AUDIT REPORT. Knowledge Intensive Services Supply and Demand in Portugal

Transcription

1 AUDIT REPORT Knowledge Intensive Services Supply and Demand in Portugal Agência de Inovação September 2010

2 Index: 1. INTRODUCTION 4 CONTEXT 4 OBJECTIVES 5 PARTNERSHIP 5 INNOVATIVE ASPECTS OF THE PROJECT 6 2. REGIONAL SUPPLY - COMPANIES Companies typology Services Provided Clients Human Resources Barriers Supports Networking and Internationalization Future 18 REGIONAL SUPPLY - Universities Universities typology Services Provided Clients Human Resources Barriers Supports Networking and Internationalization Future 25 REGIONAL DEMAND REGIONAL DEMAND 27

3 3.1 Companies details Innovation KIS Service Requirements Barriers Supports Future CONCLUSIONS MAIN RESULTS FROM THE AUDIT 36 Supply 36 Demand MAIN RESULTS FROM MATRIX OF COMPETENCIES SUPPLY-DEMAND KIS SECTOR - Annex MAIN RESULTS FROM MATRIX OF SECTOR SPECIALISATION OF THE DEMAND AND SERVICES REQUESTED Annex RECOMMENDATIONS 38 CREATION OF A NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR KIS SECTOR: 38 PROMOTE AND IMPROVE THE LINK BETWEEN COMPANIES AND UNIVERSITIES: 38 PROMOTE AN INNOVATION CULTURE: 38 SIMPLIFICATION OF THE PROCEDURES IN THE NATIONAL SUPPORT PROGRAMS: ANNEXES 40 Annex 1 - MATRIX OF COMPETENCIES SUPPLY-DEMAND KIS SECTOR 41 Annex 2 - MATRIX OF SECTOR SPECIALISATION OF THE DEMAND AND SERVICES REQUESTED 42 3

4 1. INTRODUCTION CONTEXT The achievement of the Lisbon Strategy Target Objectives demands the delivery of innovative efforts in order to overcome the European paradox on terms of Technology and Knowledge Transfer (TKT), if Europe is to become the most competitive economic area of the world. Different cultural mindsets among Knowledge providers and SMEs hinder TKT at the EU level, and specifically at the Atlantic Area, as pointed out in the Programme's SWOT analysis (pages 13 and 26). Knowledge Intensive Services (KIS) such as ICT services, R&D services, management and strategic consultancy services, business intelligence services, might overcome these limitations to an effective TKT by the interfacing among SMEs and Knowledge providers, and supporting SME's on their innovation processes. Thus, KIS are often considered to be one of the hallmarks of the Knowledge based Economy. The performance of KIS does affect the performance of those organizations that are their clients and thus the dynamisation of KIS sector impacts on the whole of the regional and EU economies. A Knowledge Economy demands an increase on the number of KIS providing high added value products and services to the EU and to the global economic players. Moreover, KIS can be pointed out as a particularly dynamic and rapidly growing area within the Services sector, and has recently been pointed out as one of the main priorities for innovation policy at the EU level, as stated in the EC Communication's "Putting knowledge into practice: a broad based innovation strategy for the EU" and in the Commission s Working Document "Towards a European Strategy in support of innovation in services". Notwithstanding, the development of KIS on the Atlantic Area regions is divergent, even though some common trends on their evolution can be identified: ongoing growth in demand and supply, concentration, convergence and specialization tendencies, internationalization imperative, Even if subject to private market trends, the promotion of such services from the public policy level is becoming more and more a pressing issue, as the KIS impact on regional economies gets evident. On the other hand, even if demand on such services is rapidly increasing, there are some mistrust and lack of knowledge issues among SMEs on the potential benefits involved in the use of KIS, that might be hindering the fully exploitation of available KIS services in order to fully reach the region s potential. Thus, ATLANT-KIS intends to provide some leverage to the KIS sector in the Atlantic Area, proposing the development of KIS enabling policies, bridging the gaps on the demand and supply of such services at the regional and transregional level, and promoting their interaction and networking at the Atlantic Area. 4

5 OBJECTIVES The overall goal of ATLANT-KIS is to enhance the Knowledge and Technology Transfer and innovation processes on SMEs through the promotion and co-operation of Knowledge Intensive Services (KIS) at the Atlantic Area. Additionally, and as a longer term goal, it also aims to contribute to the development of Clusters of KIS at the Atlantic Area, that might help identify the area as an excellent one in the supply of KIS. Specific objectives of the project: 1) To design a methodology for the mapping of regional and transregional demand and supply of KIS, transferable to other regions. 2) To develop and disseminate 7 Audits on KIS demand and supply from involved regions. 3) To design a methodology for the identification and transfer of Best Practices at the regional policy level, enabling the promotion and dynamisation of KIS. 4) To identify, exchange and disseminate to other EU regions Best Practices resulting from successful regional experiences on the field of KIS promotion and dynamisation. 5) To transfer the Best Practices identified to the regional policies of involved regions, and to experiment new models and approaches based upon the latter, aimed at the promotion and dynamisation of KIS. 6) To create stable communication links among KIS of involved regions, to foster their networking and cooperation by the development of a collaborative platform, open to all KIS from the Atlantic Area. PARTNERSHIP Partnership is made up of the following organizations, covering all the eligible countries of the Programme: Spain, France, Portugal, UK and Ireland. 1. DG Enterprise, Department of Innovation, Business and Employment, Navarra Government, Spain. 2. Bretagne Innovation, Bretagne, France. 3. Consellería de Innovación e Industria, Xunta de Galicia, Spain. 4. Agência de Innovaçao, Portugal 5. Devon and Cornwall Business Council, United Kingdom. 6. South and Eastern Regional Assembly, Ireland. 7. Westbic, Ireland. 8. Borders, Midlands and West Regional Assembly, Ireland. 5

