etc. on behalf of industrial associations or groupings in order to improve the overall competitiveness of large communities of SMEs (click here for a thorough definition of Collective Research).

The next transnational call for project in the framework of the CORNET initiative will be launched by May 2006.

IPI, the Italian Institute for Industrial Promotion (INSME Member), participates in the CORNET project as coordinator of the Italian Network for Innovation and Technology Transfer to SMEs (RIDITT).

For further information on the CORNET Project, please read:
 CORNET Flyer

 

   UNIDO-ILO Training Course on SME Cluster and Network Development

24 April - 05 May 2006
SME Cluster and Network Development
Turin, Italy

Organised by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) in cooperation with the International Training Centre (ITC) of ILO (International Labour Organisation).
Cluster development has proved to be an effective approach to bring about sustainable SME development and equitable growth in a wide spectrum of countries and industrial sectors. This course shows how clusters and networks in developing countries can be assisted to improve their performance and become active, dynamic and successful players in the globalised economy.

During this two-week training course, concrete case studies are examined, best practices are analysed, action recommendations are developed and exemplary Italian SME clusters ( Industrial districts) are visited.

For further information, please visit:
 http://www.itcilo.org/cluster

 

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Publications
   Going for Growth 2006 (OECD)

Edited by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Going for Growth 2006 provides an overview of the progress achieved by OECD member countries in taking measures consistent with the structural policy priorities identified in the 2005 edition to enhance members countries' GDP (Gross Domestic Product).

This year's edition extends the scope of performance and policy indicators to the area of innovation, this being one of the main engines for long-run growth. Part II of this report is particularly dedicated to this theme, providing a cross-country comparison of innovation efforts and outcomes, as well as of the main policy areas having an influence on those outcomes. A chapter is specifically devoted to key policy recommendations to strengthen innovation performance for individual OECD countries and for the European Union.

The complete edition of Going for Growth 2006 is available from the OECD Online Bookshop. Read also an enlightening presentation of this publication by OECD Chief Economist Jean-Louis Cotis:
 http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/4/58/36054305.pdf.

 

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Events
   Highlighted events

30 March 2006
FASHION NET INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
Fashion, Textile & Innovation: the Future Now
Artimino (Prato), Italy

This is the final conference of the Fashion Net Project, an initiative funded under the
Sixth EU Research and Technological Development Framework Programme and aimed at fostering innovation and technology transfer among European SMEs of the fashion system.

 Conference Programme (IT and ES) [742 kb]

Registration Form:
 English [108 kb]       Italian [107 kb]

Come and meet INSME at the

Human Capital and Innovation Expo

Milan, Italy - 15-18 March 2006

Presentation (EN) [662 kb]             Presentation (IT) [1095 kb]

Organised by Compagnia delle Opere, Fondazione per la Sussidiariet�, Italian Ministry for Education, University and Research, Italian National Research Council (CNR), Unioncamere and Lombardy Region. The INSME Association will have an information booth.

   Upcoming workshops, seminars, meetings

10 March 2006
Innovative Strategies
Supported by EFMD (European Foundation for Management Development), this Management Conference, featuring Michael Porter and Gary Hamel, will deliver a double masterclass of innovative strategies for business.
Manchester, United Kingdom

16-17 March 2006
European Business Summit 2006 - "Building a Europe of Excellence: Turning Knowledge into Growth"
Jointly organised by the Federation of Enterprises in Belgium (FEB) and the Union of Industrial and Employers' Confederations of Europe (UNICE).
Brussels, Belgium

23-24 March 2006
Seminar on "University and Research Spin-off: an Engine to create Innovative Companies"
Jointly organised by EBN (European Business and Innovation Centres Network) and G2G Incubator Forum (Gate2Growth Initiative).
Rome, Italy

27-30 March 2006
OECD Global Summit on SME and Entrepreneurship Financing
Co-organised by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the Brazilian Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade.
Brasilia, Brazil
 Programme (EN) [74 kb]
Programme (FR) [78 kb]

29 March-02 April 2006
Expo Pakistan 2006
Organised by the Export Promotion Bureau of Pakistan.
Karachi, Pakistan 

01-03 April 2006
World Summit on Innovation & Entrepreneurship - "A Better Generation in the Making"
World's leaders in business, science, education, policy and research will meet to promote innovation, entrepreneurship, scientific research and investment in the Middle East.
Muscat, Oman 
 
06-09 April 2006
Global Entrepreneurship Conference 2006
An entrepreneurship dedicated conference jointly organised by GEC (Global Entrepreneurship Conference) and Global Institute for Leadership and Civic Development.
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

10-11 April 2006
ASTF 4th International Forum on Investing in Technology - Developing an Arab Venture Capital Industry
Organised by the Arab Science and Technology Foundation (ASTF) in collaboration with The Islamic Development Bank (IDB), Abdul Latif Jameel Co. Ltd. (ALJ) and the National Technology Enterprises Company (NTEC).
Mangaf, Kuwait

24-26 April 2006
Boosting Innovation by Bridging the Knowledge Gap: a Developer-User Approach
Second INSME Annual Meeting. Organised in collaboration with CEGETEC (Centre for Technology Management, Chamber of Industries of Uruguay), hosting organisation of the Meeting.
Montevideo, Uruguay
 Provisional Agenda (EN) [191 kb]
 Agenda Preliminar (ES) [190 kb]

26-28 April 2006
Innovation in the 21st Century - Foresight, Technology, Globalisation
Annual General Meeting and Annual Conference of the European Association for the Transfer of Technologies, Innovation and Industrial Information (TII).
Newcastle, United Kingdom 

11-12 May 2006
Research to Business (R2B) Fair and Conference - "Research Renews Business"
Co-organised by Aster - Science Technology and Enterprise Consortium. The INSME Association will participate with an information booth.
Bologna, Italy

23-24 May 2006
Workshop - Innovation Policy Learning: Change in Thinking - Change in Doing?
Organised by the Six Countries Programme, an international network of experts, policy makers and practitioners engaged in research and policy making on innovation.
Stockholm, Sweden 
 
30-31 May 2006
Networked Innovation - International Conference on Transnational Technology Transfer
Co-organised by INI-GraphicsNet Stiftung and INI-Novation.
Darmstadt, Germany

19-23 June 2006
Euro-South East Asia 2006
Information & Communication Technologies conference and exhibition. Funded by the European Commission, Information Society & Media DG and organised with the support of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Singapore
 Presentation [79 kb]

28-30 June 2006
European BIC Network Annual Congress 2006 - "Innovation in Action!"
Congress of the European Business and Innovation Centres (BIC) Network.
Naples, Italy

 

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INSME Secretariat
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Italy
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      +39-06-80972484
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E-mail: webmaster@insme.it

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