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Transnational Meeting, Training & Conference in Piraeus as Part of the Internet of Things Security Nuggets Project

18/11/2019

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The third transnational meeting of the “Internet of Things security nuggets” - a strategic partnership co-funded by the Erasmus plus programme of the European Commission, took place on 11 October 2019 in Piraeus and was hosted by IDEC: Aintek symvouloi epicheiriseon ypsilis technologias ekpaidefsi anonymi etaireia. 

Prior to the transnational meeting all project partners also participated in the first training and first multiplier event - Cybersecurity in the IoT Ecosystem as part of the project. Photos from the events below.

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​Partners in the project are: 
  • University of Library Studies and Information Technologies (ULSIT), Bulgaria
  • Knowledge, Innovation and Strategies Management Club, Bulgaria
  • IDEC: Aintek symvouloi epicheiriseon ypsilis technologias ekpaidefsi anonymi etaireia, Greece
  • The University of Deusto, Spain
  • Dlearn: European Digital Learning Network, Italy
  • GAIA: Asociacion de industrias de conocimiento y technologia, Spain


IoT security nuggets: 2018-1-BG01-KA202-047919 is an Erasmus + project.

​For more information about the project, read here.
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13 Interesting Insights to Review from the International Conference 'Digital Skills & Innovation @2030'

23/7/2018

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Digital Skills & Innovation @2030
The international conference "Digital Skills & Innovation @2030" that took place on 11 July 2018 in Sofia, Bulgaria was attended by more than 150 delegates from various countries. The event was organised by the two partners of the "Design Thinking for Digital Innovation' Project - DigiThink No. 2016-1-BG01-KA203-023719 - KISMC and ULSIT, co-funded by the Erasmus+ programme of the European Union.

The conference was organised to reveal the results of the 2-years DigiThink project, where 6 organisations were working together: KISMC - Bulgaria, State University of Library Studies and IT - Bulgaria, University of Deusto - Spain, Tecnalia - Spain, Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra - Slovakia, Training 2000 - Italy. In addition to that, the international conference "Digital Skills & Innovation @2030" brought together innovation and digital experts, entrepreneurs, investors, academicians, professionals and stakeholders in the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem. During the event like-minded people  had the opportunity to exchange views on various topics in the digital, innovation and entrepreneurship space and discuss potential collaboration.
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After months of preparation and hard work during the conference all DigiThink project partners shared the results of the project, whereas the conference had amazing speakers from the UK, Spain, Italy, Romania, the Netherlands, Macedonia and Bulgaria. Moreover, the conference had a workshop panel during which all delegates had a chance to participate in a competition game for design thinking, focused on the digitization and transformation of Sofia into a smart city and during the process they had to generate and share ideas and solutions in this direction.

The event was full of excitement, great networking over glasses of wine and plenty of follow ups bringing potential opportunities for everyone.

​If you didn't have a chance to join us at this illuminating event, we have recapped it in 13 interesting insights from the speakers, therefore please check them out below:
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1. Design Thinking for DigiThink

An approach based on Design Thinking was followed in the “Digithink” Project.
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  • Human Oriented approach: “Empathising”
  • We focus on the “creators” of new digital products and services, their needs and the environment for their activity.
  • In today’s fast developing and increasingly digital world, organizations face many challenges: disruptive technologies, economic pressures, globalization and, mainly, keeping up with changes in customer behaviour.
design thinking university of deusto
Source: University of Deusto


​2. Objectives for "Design Thinking for Digital Innovation"

  • to take students out of their comfort zone of learning to create innovative products and services
  • to encourage students to start their social businesses
  • to develop necessary digital skills for both target groups: student teams - digital business creation and lecturers – open educational resources in courses
  • to develop empathy, ethics, values, and sense of social responsibility.
design thinking for digital innovation unibit
Source: University of Library Studies and IT


​3. Responsible Research & Innovation (RRI)