6 INNOVATIVE ASPECTS OF THE PROJECT The overcome of the European Paradox demands innovative approaches in order to turn the excellent Research and Development efforts of the EU into the global market in more rapid and end-users conscious ways. ATLANT-KIS deals with a priority issue for the EC, just recently pointed out as one of the main challenges for Europe. EC Communication "Putting knowledge into practice: a broad based innovation strategy for the EU" specifically prioritizes the non technological innovation in the Services Sector, resulting on the Commission Staff Working Document "Towards a European Strategy in support of innovation in services". The Innovation Policy Project in Services under the PRO-INNO Europe Initiative, also concludes that there is a need for broad-based transnational collaboration that would include policy, strategic and operational level activities. Recommendations arising from these initiatives comprise the following, all of them addressed by ATLANT-KIS proposal, becoming thus the first transnational co-operation project at EU level addressing this topic: Development of more balanced innovation policies promoting non technological innovation. Development of policies with specific support mechanisms for innovative services with high growth potential. Promoting trans-national cooperation on better policies in support of innovation services in Europe. Definition of broad-based innovation policies consisting of a balanced mix of supply and demand side measures. Support of service exports as drivers that policies need to reflect. Also publicprivate partnerships are likely to play an important role in service innovation Policy. Regional policies and cluster policies acting as platforms for effective innovation policy delivery At present time, an analysis of National Reform Programmes shows that only a few Member States have so far developed specific policies or measures in support of innovation in the services sector. Member States from the North West of Europe like Finland, Germany, UK, Ireland and Netherlands show the more advanced policies in this field. The Atlantic Area of the EU lags in this approach, so ATLANT-KIS might be the best chance to start assessing potentialities and synergies on the innovation of the services sector field from a transnational perspective on the Atlantic Area. The partnership of the project is composed of powerhouses on the promotion of innovation on the services sector and on the promotion of KIS such as UK and Ireland, and regions like Galicia, Navarra, Bretagne or Portugal which might benefit from the experiences from the former. Ultimately the project will inform and benefit the development of specific Innovation Policies on involved regions, valorizing the transfer of Best Practices identified among region partners. The innovativeness of the proposal also extends to the strategy and approach selected. We point out the following innovations: Transnational approach: ATLANT-KIS tackles a European problem from a bottom up perspective, trying to assess and diagnose the state of the art at each region, in order to identify best practices arising from their policies in order to gather a pool of Best Practices whose transferability will be achieved on an experimentation phase. Transnational Clustering and Networking will be one of the specific policy issues addressed in the study and transfer stages. Resulting Best Practices Guide and Transfer Implementation Handbook will represent a corpus of soft and hard law policies tailored to the Atlantic Area context. Policy and Operational level: The project will influence both the Policy level, by the provision of Best Practices and their transfer to the regional level, and the more operational perspective of 6

7 the KIS and Services sectors, delivering useful tools (audits, KIS Platform) for the promotion and co-operation of KIS at the regional and transregional level. To this end, the project will also involve KIS demanders and knowledge sources, providing practical outputs on their behalf. Horizontal approach: ATLANT-KIS is aware that other new complementary initiatives are being launched at the EU level dealing on KIS and on innovation on the services sector, such as the KIS-Innovation Platform, described on section 4. From its inception the project has chosen to adopt an open and broad approach trying to gather momentum on the pulling of the KIS and Services Sector on the political innovation agendas, so actively seeks the co-ordination and synergistic effects of matching the project with other such initiatives. To this end, a fluent communication will be established with the managers of KIS-Innovation Platform, actively attending their meetings for the identification of specific areas of cooperation. Tools: Besides the more traditional methodologies for the identification of Best Practices, the project proposes the use of more innovative tools, like Audits on KIS demand and supply that will imply a thorough assessment and involvement of the KIS sectors at the regional level and Mappings on policy issues affecting KIS sector. As an innovative and crucial tool completing the identification of Best Practices the delivery of Best Practices Transferability assessments is foreseen. These will assess all the economic, geographical and societal drivers affecting or threatening the success on the transfer of a given policy Best Practice, allowing the development of a Best Practices Transfer Implementation Handbook. Finally the virtual KIS Platform will also represent an innovative ICT based solution aimed at target groups highly proficient on the use of such technologies. 7

8 2. REGIONAL SUPPLY - Companies For this study were contacted 1404 companies that offer Knowledge Intensie Services. Were received 177 answers, 25 of which were responded by Universities and associations. Chart 1 Percentage of employees working at the company 8% 3% Companies typology The majority of KIS companies that answered are micro and small companies (89,5%), with less than 10 years of existence. Only 11% are medium and large companies. 33% 56% More than 250 As can be seen on chart 2, in 2004, the number of KIS providers was 3665 and in 2006 there were companies. This increase was more than triple, so it is not surprising that most surveyed companies are less than 10 years old. 1 Chart 2 Evolution of the number of High-techintensive services (KIS) from 2003 to Almost 90% are located in North, Centre and Lisbon region of Portugal. About 45% of the companies have, in average, 1 or 2 branch offices mainly located in North and Lisbon regions ,8% of the companies have offices beyond national boundaries. The main countries chosen to create subsidiaries are Spain, Angola and Brazil Eurostat Statistical books Science, technology and innovation in Europe 2008,2009,2010 8

9 Chart 3 Companies with specific R&D service/ department, % HUMAN RESOURCES 39% Without R&D dep. 61% With R&D dep. Most of the surveyed companies have between 1-10 employees. Only 11% are medium and large companies. 61% of companies have a specific R&D department and small companies, in average, have 4 persons in fte 2. working in this activities. Although not having a specific department, 48,8% of the companies have human resources allocated to R&D activities. Noticing that 25% of micro companies have between 4 and 6 employees assign to it. Chart 4 Turnover, % More than 5000 k k 8% 20% TURNOVER In 2006, Portugal counted companies in hightech knowledge intensive services with a total turnover of million k k k 15% 13% 15% Among the companies covered, about 30% have a turnover less than 100 k. This could be explain by the fact of the majority of the surveyed companies were micro and young companies with less than 10 years. Less than 100 k 30% The turnover coming from exports from the small, medium and large is respectively 16%, 26% and 58% of the total turnover. Chart 5 Turnover evolution on the last three years, % 11% Progression 8% 6% Regression Stagnation 75% Ns/Nr The income evolution for the majority of the companies that answered has been progressive on the last three years. There was a growth on the total turnover of the companies offering KIS in Portugal between 2004 and 2006, progressing from million to million 4. 2 Fte. Full time equivalent 3 Eurostat Statistical books Science, technology and innovation in Europe Eurostat Statistical books Science, technology and innovation in Europe 2009,2010 9

10 Chart 6 Services provided by company size, % 2.2 Services Provided 32,8% 27,8% 27,8% 44,2% 47,2% 55,6% 23,0% 25,0% 16,7% Small Medium Large Most of the provided services are referred to R&D activities with 44,7% of the total services offered, followed by management and others with 32,3%. The remaining 23% are referred to ICT services (chart 8). 10% of the total services offered are Project identification and management followed by Design and development of engineering projects with 9% of the total. ICT R&D Management Chart 7 Knowledge Intensive Services provided by the companies, % ICT Services ICT Consultancy Telecom Network Connections Implementation of electronic data interchange systems 2% 6% 7% 8% Project identification and management 10% Design and development of engineering projects 9% Innovation diagnosis and management 3% R&D Services Tecnology Transfer Open innovation, dynamization of R&D Assistance on intellectual and industrial property Laboratories 1% 1% 6% 7% Prototyping and design services 4% Management and others Management and strategic consultancy services Business intelligence serviçes, competitive intelligence Business modelling Market research Human resources Communication Strategies Assistance for quality processes Environmental and Energy management Organization and processes-based management 3% 5% 2% 3% 2% 3% 3% 3% 4% 1% 6% 10

