Policymaking for Innovation: the Role of Distributed Intelligence

1. Policymaking for Innovation: the Role of Distributed Intelligence Stefan KuhlmannFraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research (ISI)Karlsruhe, Germany 1

2. Overview • Analysing the dynamics of „innovation systems“ • From ”mechanistic" to ”reflexive" innovation strategies and policymaking • Arenas for decision-making • Strategic Intelligence (SI) for Innovation Strategy and Policy: tools • General requirements of SI • Application of SI (examples) • Fictions of future use of Distributed Intelligence • SI infrastructures for Distributed Intelligence 2

3. Economic system, globalising,prod. & services Political system and state,europeanising Innovationsystem(hybrid) Co-evolution Education and science system,europeanising Focus: Dynamics of Innovation Systems 3

4. From "Mechanistic" to ”Reflexive" Innovation Strategies and Policymaking (I) • Strategy targets: from competitiveness of single companies, to linking science & industry, to modernisation of holdings, sectors, regions, and national "innovation systems” (e.g. interdisciplinary instit.), to “post-national” strategies across levels (in EU), to socio-economic change and sustainable development • Potential impacts/benefits: from r&d results, to innovative products/processes, to raising awareness of innovation needs, to increasing learning and "absorptive capacities", to individual and institutional change • Policy means: from r&d subsidies to adoption of new technologies, to liaison/brokerage services, to continuing education, to regulatory policies, to multi-purpose, multi-actor initiatives, to “post-nationally” orchestrated multi-level initiatives 4

5. From "Mechanistic" to "Reflexive" Innovation Strategies and Policymaking (II) • Policy actors: from sectoral policymakers/beneficiaries, to industrial innovation networks (increasingly international), to multi-sector/multilevel policy networks (stretching from science through industry and policymakers to consumer orgs. and NGOs) • Strategic policy development (public and private): from path dependency/ institutional conservatism, to performance measurement (legitimization) to socio-economic assessment of mid-term performance to reflexive policy learning with contesting stakeholders •  need for “multi-perspective” learning, foresight and planning: i.e. “Strategic Intelligence (SI)" 5

6. National research centers Contract research institutes Multi- national companies Uni- versities Research councils SME asso- ciations Consumer groups Industrial asso- ciations National research ministry Strategic Intelligence Environ- ment groups National parlia- ment Other national ministries EU Com- mission Regional govern- ments Innovation Policy Stakeholders’ Arena • Differing interests, perspectives and values • No dominant player? • Contested policies • Need for consensus? 6

7. European innovation policy arena National innovation policy arena A National innovation policy arena D • SI • SI • SI Regional innovation policy arena B Thematic innovation policy arena C • SI • SI Distributed Arenas and Strategic Intelligence ... Archit1.ppt Folie8 8

8. Analyses & methods: Evaluation (ex post, monitoring, ex ante) Delphi, scenarios, TA Policy-analysis Institutional analysisStatist.-econometrical analyses Network analysis Economic system, globalising,prod. & services Political system and state,europeanising Innovationsystem(hybrid) Indicators: corportate data Sectorial techno-eco- -nomic performance Bibliometrics Regulatory data (e.g. norms, standards) Education and science system,europeanising Dynamics of Innovation Systems and Strategic Intelligence Sectors, technologies: retrospectively, prospectively Actors: Companies Science Policymakers Innovationprocesses: micro, meso, macro 9

9. Applying Strategic Intelligence: General Requirements • Create fora for interaction, negotiation and the preparation of decisions • Organize mediation processes and “discourses“ between contesting actors in related policy arena • Realize thereby the multiplicity of actor's values and interests • Include representatives of less organized or weaker societal groups of society (participatory approach) • Inject SI, i.e.policy/strategy evaluation, foresight and TA results, also analyses of changing innovation processes, the dynamics of changing research systems, changing functions of public policies • Facilitate a more “objective” formulation of diverging perceptions by offering appropriate indicators, analyses and information-processing mechanisms 14

10. Regional InnovationPolicy Arena EU Commissioninitiating and supporting ... etc ... Evaluationof region. initiatives Use of foresight results Analysis ofindustrial demand Emergence of Strategic Intelligence- the Example of Regional Technology Plans 15

11. Potential Research Market (RETIED Index): • Need for research infrastructure (RE) • Time horizon (TI) • Contribution to economic development (ED) Example: Life Sciences Competencies of FhG Institutes( 10 researchers p.a. per 1 institute) Variety of „Delphi Visions“ (Foresight) Combining Foresight Results with Evaluation Purposes- Example: System Evaluation of the Fraunhofer Society (FhG) 16

12. SI Infrastructures for Distributed Strategic Intelligence • Create an architecture of “infrastructures” for Distributed intelligence – but not the one monolithic/top-down “system” ! • Link – via SI infrastructure – the existing regional, national, sectorial etc SI facilities, horizontally and vertically • Build brokering “nodes” managing and maintaining the infrastructure (e.g. IPTS, ESTO, ...) • Offer a “directory” favouring direct connections between relevant actors • Establish a “enabling structure” allowing free access to all SI exercises undertaken with public support (“register”) • Define clear rules to access the infrastructure • Make the infrastructure robust, able to survive; guarantee adequate resources 20

13. European innovation policy arena National innovation policy arena A National innovation policy arena D • SI • SI Quality assurance • SI Regional innovation policy arena B Brokeringnode(s) Thematic innovation policy arena C • SI • SI Distributed Strategic Intelligence: an Architecture “EU Research Area” requires SI: • Identification of „centres of excellence“ (indicators? arenas?) • Benchmarking of national research policies (indicators? arenas?) • others ... Archit1.ppt Folie21 21

14. Quality Assurance for Distributed Strategic Intelligence • Facilitate repeated and “fresh” exercises and information production (e.g. EV, TF, TA, benchmarking, ...) and renewed combinations of actors and levels • Support strong professional associations • Use informal expert networks (like the “Six Countries Programme”) • Create accreditation mechanisms • Support education and training (e.g. postgraduate interdisciplinary studies) 22

15. U r s a c h e u n d W i r k u n g. - Vor der Wirkung glaubt man an andere Ursachen als nach der Wirkung.Friedrich Nietzsche, Die fröhliche Wissenschaft, Aphorismus 217, 1882 • Cause and impact. - Before any impact you believe in other causes than after the impact. 23

16. Text: Kuhlmann, S. / Boekholt, P. / Georghiou, L. / Guy, K. / Héraud, J.-A. / Laredo. Ph. / Lemola, T. / Loveridge, D. / Luukkonen, T. / Polt, W. / Rip, A. / Sanz-Menendez, L. / Smits, R.: Improving Distributed Intelligence in Complex Innovation Systems. Final report of the Advanced Science & Technology Policy Planning Network (ASTPP), a Thematic Network of the European Targeted Socio-Economic Research Programme (TSER), Brussels/Luxembourg 1999 (Office for Official Publications of the European Communities) (download www.isi.fhg.de/dept/ti/) 24