  • A major part of the current EU Research Framework Programme “Horizon 2020” is dedicated to societal challenges.
  • Challenge-driven programmes are usually interdisciplinary and often cover the entire innovation chain from fundamental research to demonstration.
  • Within the R&I system there have been examples of controversies and failures in fulfilling societal expectations in part because not all key actors were engaged
  • Certain key issues (or policy agendas) need to be taken into account:
    - ethics
    - gender equality
    - governance
    - open access
    - public engagement
    ​- science education
responsible research innovation tecnalia
Source: Tecnalia


​4. Experience Logic Marketing & Design Thinking

Design thinking can help management to build the experience platforms of the organizations, suggesting the best way for the experiences providers.
experience logic marketing design thinking university of urbino
Source: University of Urbino


​5. The Agile School & Scrum Ban Lab for Business

The Scrum Ban Lab for Business with the main experiment of Agile School
  • A lab for experiments for creating didactic instruments based on the toolbox applied in real practice
  • Parents are the stakeholders in the education process and are kind of Product Owners, along with teachers
  • Teachers are moderators, mentors and observe the processes of building the "overall picture" as they are the Product Owners together with the representatives of the companies, organizations and institutions
  • Students self-organize, self-assess (somewhat) and work in teams / clusters
agile school ivan apostolov english school
Source: Ivan Apostolov English School


​6. Gameplay for Inspiring Digital Adoption (GIRDA)

  • GIRDA is using multiplayer touchscreen games to introduce older people to digital technology. The aim is to help them build confidence, motivation and skills in an informal, social setting where there is no pressure to learn.
  • Research has shown how trust and confidence in using the internet grow quickly with first-hand experience - but many older people don’t take the first step.
girda trajkovski partners consulting
Source: Trajkovski & Partners Consulting


7. Design Principles in Higher Education

Ensure that:
  1. The dimensions of wickedness are prevalent in the problem; and
  2. Student tasks are challenging and require them to get involved in the problem. This leads to the (experienced) open-endedness of the problem solving process and the need to cross boundaries.
  3. Ensure alignment between learning goals, coaching, assessment with regard to boundary crossing
  4. Organize milestones.
design principles windesheim
Source: Windesheim University of Applied Sciences


​8. Is Design Thinking the Right Tool?

Is design thinking the right tool for:
  • developing technology enablers?
  • creating startups?
  • easily design products?
design thinking tool university of deusto
Source: Business School, University of Deusto


​9. Cluster & Digital Innovation Hub

The ARIES IT cluster in Cluj-Napoca - a great example for an active cluster that initiated a Digital Innovation Hub in Transilvania - a bottom up approach of the regional stakeholders, aiming to position Cluj and Transilvania on the map of EU network and DIH.

​An important component within the cluster is the development of working groups such as:
digital innovation hub ARIES T
Source: iTech Transilvania Cluster by ARIES T


​10. Design Thinking & Intrapreneurship

How to innovate?
Where to start from?

No, it's not creating ideas...
It is FINDING PROBLEMS.

​Combining empathy, creativity, collaboration and prototyping.
intrapreneurship design thinking mjv technology innovation
Source: MJV Technology & Innovation


​11. Entrepreneurship & Innovation

The relationship between entrepreneurship and innovation:
  1. Entrepreneurs use innovation to drive and achieve change for commercial or socio-economic results
  2. Innovation underpins the differentiator that allows the entrepreneurs to succeed by utilising their unique skills-set and personality
Ewa Galeziowska Entrepreneurship innovation
Source: Ewa Galeziowska


​12. SMEs Innovation & Growth Acceleration

  • SMEs represent 99% of all business in the EU
  • SMEs are the backbone of the economy and have skills they can leverage
  • Start-ups are interesting but risky (96% die before they turn 5 years)
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That is why ​the IXLerator has been designed to take multiple teams in the creation of the
innovation process system and obtaining results in SMEs.
smes innovation growth acceleration ixl center
Source: IXL Center

13. Smart Cities & Accelerating Innovation

​The participants got involved in a competition game based on design thinking and focused on the digitization and transformation of Sofia into a smart city. During the process all attendees were separated into teams and generated and shared ideas and solutions on how to better integrate technology into the capital of Bulgaria for the better lifestyles of citizens. This part of the conference was assisted by Cluster Sofia Knowledge City, which aims at transforming Sofia from a traditional capital to a knowledge and smart city.
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​Conclusion

The keynote speakers and the conference participants did engage in insightful discussion on the 13 topics above and we believe that everyone had a chance to learn something new and interesting that would benefit them.

