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Human Resources and Innovation Workshop on Advancing Innovation: Human Resources, Education and Training 17 – 18 November 2008 Bonn, Germany. Dirk Pilat Head, Science and Technology Policy Division Contact: dirk.pilat@oecd.org. Overview. The OECD Innovation Strategy
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Human Resources and InnovationWorkshop on Advancing Innovation: Human Resources, Education and Training17 – 18 November 2008Bonn, Germany Dirk Pilat Head, Science and Technology Policy Division Contact: dirk.pilat@oecd.org
Overview • The OECD Innovation Strategy • What we know about human resources for science and technology (HRST): • Supply and demand • Research careers • Women in science • The international mobility of researchers • Other work in DSTI • Human capital and innovation • Gaps and policy challenges
The OECD Innovation Strategy • Ministerial Mandate from May 2007 • Growing recognition that innovation: • is a key driver of growth and helps address critical global challenges • is changing rapidly, involving new actors, approaches, and countries • challenges governments to develop appropriate policies • We need new approaches for more effective policies, also for human capital.
Supply and Demand of HRST • Many OECD countries are faced with low and declining shares of science and engineering graduates
Research careers are increasingly considered unattractive • Declining interest in research careers: • PhDs mainly employed in universities. • Increase in doctorates has not been matched by increases in permanent academic positions; tenured positions are being replaced by non-tenured temporary positions. • Private returns from investing in an S&T research career may be too low relative to other careers. • Policy issues include: • possible demand-side weaknesses • impacts of insecurity on the attractiveness of science careers; • public sector employment; and • salaries
Women remain under-represented • In particular in certain fields and in higher positions, women are under-represented in research relative to overall employment
International mobility is growing • Foreign talent contributes significantly to overall supply of HRST • Share of foreign-born HRST aged 25-64 in EU-27 and selected countries, 2006
Other relevant work in DSTI • Contributed to the EDU Tertiary Education Review • Enhancing the Role of Tertiary Education in Research and Innovation • Improving measurement, e.g. Careers of Doctorate Holders: • Project follows the labour market, career and mobility paths of doctorate holders – data for 27 countries are expected by end-2008
But human resources in science and technology are not the same human capital for innovation… • Human capital – broad range of skills, capabilities, and attributes held by individuals, teams and organisations making it possible for them to innovate • Partly based on formal education but also involves the creation of firm-specific human capital via vocational or on-the-job training • Many industries are skill-based without being HRST-intensive. • high levels of firm-specific skills; • inter-sectoral flows of knowledge
Innovation is changing ... • Non technological innovation • Organisational and marketing innovations • R&D and innovation in service industries • e.g. financial services, creative industries • More “open” approaches to innovation • R&D co-operation, external sourcing of knowledge, networks etc. • Growing internationalisation of research • Increasing globalisation of R&D and industry-science relationships; new global players
… and requires a broad range of capabilities • Skills and competencies required for innovation include: • Problem solving capabilities • Addressing growing complexity • International cooperation • Leadership • Continual updating and retraining • Networking and teamwork • …
What are the gaps… • What types of skills and capabilities are required? • Is there a mismatch between supply and demand? • How do different organisational workplace structures shape peoples’ ability to innovate? • Is social capital (trust) more important in a climate of globalisation and open innovation? • Is there an optimal mobility level? • How can we measure performance - we do not have good indicators on skills • …
… and policy challenges? • What kinds of education and training systems are needed to help foster innovation? • What are the challenges for investing in human capital? Are incentives needed to strengthen private investment? • How does the composition of human capital supply relate to the composition of demand? • How do governments ensure policy coherence across multiple actors involved in innovation? A large agenda for work …