The SME beneficiary of the Horizon 2020 SME instrument in the Canary Islands was working in phase 1 during 2015 and starting phase 2 in 2016. The phase 1 project is finished and the phase 2 project is ongoing. Nowadays the company is receiving KAM support and advice in phase 3 activity, to participate in an overseas action in 2017. Several SMEs from the Canaries have prepared SME instrument project proposal, having regular contact with the ITC, which organises SME instrument events in the islands in close cooperation with the NCP. As a result, some of them received the seal of excellent and National funding for conducting phase 1, but not achieved EU funding for their projects.
The aim of EIMC services was to enhance innovation management capacity of those SMEs from the Canary Islands with real potential for growth, via product/service innovation, with the help of an Innovation Expert, to allow a diagnostic of the SME and the construction of a tailor-made development plan to enhance that SME’s capacity to better manage innovation.
During 2015-2016, a total of 28 SMEs within the most innovative companies from the Canary Islands received EIMC assessment, 4 of them started in 2014 and 24 companies carried out the assessment and benchmarking exercise, identifying their strengths, gaps between innovation capabilities and their innovation goals and needs and comparing their results with their competitors’ performance - the benchmarking sample was customized based on company size, age class, country and NACE industry classification. Some of the companies could not implement immediately the proposed action plan, but 18 companies received the full service package and implemented with the support of an Innovation Expert the most important actions arising from the opportunities detected, dependent on the type of SME, its sector, size, internal structures, innovation ambitions and capacity. The action plans consisted of a mix of activities to reach the companies’ objectives, handholding the SME to implement some of the actions, training in Innovation Management (2 specific training activities were developed following the suggestions from the assessed companies), links to regional support programmes, signposting to other Enterprise Europe Network services and other actions that need to be undertaken directly by the SME itself. Action plans includes activities such as:
• Participating in the SME Instrument.
• Open innovation. Taking part in DEMOLA Canary Islands Initiative.
• International contacts and exchange of experiences with other entrepreneurs. Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs.
• International partner search and technological offers and demands. Enterprise Europe Network Canary Islands.
• Participation in regional, national and international R&D or Innovation Programmes.
• Getting in contact with regional innovative clusters.
• Applying for National Seal for Innovative SMEs.
• Applying for fiscal incentives for R&D activities.
• Receiving specific training in innovation management.
• Receiving support on how to hire staff for innovation activities.
