A regional practitioners’ exchange
Smart Investment for Smart Specialization
Warsaw, Poland 27-28 June 2012
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Context
Europe 2020: the future of EC Cohesion Policy 2014-2020 is dedicated to the objectives of smart, sustainable
and inclusive growth
The proposal suggests a thematic concentration on research and innovation to maximize the impact of
investment of structural funds
Research and innovation strategies for smart specialization (RIS3) will be developed to ensure effective
implementation
Objectives
The workshop aims to help participants to design or adjust their Smart Specialization Strategies towards a more
results-oriented approach.
During the workshop, the countries will be introduced to a few substantive issues in the area of RIS3 (research
and innovation for smart specialization strategies) and provided with a number of planning tools such as logical
frameworks and prospective evaluation methodologies to help implement their results-based RIS3 approach.
The final output will be a draft PowerPoint presentation from each country, outlining an action plan on how
their respective RIS3 will incorporate a results-based framework and which areas of iterative learning will be
focused on.
Key discussion points for the workshop
Research and innovation policies targeting sectors/products may not always be possible due to the nature of
information available to policy makers (incomplete and asymmetric) and an ex ante decision-making process
will likely be biased towards "incumbents" (and thus against new entrants or potentially successful
entrepreneurs).
Thus, selecting sectors may sub-optimal: to increase the contribution of research and innovation to smart
specialization results-focused research and innovation policies that are based on iterative learning processes may
have more impact in the long run.
As a result, policy-makers should be encouraged to enable innovation and efficient market selection - a process
through which successful companies will constitute the new specialization of the country/region (selfdiscovery).
Because there is no silver bullet or 'one approach fits it all' (in terms of improving research and innovation
policies), smart specialization strategies should leave some flexibility for experimentation, learning and
adaptation of adopted policies/programs.
Full Program
DAY 1 – WEDNESDAY, 27 JUNE 2012
9:00-9:25 Opening remarks
Beata Lubos, Head of Unit of Innovation Policy, Ministry of Economy;
Luisa Sanches, DG Regio, European Commission;
Donato De Rosa, Country Sector Coordinator, Private & Financial Sector Development, Central Europe & Baltics, World Bank
9:25-10:25 Setting the stage: the case of the Polish road to smart specialization
The objective of this session is to discuss the current operationalization challenges that the participant countries
face with respect to the EC requirements for the smart specialization strategy (S3). This session will use the case of
the Polish innovation policy to provide context for the discussion for the rest of the day. Poland is well-positioned
to make gains from a well-planned and executed smart specialization strategy, with sustained levels of economic
growth throughout the past decade. Reviewing the Polish innovation capacity fundamentals, as well as findings
from the recent assessments of Poland’s innovation capacity, the session will provide an opportunity for the
participants to brainstorm about how to operationalize a results-based concept of smart specialization in a specific
country context.
Chair: Paulo Correa, Lead Economist, Innovation Technology and Entrepreneurship practice, World Bank
Beata Lubos, Head of Innovation Policy Unit, Ministry of Economy
Dr. Sungchul Chung, President of S&T Policy Institute, Korea Development Institute
Dr. Jerzy Langer, Professor, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw
10:40-13:15 Expert Clinics: Towards a results-based smart specialization agenda
The objective of this interactive session will be to provide participant countries with specific tools and approaches
that they can use to formulate S3 strategies. The World Bank and EC will present approaches that countries can
deploy, that are evidence-based and participatory, allow for adaptive management during implementation and are
better integrated with local needs. Three toolkits will be presented, covering: how to identify bottlenecks (Paulo
Correa, World Bank); how to design a RIS3 and how to (self) assess your work and process (Inger Midtkandal, JRC
IPTS S3 Platform); and how to integrate an iterative learning approach through impact evaluation to tackle the
identified bottlenecks most efficiently (Arianna Legovini and Aidan Coville, DIME, World Bank). The remainder of
the session will consist of country-specific “expert clinics” for country delegations to discuss the toolkits, and
explore how these approaches could be implemented in practice.
Paulo Correa, World Bank and Arianna Legovini, Head of DIME, World Bank
Inger Midtkandal, JRC IPTS S3 Platform
14:45-16:00 The private sector as a driver of smart specialization
This session will focus on one of the fundamental pillars of the smart specialization agenda: that the participation
and ownership of the private sector is essential for commercializing and realising innovation. The session will help
to identify solutions to challenges in productive linking of the business community and the public sector to solve
the smart specialization challenges at the regional and country levels. It will in particular focus on the themes of
academia-business linkages; Key Enabling technologies, SME support; and entrepreneurship.
Raine Hermans, Director, Strategic Intelligence, Tekes, Finland
Assen Vassilev, IT Sector Entrepreneur, Bulgaria
Ivo Spigel, Perpetuum Mobile Ltd, Croatia
16:00-16:15 Key Insights
Zahid Torres-Rahman
16:15-16:30 Coffee break
16:30-18:00 Finding one’s niche, together: the S3 process going forward
The objective of this interactive session will be to draw on the toolkits set out earlier in the day to identify options
to accelerate the design of the S3, and the ways to continuously improve S3 through iterative learning and testing
alternative instruments and/or delivery mechanisms. This session will address in detail the specialization challenges
and opportunities in the countries in an interactive, country-specific format. These sessions will be conducted in
country-specific breakout groups consisting of a representative mix of policymakers, which will be moderated by
the technical and World Bank experts, and the Commission. The interactive groups will:
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Identify opportunities and constraints to smart specialization
Discuss policy packages to capture opportunities and tackle constraints
Identify opportunities to improve the effectiveness of S3 programs during implementation through iterative
learning.
Discuss how the S3 will be efficiently implemented: what the S3 teams in each country will be; and what
will be roles and responsibilities for various stakeholders; budget; timeline and teams.
At the end of the session, each of the country delegations would produce a 7 minute “sales pitch” on their approach
to operationalizing S3 in the form of a 3 slide PowerPoint Presentation. The “sales pitch” will be presented on Day
2 to a panel of experts.
18:00 End-of-day remarks
DAY 2 – THURSDAY, 28 JUNE 2012
9:00-9:15 Opening remarks
9:15-12:45 Pitch Tank: Smart specialization country strategies: Action plan presentations
The objective of this session is to present the country’s approaches to formulation of S3 based on the lessons and
tools of Day 1, and receive the feedback from the experts on the way to improve and implement these approaches.
This session will consist of presentations by country teams on the S3 action planning (7 min “sales pitch”) to the
expert panel consisting of international experts.
Expert Panel:
Petr Chládek, Regional Innovation Strategy Manager, South Moravian Innovation Center, Czech Republic
María Lozano Uriz, Director for Navarra EU Office, Spain
Sungchul Chung, President of S&T Policy Institute, Korea Development Institute
Inger Midtkandal, Smart Specialisation Platform, European Commission - Joint Research Centre, Institute for
Prospective Technological Studies, Seville, Spain
Luisa Sanches, DG Regio, European Commission
Paulo Correa, Lead Economist, Innovation Technology and Entrepreneurship practice, World Bank.
12:45- 13:30 Presentation by Jang Saeng Kim, Head of KSP Consultation Unit, STI Specialist, Korea
Development Institute
13:30-15:00 Luncheon sponsored by the Korea Development Institute (KDI)