11 Chart 8 Are your services oriented/specializes in one specific sector?, % of answers 5% 2.3 Clients 51% of the companies that answered don t provide services oriented to one specific sector of the economy. 44% 51% No Yes Ns/Nr TARGET SECTORS The main target markets of KIS providers are Services for companies with 9%, followed by Energy and ICT, both with 7% of the total services. Sectors where there is less supply of KIS are Minery and Fishing both with 1%. Chart 9 Main target markets of companies providing KIS, % Electricity / Electronics 5% Energy 7% Cement / Lime / Plaster 2% Rubber and Plastic 2% Chemicals / Pharmaceutical 5% Industry Paper and wood Agro-food / Food / Drinks Automobile / Transport 3% 5% 5% Textil 2% Other manufacturing 3% Metal industry / engineering 5% Minery 1% Other industries 5% Transport 4% Services Constru ction Agriculture Services for Companies Medical devices Banking ICT Communication Printing / Publishing Tourism Construction Public Works Agriculture Forestry Fishing 1% 2% 2% 2% 2% 4% 4% 4% 4% 5% 7% 9% 11

12 CLIENT S LOCATION Chart 10 Client s location, in Portugal, %. 8% North 7% 29% Centre 9% Lisbon Alentejo 27% 20% Algarve 75,7% of companies clients are located in North, Centre and Lisbon regions. Internationally, the main clients are located in European Union and also in Portuguese speaking countries like Brazil and Angola. CLIENT S TYPOLOGY Clients of surveyed companies are distributed equally between large (31%), medium (28%), small (24%) and micro (17%) enterprises. TYPE OF INNOVATION PROMOTED Regarding the type of innovation promoted with clients over the last three years, more than a third has been on product/service innovation (35,9%). 11,3% are related to development phase followed by implementation and conception phase with 10% and 9,3% respectively. Process innovation comes in second with 23,8% of the total followed by Marketing innovation, 13,8%, and Organizational or social innovation, 12,2%. Chart 11 Type of innovation promoted with clients over the last three years by phase, % 0,0% 5,0% 10,0% 15,0% 20,0% 25,0% 30,0% 35,0% 40,0% Product/Service Innovation 5,3% 9,3% 11,3% 10,0% 1,6% Process Innovation 3,8% 6,1% 7,2% 6,8% 2,7% Marketing Innovation 3,7% 3,1% 3,3% 3,7% 4,9% Organizational or social Innovation 1,0% 2,9% 4,2% 4,1% 5,1% Commercialization Conception Development Implementation No 12

13 Chart 12 Type of relation established with clients, % RELATIONS WITH CLIENTS Co-development Partnership Subcontracting 25,1% 39,9% 35,0% The most common relation between clients and KIS providers is Partnership (39,9%), followed by Subcontracting and Co-development with 35% and 25,1% respectively. 2,8% Chart 13 Qualification of Human Resources, % 2.4 Human Resources MBA/Master/Phd 16% In 2007, there were more than 144 million jobs in the EU-27, of which, half were in KIS. Superior Professional course Intermediate 6% 9% 66% About 23.5% of Portugal s total employment in 2007 was linked to the KIS sector. Noticing that, for the same year, 58,7% of the total employment in Portugal was in the in Services sector 5. Basic 4% Of the companies that responded, 82% of the total employees have Higher education, while only 13% have Elementary and Secondary education. Most employees are allocated on the technical department followed by management and administrative departments. 5 Eurostat Statistical books Science, technology and innovation in Europe

14 2.5 Barriers The main barriers to access the KIS market pointed by the surveyed companies are Ignorance of the demand side concerning the offered services (20,5%) followed by the Lack of visible added-value (18%) and the Price (10%). The global crisis made consumers of KIS less receptive to this kind of services because they are perceived as a cost instead of an investment. As a result, these services are not a priority to the companies. Most of the enterprises believe that the main difficulties are also the result of the unfair competition of Universities, governmental entities and large companies that have advantages only accessible to them. So, they practice lower prices that hinder market access for SME s. SME s also express that they have many difficulties to market their services. Last but not least, all the bureaucracy involved is an extra work and it is very time consuming. Chart 14 Barriers to access KIS market, % of the total barriers mentioned Price 10,0% Ignorance of the demand side concerning the offered services 20,5% Mistrust on Industrial Property 2,1% Large companies competition 8,6% No short - term profitability of the service Lack of visible added-value Difficulties to find funding Public sector competition: agencies, laboratories, organisms providing support services Lack of resources Difficulty to find qualified human resources Low level of qualified human resources of clients 4,6% 8,2% 7,3% 6,3% 6,1% 4,2% 4,2% 18,0% 14

15 Chart 15 Existence of a strategic plan for services, % 3,9% 7,9% No 0,7% Yes, but I don't know the impact Yes, negative impact 19,7% Yes, positive impact 67,8% Ns/Nr 2.6 Supports STRATEGIC PLAN A large proportion of the companies surveyed does not know if there is a strategic plan for the services sector. Only 24,3% knew its existence but about 81% of these did not know what would be the impact for the companies. Chart 16 Contributions of the strategic plan, % MAIN CONTRIBUTIONS Supply promotion Sector integration (Clusterization) 31,4% 35,3% The main strategic plan contributions mentioned by the companies are Sector integration (clusterization) with 35,3% followed by Supply promotion with 31,4%. The remaining 33,3% are from Qualification and training and financing for the demand. Qualification and training Financing for the demand 13,7% 19,6% EUROPEAN SUPPORT PROGRAMS Chart 17 Percentage of companies that were supported by European support programs 17% 6% 9% 11% 57% FP7 CIP Interreg Eureka 70,7% of the surveyed companies believe that European support programs contribute to the development of KIS. The main EU Programs recognized are Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) with 57% followed by Interreg with 17%. The major advantages, mentioned by the companies that answered, are the partnerships created between national and foreign companies as well as the funding from the support programs. These programs promote advantageous synergies between knowledge and innovation. On the other hand, there are some aspects to be improved such as the large amount of bureaucracy and the dissemination of the European Programs to the companies. 15