If you didn't have a chance to attend, don't forget to follow our social media as well as sign up for our Newsletter.
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6 Reasons to Attend the International Conference 'Digital Skills & Innovation @2030' [Sofia, 11 July 2018]

30/6/2018

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6 reasons to attend the international conference 'Digital Skills & Innovation @2030'
get your free ticket for 'Digital Skills & Innovation @2030'
If the news hasn't reached you online or through invitations yet, there's an event not to be missed - the international conference 'Digital Skills & Innovation @2030', which is taking place at Inter Expo Center, Sofia on 11 July, 2018. It will bring together innovation and digital experts, entrepreneurs, investors, academicians, professionals and stakeholders in the innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem. The perfect place to meet like-minded people and exchange views on various topics in the digital, innovation and entrepreneurship space.

However, most of us know, have seen or/and have attended the large number of events that have been taking place in Sofia and Bulgaria in the last 6 months because of Bulgaria holding the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Despite that, we believe that 'Digital Skills & Innovation @2030' will bring value to you and below you can find 6 reasons why you should attend it.
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Learn more about the conference


​1. Conference programme featuring international panellists

The event will feature panellists from the UK, Spain, Italy, Netherlands, Romania, Macedonia and Bulgaria who have international experience in various industries in the area of digitization, innovation, entrepreneurship and education.
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2. Panels with exciting topics to inspire hot discussions

Our panellists will have the opportunity to present their international experience and get into discussions to encourage everyone to look through different perspectives, exchange ideas and points of view on how entrepreneurship and innovation are changing the world, the importance of digital skills nowadays, managing innovations, design thinking for the software industry, problem solving in higher education, accelerators, agile schools, etc.
Review Conference Programme
Learn more about the panellists


​3. Deeper understanding of Design Thinking for Digital Innovation

Get your hands on the guide for implementation of design thinking for digital innovation and learn more about this exciting project - DigiThink, co-funded by the Erasmus+ programme of the European Union. You would also discover and grasp deeper understanding of the results from the pilot testing done during the project duration.
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4. Practical workshop / Competition game on Design Thinking

Facilitated by Milena Koleva (IMA), Massimo Andriolo (IXL), Ruslan Papazyan (Trelleborg) and other mentors from the Innovation Management Academy, you will have the chance to go through the design thinking process. You will get involved in a competition game for design thinking, focused on the digitization and transformation of Sofia into a smart city and during the process you & your team will generate and share ideas and solutions, based on the model of the Global Innovation Managament Institute and IXL Center.
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​5. Wine Networking

There's no need to mention the importance of networking and meeting like-minded people, especially when you have a glass of wine in hand after a day full of insights on topics such as digital skills, innovation, education, entrepreneurship, etc as well as experiencing games on design thinking for digitizing and transforming the capital of Sofia.
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6. Meet all the project partners/conference organizers for potential future collaboration

And last but not least, SULSIT and KISMC, together with all the DigiThink partners: SULSIT, University of Deusto, Technalia Research & Innovation, Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra and Training 2000, welcome everyone to join and have a chat about potential projects and partnerships.
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KISMC at the Focus Group on the Social Entrepreneurship Development Model [Bulgaria]

28/2/2018

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sedm kismc baset focus group
On 31 January a group of stakeholders in social entrepreneurship gathered together with the teams of the project coordinator KISMC and the project partner CEED Bulgaria in Sofia, Bulgaria.

The group gathering took place as part of the main project objective of 
BASET: Boost Aid for Social Entrepreneurship through Training which is to establish and maintain a well-developed and a more effective the process of training the trainers of social entrepreneurs (SE).


