INNOGROW
Project summary
SMEs in rural areas face challenges in innovation to increase their competitiveness. Regional policies seek to support the diffusion of innovative solutions and new business models that will lead to increases in productivity and access to new markets. INNOGROW brings together nine partners from eight countries, involving the managing authorities and regional bodies influencing regional and national policy instruments, to exchange experiences & practices, and to improve their capacity on implementing policies that promote the adoption of technology and business model innovations by rural economy SMEs, to boost their competitiveness. Newcastle University is the advisory partner to the project.
Newcastle University’s role in the project relates to:
- Supporting the analysis activities of the project;
- Exchanging experiences and academic findings to inform the development of regional policies relating to rural enterprise and innovation;
- Developing tools for regional analysis, including an online benchmarking tool.
The expected project outcomes are:
- Enhanced innovation support services for over 5% of rural SMEs in partners’ regions.
- Improved horizontal & vertical cooperation among SMEs in rural areas for product commercialisation.
- Increased capacity of 200 staff of public administrations to effectively implement policies, stimulating innovation adoption by rural economy SMEs.
- 10+M euros of investments unlocked to promote innovative technologies & new business models.
Staff involved in the project
Matthew Gorton, Jeremy Phillipson, Pattanapong Tiwasing and Steven Hall