16 Chart 18 Percentage of companies that were supported by National/Regional support programs 72% 19% 12% 4% 18% QREN POPH POR SIFIDE NATIONAL/REGIONAL SUPPORT PROGRAMS Most of the responders indicate that National Strategic Reference Framework (QREN) and Human Potential Operational Programme (POPH) are the national programs that more contribute for the development of KIS. These national/regional programs contribute to the development of SME s by giving non-repayable financial support for innovation and R&D activities and promoting the level of human resources of the companies through the program POPH. However, there are strong restrictions of these programs to entities in the Lisbon region and to large companies. The complex bureaucracy is still an issue in this case. Chart 19 Application of the support received, % SUPPORT RECEIVED Clusterization and Networking 12,6% Over the last three years, 49% of the surveyed companies were beneficiary of European and/or National/regional support programs. Innovation Internationalization 25,7% 42,6% The main support program was a national one, QREN, with 39,3%, followed by an international program, FP7 with 9%. Training 7,1% 12,0% 42,6% of companies that answered use these programs to develop their innovation activities and 25,7% to find and strengthen partnerships with external entities and companies. Chart 20 Evaluation of support programs, % 35,5% 31,8% 28,2% 4,5% Excellent Good Sufficient Insufficient EVALUATION OF SUPPORT PROGRAMS Of the companies that received support, 35,5% rated them as Good; 31,8% as Sufficient; 28,2% as Insufficient and only 4,5% as Excellent. 16

17 Chart 21 Percentage of companies associated to a cluster/networking 31% 72% 11% 18% 4% 2.7 Networking and Internationalization 47% of the surveyed companies are associated to a cluster/ network. The majority is associated to a national cluster, while 31% are related to an European followed by regional clusters/ networks with 18%. COTEC, Health Cluster Portugal and TICE.PT are the main clusters/ networks that surveyed companies are involved. Chart 22 Collaborations with another KIS provider, % Innovation agency / Cotec / Iapmei KIS company University Private research centres Public technological centres 9% 18% 37% 52% 51% 75% COLLABORATION WITH ANOTHER KIS PROVIDER 73,7% of the responders have already collaborated with another provider of KIS while 21,1% never needed such services. 75% of the companies have already collaborated with Universities, 52% with ADI/COTEC/IAPMEI followed by other KIS companies with 51%. The type of collaboration established between the surveyed companies and the others KIS providers is mainly through partnerships, co-development and subcontracting. 17

18 Chart 23 Evolution of the investment in innovation for the next three years, %. 10% 4% 9% Progression 77% Regression Stagnation Ns/Nr 2.8 Future In the future, 77% of the companies expect to increase investment in innovation while only 4% expect to decrease it. However, there are many factors that have positive and/or negative impact for the future development of the enterprises. For the companies, the external factor that has more negative impact is the financial situation of the economy. The Knowledge based economy, Globalization and Policies to promote the sector are those that have more positive impact. One interesting fact is that unemployment shows almost no impact in the development of the surveyed companies. Regarding the internal factors, the Acquisition of new competencies, the Ability to communicate about the added value and the Financial resources are those with the most positive impact to the companies. Chart 24 Impact of the external factors for the development of the companies, % Financial situation 42% 54% 4% Unemployment 12% 32% 56% Policies to promote the sector 76% 2% 22% Globalization 88% 5% 7% Sustainable development / Climate change 53% 5% 43% Knowledge based economy 93% 1% 5% 30% 17% Positive Negative No impact Chart 25 Impact of the internal factors for the development of the companies, % Financial resources 67% Acquisition of new competencies Ability to communicate about the added value 96% 91% Ageing of the employees 55% 5% 32% 12% Positive Negative No impact 53% 22% 39% 56% 10% 1% 4% 4% 4% 18

19 REGIONAL SUPPLY - Universities Chart 26 Employees working at the company, % % 48% 24% Universities typology 48% of the Universities/ associations have more than 250 employees. 88% of the responders have a R&D department where, in average, are allocated 358 employees. TURNOVER 12% Chart 27 Turnover, % More than 250 Almost one half of the surveyed Universities have a turnover higher than 1000 k and its evolution over the last three years has been progressive to 44% of the responders. More than 5000 k 36% 2.10 Services Provided k k k k Less than 100 k 12% 8% 4% 8% 32% Most of the provided services are referred to R&D activities, with 52% of the total services offered, followed by management and others with 33%. The remaining 15% are referred to ICT services (chart 29). 9% of the total services offered are Technology transfer, followed by Laboratories with 7%. Chart 28 Services provided by Universities/ associations, % 1 ICT Services R&D Services Management and others ICT Consultancy Telecom Network Connections Implementation of electronic data interchange systems Project identification and management Design and development of engineering projects Innovation diagnosis and management Tecnology Transfer Open innovation, dynamization of R&D Assistance on intellectual and industrial property protection Laboratories Prototyping and design services Management and strategic consultancy services Business intelligence serviçes, competitive intelligence Business modelling Market research Human resources Communication Strategies Assistance for quality processes Environmental and Energy management Organization and processes-based management 1% 2% 2% 3% 3% 2% 2% 3% 2% 4% 4% 5% 5% 5% 5% 6% 6% 6% 6% 6% 6% 7% 9% 19

20 Chart 29 Are your services oriented/ specialized in one specific sector?, % of answers 56% 27% 44% 29% Yes No 44% Large Medium Small 2.11 Clients 56% of the surveyed Universities that answered don t provide services specialized in one specific sector of the economy. TARGET SECTORS The main target markets are Energy and Services for companies, both with 6,9%, followed by ICT with 6,4% of the total sectors. Printing / publishing is the market where Universities/ associations offer less KIS. Chart 30 Main target markets, % Electricity / Electronics 4,7% Energy 6,9% Cement / Lime / Plaster 2,1% Rubber and Plastic 3,4% Chemicals / Pharmaceutical 4,7% Industry Paper and wood Agro-food / Food / Drinks Automobile / Transport 4,3% 5,2% 5,6% Textil 2,6% Other manufacturing 3,4% Metal industry / engineering 5,2% Services Construct ion Agriculture Minery Other industries Transport Services for Companies Medical devices Banking ICT Communication Printing / Publishing Tourism Construction Public Works Agriculture Forestry Fishing 2,6% 4,3% 3,9% 4,7% 1,3% 2,6% 0,9% 3,4% 4,7% 1,7% 3,0% 3,4% 2,1% 6,4% 6,9% 20

21 Chart 31 Client's size, % 44% 27% 29% Large Medium Small Chart 32 Type of relation promoted with clients, % Co-development Partnership 30,2% 39,7% CLIENT S TYPOLOGY 73% of the clients are SME s and only the remaining 27% are large companies. 39,7% of the relations established between Universities/ associations and their clients is through partnerships. Followed by co-development and subcontracting with 30,2% and 25,4%. Regarding the type of innovation promoted with clients over the last three years, 42,3% are referred to product/ service innovation; 16,1% are related to development followed by conception and implementation phase with 14,6% and 8,8% respectively. Process innovation comes in second with 32,8% followed by Organizational or social innovation, 16,1%, and marketing innovation, 16,1%. Subcontracting 25,4% 4,8% Chart 33 Type of innovation promoted with clients over the last three years by phase, % Product/Service Innovation 2,9% 14,6% 16,1% 8,8% Process Innovation 1,5% 0,7% 6,6% 10,2% Marketing Innovation 0,7% 3,6% 2,9% Organizational or social Innovation 1,5% 4,4% 4,4% 13,1% 8,0% Commercialization Conception Development Implementation 21