For more information on the focus group, please read here


The European Commission support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
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7 fascinating conclusions from the international conference "INNOVATION - Creating the Future"

12/12/2016

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The international conference "Innovation - Creating the Future" was attended by more than 200 delegates from over 15 countries, brought businesses and universities together and provoked them to brainstorm on how to work together for a better future for both parties and how innovation could be an integral part for a better collaboration.

After months of preparation and challenges the team at the Knowledge, Innovation and Strategies Management Club together with the State University of Library Studies and Information Technolgies and the partners from the Erasmus+ funded APInno project did host not only a successful event summarising the benefits the results of the project will bring, but an event full of excitement, great networking and plenty of follow ups bringing potential opportunities for everyone. There have been missed flights, travelling for days to come from the other side of the globe, emotions, exhaustion, sleepless nights for some but the enthusiasm and the sparks around the conference main hall and additional rooms were simply amazing.

The whole APInno team were also extremely delighted to have 20+ universities from different countries, 80+ companies, social partners and policy makers which contributed to a valuable discussion throughout the whole day of 21 November 2016 in Sofia, Bulgaria.

If you missed the opportunity to join us at this illuminating event, we have recapped 7 conclusions drawn from the conference day below.

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1. Innovation for collaboration needs a structured process

Innovation plays a focal role in the university and business collaboration BUT this role needs to be structured the same way innovation is a systematic process. Therefore, after trials and erros for 2 years the APInno project established an innovation management methodology which is based on expriential learning in order to bridge the large gap between what workforce universities 'produce' and what companies actually need. The methodology shows us that from the messy idea generation moment through concept development and pipeline management, execution and implementation have to follow.

2. The university model requires a fundamental change

The public is already beginning to question the value higher education provides to society. It is obvious that things need to change as we can all observe how students have troubles finding appropriate jobs after graduating and trying to settle their debts which they took to be able to study at a university. Therefore, instead of making money and contributing to the economy, students waste time and incur expenses. Yes, the university model needs to be fundamentally altered so they could feed businesses with the energy and enthusiasm of skillful employees ready to 'fight' in a competitive world where innovation is not only a buzz word but reality.

3. Innovation is not about technology at all

We see new mindsets, new generations, new organisations appearing on the horizon. We also see new markets emerging. The world has moved from having thousands of businesses each with millions of customers to millions of businesses with hundreds of thousands of customers. This is a result from shifting to technology-supported industries. However, innovation is not about technology at all, it is about how we efficiently and effectively use what we have in order to produce value for ourselves and others.
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4. Design thinking - a buzz word for business success?

Perhaps most people have already observed that creativity and innovation have become buzzwords for business success, followed by terms such as ‘Design Thinking’ creeping into business education. However, some research shows us that there is around 20% decline in creative capacity of learners in the past 20 years. In an era when creativity is in demand, we need to first understand the creative thinking process and the difference between implementation (doing things that are determined by others and matching against their expectations) and innovation (producing multiple and varied solutions that respond to change and often surprise).

5. Entrepreneurs have to focus on designing

The entrepreneurial journey is simple: starts from an idea, right through a business model to the business plan. However, entrepreneurs need to take into consideration the market desirability, financial viability and technical feasibility of the business they are trying to establish. Therefore,  designing a business model is the essence of a business opportunity, whether it is to be pursued in a start-up, corporate venturing or social entrepreneurial setting.

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6. Balance the academic and commercial interests

Universities are a great source for technological opportunities for creating high-technology ventures. Despite that, universities are generally characterized as having weak capabilities for the development of commercial applications. The academic culture values getting its hands on research, but the commercial and entrepreneurial aspect comes right outside it and this is a sensitive issue. Academia has to develop not only creative and confident minds but commercially oriented graduates prepared for the business challenges they will come across.

7. Internships and real work for students is a must

The APInno project has proven once again the importance of business and academia partnership. But the collaboration focuses on the topic of innovation and this has brought new amazing ideas for future work on assisting the two parties. The project sets out important points to look at, for example, how such collaboration can accelerate the university-work transition for students through internships and how setting real innovation challenges to be solved by students could be a real asset for businesses. Indeed, it's a win-win for everyone.

