Periodic Reporting for period 1 - INNMADRIMASD5 (Innovation services for enhancement innovation SMEs capacities in Madrid region in 2020-2021)
Reporting period: 2020-01-01 to 2021-12-31
Innovation can enhance the competitiveness of SMEs and increase their contribution to Europe’s growth. The EU-funded INNMADRIMASD 5 project set out to help SMEs in the Madrid region reach their innovation potential. To do this, the project will offer Key Account Management services to ensure that SME Instrument beneficiaries of the Madrid region receive the support needed to exploit their innovative projects. Further to this, services to enhance innovation management capacities will help SMEs with the potential for growth manage their innovation processes.
These services will be provided in the framework of the Enterprise Europe Network. The network will provide the link to the regional innovation ecosystem.
The specific purpose of the Key Account Management service is to ensure that Madrid Region based SME Instrument beneficiaries receive the most appropriate services and support to enhance the probability of successful exploitation of their innovation projects. The Key Account Manager helps beneficiaries to identify and source appropriate coaches, facilitate linkages between the company and other innovation support services and work closely with any coaches selected in the process. Key Account Managers also make links with standard network services that could be relevant in the context of any phase of the SME Instrument beneficiaries with regard to their participation in other H2020 activities.
These services will be provided in the framework of the Enterprise Europe Network. The network will provide the link to the regional innovation ecosystem.
The specific purpose of the Key Account Management service is to ensure that Madrid Region based SME Instrument beneficiaries receive the most appropriate services and support to enhance the probability of successful exploitation of their innovation projects. The Key Account Manager helps beneficiaries to identify and source appropriate coaches, facilitate linkages between the company and other innovation support services and work closely with any coaches selected in the process. Key Account Managers also make links with standard network services that could be relevant in the context of any phase of the SME Instrument beneficiaries with regard to their participation in other H2020 activities.
During INNMADRIMASD5, 32 new SME-Instrument beneficiaries from the Madrid region (17 Phase and 15 Phase 2), were contacted and visited, and the KAMs helped to develop their coaching activities and to take advantage of the rest of the services available in the innovation ecosystem. Including the cases that were still open from previous programs, a total of 43 companies were supported by the KAM service in 2019, while since the pilot phase in 2014 the partners have managed a grand total of 198 cases.
In addition, partners continued support work by organizing workshops for SME Instrument participants, public presentations of the program to experts, training activities accessible to all beneficiaries, and promoting our guide to writing Instrument proposals. SMEs during the active period of the program.
Second, 53 innovative companies have requested the provision of EIMC services. For each company, a first interview was carried out to explain the benefits of the service and the process and methodology that would be used, then a diagnostic and a benchmarking were carried out, their results were summarized in a written report and, finally, an action plan based on the report was proposed and discussed with each beneficiary.
On the other hand, continuing the work of previous projects, several Business Acceleration Services were provided to all companies, while those having received the 'Seal of Excellence' had the opportunity to access training and personalised advice by the Network partners on funding opportunities to develop their projects, apart from the financial support offered by the Spanish Ministry of Economy (CDTI).
Finally, coordination between the consortium partners has been very effective. All partners and their technical staff has been working in the project since 2014, while in the period 2020-2021 a new KAM joined the team. The coach selection and matching process, and the search for new coaches, are done combining different types of sources, and the quality of the selection process has improved significantly year after year.
In addition, partners continued support work by organizing workshops for SME Instrument participants, public presentations of the program to experts, training activities accessible to all beneficiaries, and promoting our guide to writing Instrument proposals. SMEs during the active period of the program.
Second, 53 innovative companies have requested the provision of EIMC services. For each company, a first interview was carried out to explain the benefits of the service and the process and methodology that would be used, then a diagnostic and a benchmarking were carried out, their results were summarized in a written report and, finally, an action plan based on the report was proposed and discussed with each beneficiary.
On the other hand, continuing the work of previous projects, several Business Acceleration Services were provided to all companies, while those having received the 'Seal of Excellence' had the opportunity to access training and personalised advice by the Network partners on funding opportunities to develop their projects, apart from the financial support offered by the Spanish Ministry of Economy (CDTI).
Finally, coordination between the consortium partners has been very effective. All partners and their technical staff has been working in the project since 2014, while in the period 2020-2021 a new KAM joined the team. The coach selection and matching process, and the search for new coaches, are done combining different types of sources, and the quality of the selection process has improved significantly year after year.
KAM services under H2020 are done by 2 partners in the consortium: Madrimasd (Fundación para el Conocimiento madri+d) and AECIM (Asociación de Empresarios del Comercio y la Industria del Metal).
Being only 2 partners in the WP implies that the coordination handled by Madrimasd, the Project Coordinator established by the proposal, was very effective. There has been a balanced distribution of cases among the two organizations, taking into account their industry knowledge, while the methodology used was also regularly checked and contrasted with all the regional KAMs.
In particular, Phase 3 support provided beyond the coaching service (i.e. informing SMEs about EEN additional services or the local innovation ecosystem), has been coordinated and implemented jointly.
The objective of the KAM services in INNMADRIMASD5 has been “to identify challenges to the creation of economic impact and innovation needs in SMEs beneficiaries of H2020 funding schemes SME Instrument, Fast Track to Innovation (FTI) and Future and Emerging Technologies Open (FET-Open), and to ensure that those challenges and needs are addressed and worked with the help of suitable coaches”.
In the period 2020-2021 there has been 32 new beneficiaries supported in Madrid region, including 27 beneficiaries started in the previous period and 5 new cases initiated in this period.
By December 2021:
- All companies had had at least one coach assigned and most of them had used or intended to use the maximum nr. of coaching hours.
- No companies had rejected the coaching service
- Eight coaching activities of five companies still had not their coaching reports uploaded on the casetracker.
Being only 2 partners in the WP implies that the coordination handled by Madrimasd, the Project Coordinator established by the proposal, was very effective. There has been a balanced distribution of cases among the two organizations, taking into account their industry knowledge, while the methodology used was also regularly checked and contrasted with all the regional KAMs.
In particular, Phase 3 support provided beyond the coaching service (i.e. informing SMEs about EEN additional services or the local innovation ecosystem), has been coordinated and implemented jointly.
The objective of the KAM services in INNMADRIMASD5 has been “to identify challenges to the creation of economic impact and innovation needs in SMEs beneficiaries of H2020 funding schemes SME Instrument, Fast Track to Innovation (FTI) and Future and Emerging Technologies Open (FET-Open), and to ensure that those challenges and needs are addressed and worked with the help of suitable coaches”.
In the period 2020-2021 there has been 32 new beneficiaries supported in Madrid region, including 27 beneficiaries started in the previous period and 5 new cases initiated in this period.
By December 2021:
- All companies had had at least one coach assigned and most of them had used or intended to use the maximum nr. of coaching hours.
- No companies had rejected the coaching service
- Eight coaching activities of five companies still had not their coaching reports uploaded on the casetracker.