22 Chart 34 Employees qualification, % MBA/Master/Phd 51,6% Superior 29,6% 2.12 Human Resources Concerning the human resources of Universities/ associations, 29,6% of the employees have a superior education and 51,6% have a MBA/Master or PhD education. Professional course Intermediate Basic 1,0% 13,7% 4,2% 2.13 Barriers The main barriers to access the KIS market pointed by the surveyed Universities/ associations are Ignorance of the demand side concerning the offered services with 18,4% followed by Lack of visible added-value with 16,3% and the Difficulties to find funding with 14,3% of the total barriers mentioned by them. These barriers can be explained by the difficulty of the companies in discerning the advantages in medium and long term of the offered services by Universities/ associations. Also due to the less favorable economic conditions, companies only tend to acquire services with immediate returns thus minimizing the risk. Furthermore there are still a significant number of companies for which R&D services and industrial property is not a priority. Finally, the support programs to find funding are still to much time consuming and bureaucratic. Chart 35 Barriers to access the market, % of the total barriers mentioned Price 7,1% Ignorance of the demand side concerning the offered services 18,4% Mistrust on Industrial Property Large companies competition No short - term profitability of the service Lack of visible added-value Difficulties to find funding Public sector competition: agencies, laboratories, organisms providing support services Lack of resources Difficulty to find qualified human resources Low level of qualified human resources of clients 2,0% 3,1% 3,1% 5,1% 5,1% 7,1% 8,2% 10,2% 14,3% 16,3% 22

23 Chart 36 Contributions of the strategic plan, % Financing for the demand Qualification and training Sector integration (Clusterization) Supply promotion 18,8% 18,8% 25,0% 37,5% Chart 37 Do Innovation support tools contribute to KIS development? %of the answers 64% 56% 8% 8% 28% Yes No Ns/Nr National support programs European support programs 36% Chart 38 Application of the support received, % 2.14 Supports 72% of the surveyed Universities/ associations do not know if there is a strategic plan for the services sector. Only 24% knew of its existence but about 83% of these did not know what would be the impact for their activities. The main strategic plan contributions mentioned by the universities/ associations are Supply promotion with 37,5% followed by Sector integration (clusterization) with 25%, Financing for the demand and Qualification and training are last, both with 18,8% of the total contributions mentioned. EUROPEAN AND NATIONAL SUPPORT PROGRAMS For 64% of the Universities/ associations, the European support programs have a positive contribution for the KIS sector development. The most recognized programs are FP7 with 36% followed by Interreg and CIP with 24% and 12% respectively, of the total programs mentioned. Regarding the national programs, 56% of the companies believe that they have a positive impact for the development of KIS sector. The most mentioned programs are QREN with 50% followed by POPH and POVT, both with 16,7% of the total programs. Clusterization and Networking 60% SUPPORT RECEIVED Innovation Internationalization Training 44% 60% 92% 76% of the Universities/ associations that answered received financial support over the past three years. 52% of them have benefited from the program FP7, 48% from QREN and 36% from Interreg. 16% Chart 39 Evaluation of support programs received, % 45% 40% 15% Good Sufficient Insufficient 92% of the surveyed Universities/ associations use these support programs to develop their innovation activities. Of the Universities/ associations that received support programs, 45% rated them as Sufficient; 40% as Good and 15% as Insufficient. The major advantages mentioned by the respondents are the support given for R&D and innovation activities as well as creating partnerships with companies and entities at a national and international level. They also allow the increase and better positioning of the Centre region of Portugal on the market. These kinds of supports also facilitate the access to funding, knowledge networks and best practices. 23

24 On the other hand, the support programs are insufficient and the heavy bureaucracy leads to a delay in the responses. There aren t programs on a regular basis for certain activities developed by technological entities. Finally, the lack of promotion of this kind of supports shows the need for a national strategy to create an innovation development plan. Chart 40 Companies associated to a cluster/ networking, % European 72,0% 2.15 Networking and Internationalization 80% of the Universities/ associations that answered are associated to some cluster/ networking. 72% of them in an European context. National 64,0% COLLABORATION WITH ANOTHER KIS PROVIDER Local Regional 12,0% 44,0% All of the Universities/ associations that responded have already collaborated with another KIS provider. 96% of them have already collaborated with Universities; 92% with ADI/ COTEC/ IAPMEI and 76% with Public technological centres. Chart 41 Collaboration with another KIS provider, % Innovation agency / Cotec / Iapmei 24,2% KIS company 15,8% University 25,3% Private research centres Public technological centres 1,1% 13,7% 20,0% 24

25 Chart 42 Evolution of the investment in innovation in the next three years, % 2.16 Future 12% 8% 8% Progression Stagnation Regression 72% Ns/Nr 72% of the Universities/ associations estimate that the evolution of their investment in innovation will be progressive. For these, the external factors having more impact are Knowledge based economy followed by Policies to promote the sector and Globalization. On the other hand, the financial situation has a negative impact on their development. When considering the internal factors, the Acquisition of new competencies, the Ability to communicate about the added value and the Ageing of the employees are those with more significant impact for them. Chart 43 Impact of the external factors for the development of Universities/ associations, % Financial situation 33,3% 61,9% 4,8% Unemployment 15,8% 31,6% 52,6% Policies to promote the sector 81,0% 9,5% 9,5% Globalization 72,2% 16,7% 11,1% Sustainable development / Climate change 68,4% 5,3% 26,3% Knowledge based economy 81,8% 18,2% 100,0% Positive Negative No impact Chart 44 Impact of the internal factors for the development of Universities/ associations, % Financial resources 35% Acquisition of new competencies Ability to communicate about the added value Ageing of the employees 59% Positive Negative No impact 95% 82% 65% 14% 14% 27% 5% 5% 25