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Last chance to register for "INNOVATION - Creating the Future" [Only 18 places left]

15/11/2016

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Don’t miss out on a conference programme featuring speakers from the UK, Spain, South Africa, Romania and Bulgaria who have international exprience in various industries in the area of innovation, entrepreneurship and education.

The event is almost fully booked
and we don’t want you to miss out on this opportunity where you have the chance to not only get into great discussions Innovation in Education & Education in Innovation, but play games and network with over 150 guests from 15+ countries.

LEARN MORE AND REGISTER NOW


With only a few days until the "INNOVATION - Creating the Future" conference opens its doors on 21 November 2016 in Sofia, Bulgaria, there are still 18 places left (at the time of speaking). Of course, if these are taken up fast, then you would get on our reserve list and wait until someone already registered drops out. Therefore, you could still have a chance to make the most of such an event and network with all the international delegates on coffee, lunch and a glass of wine by REGISTERING NOW.


Having in mind that the conference does not have a registration fee, all you need to do is hurry up and go to the event page, review the information and register as soon as possible in order to secure your spot at the conference.

REMINDER: The conference registration is by 17 November 2016


The focus of "Innovation - Creating the Future" would be on opportunities and challenges businesses and universities face in working together for mutual benefits. It will give you the opportunity be to contribute to a positive change in the business-university collaboration through innovation.
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6 remarkable keynote speakers at the international conference "INNOVATION - Creating the Future" in Sofia

4/11/2016

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Speakers at INNOVATION - Creating the Future
The APInno team behind the international conference "INNOVATION - Creating the Future" which will take place on 21 November 2016 in Sofia, Bulgaria is pleased to have amazing speakers with diverse backgrounds and experience in innovation, entrepreneurship and education.

In this blog post we are showcasing the keynote speakers and their experience while we will still have a publication about our speakers at the discussion and games panels. Although you would notice that most speakers are representing universities, all of them have a broad industry exprience ranging from starting businesses on a variety of continents to management exprience in the creative and hospitality sector, aerospace and electronics to leading institutions commercialising innovation. In addition to the industry practice, our keynote speakers provide trainings and lectures in areas such as entrepreneurship, innovation management, cultural management, design thinking, 3D printing and others.

Our 6 speakers are either former or current Innovation Managers, Entrepreneurs, Senior Managers, Directors, CEOs, Trainers and Researchers. Therefore, you would be able to hear every side of how to make innovation happen.

Take a closer look below to find your added value in the conference where you would not only listen to the speeches, but where you could take part in the discussions and meet all the speakers and international guests from over 12 countries.

Learn more about the conference


Keynote Speakers

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1. Dr. Simon Best - Middlesex University, United Kingdom

Simon is a Senior Lecturer at Middlesex University Business School. He is the Programme Leader for the M.Sc. Innovation Management and Entrepreneurship and the Project Leader of EDH@MDX, the enterprise development hub. He is also the university lead for APInno and SBeA, two Erasmus funded projects. Alongside these roles Simon is a Teaching Fellow. Simon has been involved in entrepreneurship on a global scale. Over a period of 30 years he has started businesses in India, Viet Nam, Papua New Guinea and Australia. Simon has also been a consultant to small and medium businesses in Japan, Taiwan, India, South Africa and Viet Nam. More recently he has been delivering workshops and seminars in Hungary, USA and Viet Nam to emerging entrepreneurs.


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2. Prof. Andy Penaluna - University of Wales Trinity Saint David, United Kingdom

An international thought leader in developing enterprising creativity through education, Andy has advised Welsh Assembly and Westminster Governments and is an expert at the United Nations in Geneva. He has led discussions at the European Commission, developed teacher training for 8 countries in South East Europe, and was commissioned by the OECD to write international education policy guidance. Funded by the World Bank, he also led the development of what is believed to be the world’s first integrated (compulsory) school curriculum for innovation and entrepreneurship in Macedonia (FYROM).


