Networking for Innovation

1. Aim

The research is aimed at investigating the potential benefits of Networking for Innovation within WMita members

2. Objectives

The objectives of the research are as follows:

a. Establish the benefits and drawbacks of Networking for Innovation

b. Evaluate the potential of this for WMita members

c. Assess the ways in which members of WMita can be networked in the organisation

d. Establish the interests of members in Networking for Innovation within WMita

3. Background

3.1 West Midlands IT Association

Advantage West Midlands invest around Ј300 million each year into activity that will help transform the West Midlands’ economy, focusing

on: Business, Skills, Infrastructure, Communities and promoting the region.

Part of their investment is the funding of a three-year contract with WMita founded in January 2003 by sub-regional IT groups from around the West Midlands to provide a support programme for information and communication technology (ICT) companies covering networking, training, events and other activities to promote the industry to local, regional and national clients.

WMita target market is small and medium-sized businesses involved in (ICT) within the West Midlands region. The WMita Board is committed to core business values that ensure they act fairly and equitably to all our stakeholders. These values are Independence, Transparency: Excellence, Inclusivity and Partnership.

The benefits that are available to members include the WMita Quality Mark, local and regional networking events, training courses and seminars, marketing activities, member-to-member collaboration, market research and intelligence, and access to WMita’s public and private partners for business, funding and training opportunities.(Source:www.wmita.co.uk)

3.2 Networking for Innovation

As products become increasingly modular and knowledge is distributed across organisations (Baldwin and Clark 2000), Firms recognise an increasing requirement to collaborate with other firms both formally and informally. The locus of innovation is no longer the individual or the firm but increasingly the network in which a firm is embedded (Powell, Koput and Smith-Doerr, 1996)

Innovation is the successful exploitation of ideas, into new products, processes, services or business practices, and is a critical process for achieving the two complementary business goals of performance and growth, which in turn will help to close the productivity gap