26 REGIONAL DEMAND 26

27 3. REGIONAL DEMAND 1576 companies were contacted to give their opinion as clients of Knowledge Intensive services. The audit counts with 89 questionnaires. 3.1 Companies details TYPOLOGY The majority of the companies that answered are micro or small companies with over 10 years existence. They are based in the North, Centre and Lisbon regions of Portugal, where 25% also have, in average, 1 or 2 branch offices. Chart 45 Companies with specific R&D service/ department by size class, % 80,0% 60,0% 40,0% 20,0% 0,0% 64,0% 23,6% 12,4% Small Medium Large Audit PT (CIS 2006) EU-27 (CIS 2006) Chart 46 Audit enterprises and innovative enterprises in Portugal and EU by size class, % 45,6% 54,4% 71,4% 28,6% 81,8% 18,2% Small Medium Large with R&D dep. without R&D dep. 15,7% of the companies have offices beyond national boundaries. United Kingdom, Germany, Spain and Italy are the European preferential countries with 29% of subsidiaries. Portuguese speaking countries like Brazil, Angola and Mozambique are the non-eu countries preferred to create subsidiaries abroad Europe (29%). HUMAN RESOURCES Two thirds of the responders are small companies, of which, half are micro companies with less than 10 employees. In general, the SMEs surveyed have a specific R&D department that allocates, in average, 7 persons in fte. 43,6% of the companies without a specific R&D department, have between 5 and 10 employees assigned to these activities. It should be noted that 82,4% of these are small companies. 27

28 Chart 47 Turnover by company size class, including micro companies, % >5000 k k k k k <100 k 3,4% 5,6% 5,6% 16,9% 1,1% 3,4% 11,2% 5,6% 15,7% 1,1% 15,7% 2,2% 1,1% 11,2% 0% 10% 20% 30% Micro Small Medium Large TURNOVER The turnover is correlated with the company size: micro and small companies have a turnover inferior to the medium and large companies (Chart3). The average of the Audit is between 1000 and 5000k. Following the trend of the Portuguese innovative companies reported in Eurostat Statistical Books- Science, technology and innovation in Europe 2010, as having increased their turnover by 4.8% between 2004 and 2006, over 60% of the companies surveyed confirmed a progressive evolution of turnover over the past three years. The turnover coming from exports accounted for 39,1% Chart 48 Evolution of the investment in innovation during of the total turnover in Small companies, and 31,5% the last three years, % and 15,9% for medium and large companies respectively. 7,9% Progression 11,2% Stagnation TURNOVER INVESTED IN INNOVATION 21,3% 59,6% Regression ns/nr During the last three years 59,6% of the companies surveyed had an increasing investment in innovation and, in average, they spend one third of the total turnover in innovation related activities. SECTOR OF ACTIVITY Innovative companies are most represented in Services for Enterprises and ICT. More than half of the companies (52,6%) work in the Industry sector. Chart 49 Sector of activity of the companies, % Industry Services Const ructio n Fo res try Electricity / Electronics Energy Cement / Lime / Plaster Rubber and Plastic Chemical/ Pharmaceutical Paper and wood Agro-food / Food / Drinks Automobile / Transport Textil Other industries Metal industry / engineering Minery Other industries Transport Services for enterprises Medical devices Banking ICT Communication Printing / Publishing Tourism Building Public Works Forestry 0,7% 0,7% 1,5% 1,5% 0,0% 0,0% 0,7% 0,0% 0,0% 0,7% 3,0% 3,0% 2,2% 0,7% 4,4% 5,9% 5,2% 6,7% 8,1% 5,9% 8,1% 9,6% 14,8% 16,3% 28

29 Chart 50 Innovative activities undertaken by phase, % Product/ Service Process Marketing Organizational or social Conception Implementation 4,8% 5,0% 7,7% 8,0% 7,5% 5,0% 4,3% 4,1% 6,4% 4,8% 4,8% 5,2% 6,2% 2,7% Development 13,0% 10,5% Commercialization 3.2 Innovation More than 80% of the innovative companies in Portugal were involved in activities of innovation during the period between 2004 and From the companies audited, the majority have undertaken an innovation activity, even if not successful, in the last three years. Most of it, was for the conception or development of products/ services, with 13% and 10,5% respectively. Regarding the projects that didn t succeed, companies think that was due to: Lack of technical and commercial support Difficulty in marketing the developed innovations Difficulty in managing the partners Lack of human resources with experience and know-how Lack of financial resources to invest in R&D Inviability of the project Reasons that encourage innovation Diversification and differentiation of products / services Market requirements Reasons that discourage innovation Human resources are poorly prepared with little experience and know-now Lack of time It is part of the company strategy Innovation is perceived as a critical factor for the development and sustainability of the company To maintain a high level of internal knowhow/ competitiveness Poor economic situation Lack of funding in the various phases of projects Bureaucratic process of public funding Lack of culture of innovation management High risk of innovation activity 29

30 Chart 51 Type of services needed in the last three years, % 43% 11% R&D Services 46% Management and others ICT Services 3.3 KIS Service Requirements R&D and Management services are the most required services by the enquired companies, with 46% and 43% of the demand respectively. Although requests of ICT Services only count with 11% when compared with R&D and Management Services in general, if the individual services are analyzed separately it should be noticed that ICT Services are more relevant: ICT Consultancy (46,1%); Project Identification and Management (44,9%) Implementation of Electronic data interchange systems (40,4%) Design and development of engineering projects (39,3%) Technology Transfer (36%) Chart 52 Services needed by the enterprises enquired in the last three years, % of the answers ICT Services Management and others ICT Consultancy Telecom Network Connections 30,3% 46,1% Management and strategic consultancy services Business intelligence services, compatitive intelligence 15,7% 34,8% Implementation of electronic data interchange systems 40,4% Business modelling Market research 7,9% 32,6% R&D Services 16,9% Human resources 21,3% Project identification and management Design and development of engineering projects Innovation diagnosis and management Tecnology Transfer Open Innovation, Dinamization of R&D Assistance on intellectual and industrial property protection Laboratories Prototyping and design services 3,4% 44,9% 39,3% 24,7% 36,0% 20,2% 23,6% 27,0% 21,3% Communication Strategies Assistance for quality processes Environmental and Energy management Organization and processes-based management 4,5% 15,7% 29,2% 33,7% 34,8% 30

31 Chart 53 Sector and type of service provider, % Internal ly Private Sector Qualified human resources Enterprises Technological centre Technical Institutes/Organisms 9,8% 11,3% 26,6% 29,2% When questioned if they found or not a provider for the requested service, the majority of the companies answered affirmatively. For ICT services, the companies generally contract entities from the Private sector. On the other hand, for Management services, companies prefer to seek a solution internally. It is noted that he Public sector plays a major role in R&D services, with more than 50% of the companies contracting services from private Laboratories or Technology Transfer centres. Public Sector Agencies Administration Technological centre 6,6% 3,1% 13,3% Within the provider s sector, in general, companies resorted to a private enterprise (29,2%) or to its own human resources (26,6%). Public Technological centres were the providers of 13,3% of the services needed (chart 9). Chart 54 Percentage of companies that found, or not, the service sought and from which sector it was provided ICT Services ICT Consultancy Telecom Network Connections Implementation of electronic data interchange systems 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Management and others Management and strategic consultancy services Business intelligence services, compatitive intelligence Business modelling Market research 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% R&D Services 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Human resources Communication Strategies Project identification and management Design and development of engineering projects Innovation diagnosis and management Tecnology Transfer Open Innovation, Dinamization of R&D Assistance on intellectual and industrial property protection Laboratories Prototyping and design services Assistance for quality processes Environmental and Energy management Organization and processes-based management Didn't find any Private sector Internally Public sector 31