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3. Dr. Zuleika Beavan - Middlesex University, United Kingdom

Zuleika has more than two decades of experience in the creative industries and she was a senior lecturer in Arts Management at the Arts University Bournemouth, taught on the MA in Cultural Management at the University of Winchester and was a researcher in the Cultural Management Applied Research Group at the University of Greenwich. Drawing on her research focus of work in the music business, Zuleika's PhD was a longitudinal study of musician start-ups. She also has an interest in the effects of technology on the industry and is carrying out a Research Council-funded case study of a Kickstarter-supported album recording and release.


Watch the conference video!
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4. Eduardo Díaz - Fundacion madri+d, Spain

Eduardo is currently in charge of the new technology-based firms unit at Fundacion madri+d. He is a former Innovation Manager consultant and university lecturer. Eduardo is an expert in the fields of startups, innovation, regional development, technology auditing, technology transfer and cluster policies and he also has technical and management experience in the electronics and aerospace sectors. Eduardo is coordinating regional, national and international programmes in the fields of Entrepreneurship, Startup Funding, Venture Mentoring and R&D Commercialisation including Innovation and Entrepreneurship studies and publications. 


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5. Raluca Pauna - Institute of Inventors and Innovators, South Africa

Raluca is the director of the Institute of Inventors and Innovators and EgoliBio incubator/SEDA in South Africa as well as the CEO of the Global Institute of Accelerating Innovation. Having started her career in Romania working at Government Ministerial Departments and at the Research Institute of Fine Mechanics and Instruments, Raluca took on an international career as a member of the EU Leadership Thinking Tank in Brussels and then onto TECHNONET AFRICA, a network for supporting Africa's entrepreneurs. She is qualified (Stanford, CA) to do Design Thinking sessions and focused trainings for emerging innovators and entrepreneurs such as Innovation Management, Technical Entrepreneurship, Strategic and Marketing Planning for Commercialisation of Innovation and applied Competitive Technical intelligence methodologies and tools. Raluca has also been an IBM International mentor for the IBM Global Entrepreneurship Programme since 2013 and was a judge in the panel of judges for the Innovation Summit Garage at Cape Town Competition 2014. At present she is also organizing 3D printing training using design thinking methodology in collaboration with VUT.


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6. Prof. Dimo Dimov - University of Bath, United Kingdom

Dimo is a professor of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the School of Management, University of Bath. He has recently been recognised as one of the 100 leading entrepreneurship professors for 2015. Prior to joining the University of Bath, in 2012, Dimo was on the Entrepreneurship faculty at Newcastle University, on the Management faculty at University of Connecticut and on the Entrepreneurship faculty at IE Business School in Madrid, Spain. Prior to entering academia, he enjoyed a career in the hospitality industry with Marriott International and was a finance director for two hotel businesses in Budapest, Hungary.

It's Time...

With the “Innovation – Creating the Future” conference approaching, we advise you to register as soon as possible because places are filling up fast. We would like to remind you that there is no participation fee and you can REVIEW THE CONFERENCE INFORMATION and REGISTER HERE



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International Conference "INNOVATION - CREATING THE FUTURE"

20/10/2016

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The international conference "INNOVATION - CREATING THE FUTURE" will present the results of the Action Project for Innovation (APInno) under the EU Programme for Education, Training, Youth and Sport - ERASMUS + . The conference will showcase the final results of a two-year project where international partners from the UK, Spain, Italy and Bulgaria had been working on developing an experiential learning methodolgy in the field of innovation management  for fostering the partnership between business and universities.

"INNOVATION - CREATING THE FUTURE" will take place on 21 November, 2016 in Inter Expo Center Sofia, Musala Hall, blvd. "Tsarigradsko shose" 147, 1784 Sofia, Bulgaria.

