Policy learning in program management, and program management in policy learning

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Policy learning in programmanagement, and
program management in policy learning THE
CASE OF THE VINNVÄXT-PROGRAM
Per Eriksson Director General VINNOVA Swedish
Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems
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VINNOVAs Mission

• VINNOVA integrates research and development in
  technology, transport and working life.
• VINNOVAs mission is to promote sustainable
  growth by financing RTD and developing effective
  innovation systems.
• The VINNVÄXT-program (Winning growth) is one
  important measure for supporting regional growth
  through dynamic innovation systems.

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Aim of the presentation

• An outline of the VINNVÄXT-programme
• Designing the program
• Implementing the program
• Policy learning and potential for policy
• transfer some reflections

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What is VINNVÄXT?

• A competition (3 calls, 8 winners so far)
• The winners receive up to 1 MEUR per year for 10
  years
• Regional co-funding of at least 50
• A Triple Helix-based approach

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The VINNVÄXT timeline

• PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT
• International knowledge transfer
• International benchmark
• 5 Pilots
• Process-support
• Triple Helix management training

• CALL 1
• Competition, 30 million
• 159 initial proposals
• 25 development initiatives
• 3 winners/7 runner-ups
• The Dahmén Institute
• - A process-support
• organisation
• -The national facilitators
• Network
• -Triple Helix management
• training

• CALL 2
• Competition,
• 30 million
• 23 proposals
• 5 winners

8 WINNERS On-going process support networking,
knowledge transfer, coaching, evaluation, etc

• CALL 3
• Innovation systems in early stages
• Competition, 5 million
• Process support for formation
• 86 initial proposals
• 10 development initiatives, 3 mo preparation
• Triple Helix management training
• 26 Final proposals
• 5 potential winners 2006-8
• 1-2 full-scale winners 2008

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8 winners, so far
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Most important activities today (for
winners/non-winners)

• Creating a structural platform in the region
  (changing RD strategies, restructuring
  incubators, facilitating for commercialisation
  etc.)
• Organisational development (new organisation,
  leadership, change management, strategy etc.)
• Trying to mobilise actors internally (in the
  region) and externally (in the functional
  innovation system) to strengthen the initiative
• Facilitating for new projects (demo- and
  commercialisation)

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VINNOVA IS PICKING THE WINNERS What are we
looking for?

• Existence of a regional partnership and strong
  leadership with a shared vision and with an
  ability to prioritise resources/activities/efforts
  .
• Universities, which profile their education and
  research, and the existence of researchers who
  are prepared to exploit their knowledge.
• An industry with an ability to identify future
  growth areas and markets.

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Why is VINNVÄXT a good example?

• VINNVÄXT is a strong brand (useful for the
  initiatives for co-branding)
• VINNVÄXT has attracted new types of
  applicants/competencies outside the traditional
  network of applicants
• VINNVÄXT demonstrates that relatively low funding
  can generate high return
• Many of the initiatives that didnt win still
  exists. Some of them are very well off when it
  comes to financing from other sources still
  with an high development potential.
• Many of the initiatives are evolving as important
  hubs in their region/area of competence/innovation
  system
• VINNVÄXT demonstrates the need for creating
  policy initiatives that are long term

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General driving forces on a national level

• A growing interest in new theories explaining
  growth, competitiveness and innovation (e.g.
  Nelson Winter, Rosenberg, Lundvall, Porter)
• Long-term economic growth in Sweden continued to
  be weak despite large investments in RD (i.e. an
  increasing awareness that returns from Swedish
  RD investments must be higher)
• A growing awareness on the need for policy
  coherence and co-ordination (a systems
  perspective)

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General driving forces on a public authority level

• VINNOVA was a new public authority with a
  freedom for testing new programs etc.
• A Director-General with experience from different
  Triple Helix spheres as well as from a successful
  regional change process (Blekinge/Karlskrona and
  Telecom City).
• A number of competent, embedded individuals
  (staff) interested in developing new methods for
  supporting regional innovation systems for
  growth.

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Policy learning designing VINNVÄXT (1)

• The importance of
• having a strategy for communication (i.e. the
  importance of branding)
• using a unifying concept and a common
  value-system (Triple Helix)
• long term activities (10 years) for attracting
  new types of applicants (actor constellations)
  and new types of competences (e.g. experts and
  middle management from industry)
• the partnership approach VINNOVA not only act
  as a program evaluator, also as a supportive
  partner
• internal workshops (and an initial open climate
  for discussion)
• international benchlearning rather than
  mechanical benchmarking
• pilots (i.e. testing a model by interactive
  learning between the public authority and the
  initiatives).

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Policy learning designing VINNVÄXT (2)

• Policy learning from international benchlearning
  and the pilots
• The importance of using calls (If regions are to
  be competitive, why not let them compete?)
• The importance of promoting regional leadership
• The importance of using panels (consisting of
  actors from all parts of Triple Helix ) when
  selecting prospects and winners
• The importance of providing extensive support to
  potential applicants and the winners.

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Policy learning on the RIS-initiative level

• Learning by writing
• The ability to use different types of analyses,
  forecasts, indicators etc. as strategic tools and
  means for communication internally, within the
  initiative, and externally (i.e. learning by
  writing)
• Learning by fighting
• The ability to define roles, areas of activity
  and special interests and in that process not shy
  away from conflicts but rather trying to solve
  them by creating new solutions etc. (i.e.
  learning by fighting)

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Policy learning implementing VINNVÄXT

• The importance of
• creating a structural platform for learning (e.g.
  by initiating interactive research, workshops)
• continuous process support (e.g. courses in
  Triple Helix management, coaching and tools for
  self-evaluation)
• follow-ups and assessment in dialogue
• using independent international evaluators not
  embedded in the regional or national milieu
• having the ability to re-engineer the program
  (i.e. to learn and un-learn).

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The most important lessons to learn from the
VINNVÄXT-experience

• The existence of a strong regional leadership
  promoting renewal
• A shared vision (strategic concept) within a
  specific area of growth
• A functional definition of the region
• The development of robust research and innovation
  environments
• The development of strategies and resources for
  learning
• Knowledge and insight into business and
  development logic within the specific area of
  growth
• Strong commitment on the part of the companies
• The importance of a long term approach

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Policy learning challenges

• Changing mindset takes time
• Personal mobility within Triple Helix must
  increase since VINNVÄXT indicates that it
  facilitates double-loop policy learning and the
  use of policy learning as an integrating
  mechanism?
• Policy learning by fighting (the existing
  resistance) must be facilitated. A prerequisite
  for renewal.
• Methods for finding and measures for supporting
  embryonic innovation systems must be developed
• Successful policy learning is lesson-drawing
  across (1) time (i.e. own experience) (2) space
  (other regions) and (3) system (i.e. policy
  transfer to other sectors). (1) seems by far the
  easiest and the most common

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Policy learning Conclusions