32 Chart 55 Evaluation of the service provided, % 76% of the companies were satisfied with the service delivered. 10% Satisfied 14% Non satisfied 76% ns/nr Chart 56 Type of relationship between demanding companies and providers 48,3% 37,1% 50,6% 1,1% RELATIONS WITH SERVICES PROVIDERS Half of the companies surveyed establish partnerships with their suppliers. Nevertheless, co-development and subcontracting agreements are also usual. These agreements are establish in order to develop innovative products/ services, to transfer technology or for specific R&D services. Relationships within Cooperation Programs are also common. Chart 57 Sources of information used to find a provider, % Own staff Clients Suppliers Competitors Associations Meetings/conferences Sector studies Journals/Internet/Ne Networking Professional Directory Technological Centres Commerce Chambers Public administration 10,1% 22,5% 13,5% 6,7% 2,2% 3,4% 33,7% 25,8% 23,6% 18,0% 43,8% 36,0% 57,3% SOURCES OF INFORMATION 57,3% of the companies used Networking to find a service provider. Their Own staff and Meetings and conferences are also sources of information. 32

33 Chart 58 Main barriers to innovate, % 3.4 Barriers Funding Risk Shortage of skilled staff & managers Difficulty in attracting R&D / technical staff Lack of information on Public supports Lack of information on new products, markets, Inadequate infrastructure Incertitude on the potencial market Lack of time Difficulties in finding partnerships Regulations 0% 50% 100% 19,1% 16,9% 14,6% 12,4% 3,4% 15,7% 42,7% 41,6% 33,7% 27,0% 34,8% 70,8% Small Medium Large Total of Companies TO INNOVATE The surveyed companies seem to consider Funding the main barrier to innovate and relate it with the risk subjacent to innovative activities. The high level of risk, the amounts of capital necessary and the uncertainty of the return on investment are factors of resistance not only for the companies but also for external funding partners. When considering public funding, the bureaucracy and time spending discourage the companies to present proposals. About 40% believe that the Incertitude on the potential market and Difficulties in finding partnerships are also factors of resistance. Shortage of qualified staff and managers in terms of experience and know-how are also obstacles that prevent companies from embarking on innovation projects. It was referred that legislation could also discourage investment in innovation due to bureaucratic and lengthy processes. Chart 59 Main barriers perceive for contracting innovation support services FOR CONTRACTING INNOVATION SUPPORT SERVICES Price Mistrust on Industrial Property No short - term profitability of the service Lack of visible added-value Lack of resources Difficulty to find specific services Lack of information on supply 0% 50% 100% 3,4% 18,0% 18,0% 36,0% 31,5% 30,3% 24,7% 52,8% Small Medium Large Total of Companies The high cost of the hiring innovation support services is the main barrier perceived by the surveyed companies. About 36% think that No short-term profitability of the service is also an obstacle. Lack of visible added-value at the time of contracting services to support innovation is a barrier for 31,5% of the responders. For 30,3% of the companies the specificity of certain services limits the choice of a provider. 33

34 European Programmes 6th Framework Programme 7th Framework Programme National Programmes QREN - Quadro de Referência Estratégico Nacional National Strategic Reference Framework POPH - Programa Operacional Temático Potencial Humano Human Potential Thematic Operational Programme POR - Programas Operacionais Regionais Regional Operational Programmes Chart 60 Application of the support received from the innovation support programs, % 7% 3% Innovation Internationalization 3.5 Supports INNOVATION SUPPORT PROGRAMS In Portugal in 2006, 11,9 % of the innovative companies have received some type of public funding. Central Government was the main source of funding, followed by the European Union. Funding from the 6 th Framework Program and from Local or regional authorities were also important sources of funding. 6 In the Audit, 74 % of the companies have received funding from innovation support programs during the last three years. The main European Programs were the 6 th and 7 th Framework Programs. At a National level, the National Strategic Reference Framework (QREN) plays a major role, but also the Operational Programs are important sources of support especially the Human Potential Thematic (POPH) and the Regional Program (POR). 17% 29% 44% Training Clusterization and Networking SERVICE PROVIDER AND EVALUATION Half of the surveyed companies had applied to the innovation support programs directly and the other half resorted to intermediaries. Chart 61 Evaluation of the support received from the innovation support program,% 28% 11% 11% 50% Excellent Good Sufficient Insufficient Most of the companies contract consultants to deliver the service. Nevertheless, some companies refer that universities are also preferential partners for the preparation of proposals. The resource to intermediaries was justified by the complexity of the application process, the added value in structuring and implementing the project and the simplification of the administrative process. From the companies that evaluated the support provided, 50% classified it as Good and 28% as Sufficient. 6 Eurostat, Community Innovation Statistics

35 POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE ASPECTS AND SUGGESTIONS FOR IMPROVEMENT Positive aspects Grants and Funding of innovation activities Enhancement of the companies' knowhow, expertise and improvement of the human resources New partnerships for the company Follow-up and clarification of doubts Negative aspects Low rate of financial support Bureaucratic and complex processes that require time and allocation of human resources Delay in payments Difficulties in the monitoring the project Suggestions for improvement Service support to candidates with information and training sessions Optimization of the online tools Simplification of the innovation support programs Celerity and rigor concerning the deadlines for submitting applications, publishing results and the payments Better coordination of entities that support innovation activities Implementation of an internal system to improve the service Chart 62 Estimation for the evolution of the % of turnover invested in innovation for the next three years, % 7% 7% Progression 3.6 Future 65% of the enquired companies expected a progressive evolution of the percentage of turnover allocated to innovation activities for the next three years. 21% 65% Stagnation Regression ns/nr Chart 63 Factors with a positive and negative impact for future innovation activities, % Financial situation Unemployment Policies to promote the sector Globalization Sustainable development/ Climate Change Knowledge based economy 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Positive Negative No impact The knowledge based economy is thought by the majority of companies to have a positive impact in the encouragement of future innovation activities. Other factors perceived as facilitators of KIS are Policies to promote the sector and Globalization. The financial situation is the factor with the most negative impact (37,7%), although when compared there are more companies considering it as positive (58,4%). Companies consider that the Unemployment have no significant impact for future innovation activities. 35

36 4. CONCLUSIONS 4.1 MAIN RESULTS FROM THE AUDIT Supply The majority of KIS companies that answered are micro and small companies (89,5%). This can be explained by the registered increase of the number of KIS providers in Portugal since 2004; 61% of companies have a specific R&D department; The income evolution for the majority of the companies has been progressive on the last three years; Most of the provided services are referred to Project identification and management, Design and development of engineering projects and ICT Consultancy. Universities provided services are related with Technology Transfer and Laboratories; The main target markets of KIS companies and Universities are Services for companies, Energy and ICT; Regarding the type of innovation promoted with clients over the last three years, more than a third has been on product/service innovation (35,9%); 82% of the total employees have Higher education; The main barriers to access the KIS market pointed by the surveyed companies are Ignorance of the demand side concerning the offered services, Lack of visible added-value and the Price; The main EU Programs recognized are Seventh Framework Program (FP7) and Interreg. National Strategic Reference Framework (QREN) and Human Potential Operational Program (POPH) are the national programs that more contribute for the development of KIS; 42,6% of companies that answered use these programs to develop their innovation activities and to find and strengthen partnerships with external entities and companies; The majority of the companies have already collaborated with another KIS provider; 77% of the companies and 72% of the Universities expect to increase investment in innovation for the next three years. Demand Two thirds of the responders are small companies, of which, half are micro companies with less than 10 employees; 60% of the companies surveyed confirmed a progressive evolution of turnover over the past three years; 59,6% of the companies surveyed had an increasing investment in innovation over the last three years; 91,6% of the companies have undertaken an innovation activity, even if not successful, in the last three years. Most of it was for the conception or development of products/ services; The most required services by the enquired companies are ICT Consultancy, Project Identification and Management Implementation of Electronic data interchange systems; 57,3% of the companies used Networking to find a service provider; The main barriers to innovate referred by the companies were Funding, Incertitude on the potential market and Difficulties in finding partnerships; Price, No short-term profitability of the service and Lack of visible added-value are the main barriers for contracting innovation support services; 74 % of the companies have received funding from innovation support programs during the last three years; 65% of the enquired companies expected a progressive evolution of the percentage of turnover allocated to innovation activities for the next three years; Knowledge based economy, Policies to promote the sector and Globalization are thought by the majority of companies to have a positive impact in the encouragement of future innovation activities. 36

37 4.2 MAIN RESULTS FROM MATRIX OF COMPETENCIES SUPPLY-DEMAND KIS SECTOR - Annex 1 Analyzing the Matrix of Competencies that confront the supplied with the demanded services, it can be concluded that there are some sectors where the supply does not cover all the demand. On the other hand, there are also services that are oversupply. Supply < Demand Telecom Network Connections (1,77% / 5,02%) Laboratories (1,18% / 4,46%) Assistance for quality processes (2,59% / 5,76%) Market Research (2,71% / 5,39%) (% of provided services / % of demanded services) Supply > Demand Open Innovation, Dynamisation of R&D Design and development of engineering projects Business Intelligence services, Competitive Intelligence Project identification and management (6,60% / 3,35%) (9,2% / 6,51%) (4,95% / 2,60%) (9,55% / 7,43%) Services related with Telecom Networks Connections and Laboratories have more demand than supply, so there is a market gap. Open Innovation, Dynamisation of R&D and Design and development of engineering projects are oversupply MAIN RESULTS FROM MATRIX OF SECTOR SPECIALISATION OF THE DEMAND AND SERVICES REQUESTED Annex 2 This Matrix establishes the relationship between the provided and requested KIS. For that, it was computed the total number of the services provided by the KIS companies and Universities/ Associations and the total number of services requested by SME s. The ratio between the number of companies in a specific sector requesting KIS and the total of KIS requests provide the sectors that most required KIS. The most demanded services are given by the ratio between the number of companies requiring a specific service and the total number of KIS requests. Sectors that most required KIS Most demanded services ICT 13,3% Project identification and Management 10,6% Services for enterprises 10,8% ICT consultancy 8,8% Electricity/ Electronics 9,1% Design and development of engineering projects 8,4% The sector of activity with most requirements of KIS is the ICT. The most demanded services are the ones related with Project identification and Management. 7 This conclusion is based in the sample of the audit. 37

38 5. RECOMMENDATIONS This section will describe the recommendations from the enquiries regarding potential aspects that could be improve or create in order to promote the development of the KIS sector in Portugal. CREATION OF A NATIONAL STRATEGY FOR KIS SECTOR: The aim of this recommendation is to create policies to promote the development of the KIS sector. It is suggested a common coordination between all the entities in order to build a national strategy in which should be included programs and policies to: Promote the sector among potential clients; Promote the internationalization of the companies; Support the innovation projects in all stage of development, including during the transition to the market, not only in financial terms but also with technical support (qualify human resources, informative and training sessions...); Increase the rate of experimentation of new innovative products/ services; Create networks of companies, associations, universities and entities related with KIS with the aim of exchange know-how and good practices. Enhance the relation between the knowledge providers/ producers and the companies/ entities that can transfer the innovation to the market. PROMOTE AND IMPROVE THE LINK BETWEEN COMPANIES AND UNIVERSITIES: The link between companies and Universities is thought to be an important factor for the development of the KIS sector. Nevertheless, is not yet sufficiently developed in order to be a support to the innovation process. Other aspect to be considered is the important role of Universities to qualify human resources. Companies felt difficulty to find employees to develop their innovation projects. Following that, it is recommended the approach of the students during their studies to the companies through internships and co-development of projects. This would lead to the acquisition of new competencies and awareness of technical procedures. PROMOTE AN INNOVATION CULTURE: The market is not aware of the potential and advantages of the KIS perceiving them as too expensive, with a medium and even long term returns and a non-priority aspect in the companies strategies. It is suggested a common national policy to create an innovation culture that instill in the society an interest and initiative to undertake innovative projects. A transformation in the current culture of resistance to change and overstate de risk should also be included in this recommendation. 38

39 SIMPLIFICATION OF THE PROCEDURES IN THE NATIONAL SUPPORT PROGRAMS: The support programmes are perceived as being too complex and bureaucratic which allocates many human resources and are time consuming. One suggestion is its simplification through the optimization of the online tools. Another is the harmonization with the Community procedures and the implementation of an internal system to improve the service. It was also referred by the surveyed companies that a better coordination of entities that support innovation activities would be helpful. The candidates felt a lack of support and the information available is not sufficient to make a proper application to the programmes. In this order, it was proposed as recommendations the creation of an online platform to exchange experiences and knowledge. Another suggestion was the effective dissemination of the support programs through newsletters, events, and publications associated with training sessions for candidates. 39

40 6. Annexes 40

41 Annex 1 - MATRIX OF COMPETENCIES SUPPLY-DEMAND KIS SECTOR

42 Annex 2 - MATRIX OF SECTOR SPECIALISATION OF THE DEMAND AND SERVICES REQUESTED