Innovation Culture

The topic and concept of innovation management is still underexploited in Europe despite the efforts and financial resources provided by the respective framework programmes and financial instruments. Although а common standard is established, the concept of systematic management of innovation is not very widely used in reality. Business leaders agree that the insufficient innovation and entrepreneurial culture is holding back Europe’s economic growth. In this respect innovation management is and will be the necessary tool for businesses to achieve higher competitiveness and better conditions for economic results.

Business-University Collaboration

The APInno project aims at fostering business–university collaboration as one of the key factors enhancing the innovation culture in organisations. The project partners followed an innovative approach, developed and tested a new model and methodology for new skills and knowledge development in the field of systematic management of the innovation process. Moreover, a flexible and holistic model for successful partnership between companies and universities has been developed. Its further use and implementation could help organisations be more innovative and successful.

THE CONFERENCE

The conference will provide the opportunity for discussion of the future challenges higher education and business organisations face; exchange of good practices and experience, both by business and several academic organisations in Europe. The keynote speakers and panelists  have many years of experience of teaching and consulting in the field of innovation and entrepreneurship.

The partners in the project are: Knowledge, Innovation and Strategies Management Club, University of Library Studies and Information Technologies, Anfi Ventures, Tecnalia, JODA Training and Middlesex University.

We advise you to register now to secure your place at the conference.


register now
See Conference Agenda
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APInno Reference Number: - 2014-1-BG01-KA203-001561
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2 years Mercury - Jupiter meetings for business people and scientists

18/12/2015

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During 2013-2015 CSI, in cooperation with the Knowledge, Innovation and Strategies Management Club, betahaus Sofia and Sofia Tech Park had been organising the so called Mercury - Jupiter Meetings to bridge the gap between scientists and business people in Bulgaria and help them understand each other’s culture. At those meetings groups of scientists and business people talked about their cultures and  discussed ways to bridge the gap between each other.

For the span of those two years the meetings gathered interest from the Bulgarian community and many attended to get involved in the discussions and look for the best ways to reduce the size of the gap between scientists and businessmen.

The Mercury - Jupiter meetings were also attended by guest speakers who would guide the meeting towards a specific topic. The topics of discussions had been related to the experience of the speakers. Below you could see some of the guest speakers during 2013-2015.
  • Richard Smits - the owner-director of CSI. He was born in the Netherlands and received his education as a chemical engineer (Ph.D.) from the University of Twente. He worked for Haldor Topsøe A/S of Denmark as an R&D project manager for several years before moving to Bulgaria to start CSI. He knows the requirements of industrial research from the inside and has a wide experience in dealing with various cultures.

  • Nikolay Tashev - has a B.Sc. in Мanagement from Manchester University and is the owner of Inomrezha, a company that teams up with engineers, scientists and other technically oriented people with good ideas to start a business to bring their innovations to market. He spoke about the companies he started and his experience in cooperating with technically skilled people to create business.

  • Elitsa Panaiotova - the Executive Director of Sofia Tech Park - the company that is developing a large-scale project aiming to strengthen the research, innovation and technological growth in Bulgaria - the first Science and Technology Park. She spoke about the future goals of the park and how it would connect people from the business sector with those of the scientific community to make Bulgaria a more innovative country.

  • Nikolai Denkov - a professor of physical chemistry in the Faculty of Chemistry & Pharmacy, Sofia University, where he studies foams, emulsions, surfactants and their applications. He was a lead researcher in R&D centers of the companies Rhodia (France) and Unilever (USA), and has led numerous international research projects. He is a co-founder of the civil platform MoveBG. He talked about the cooperation between scientists and business, based on his experience with the companies Unilever, BASF and Saint Gobain.

  • Sjoerd Oppewal - has an economic and a human resource and organization development education, and has been personnel manager of the Dutch research organisation for water management for 13 years. He is now a consultant on change management and organization development, based in Bulgaria. He talked about his experiences as personnel manager in a period when the research institute saw its state-financed budget reduced from 70% to 30% in 3 years, and had to adapt its culture from one of applied science to one of market-oriented professional consultancy. The institute is now known as Deltares, an applied research and consultancy organisation with 800 employees and worldwide operations.

  • Milena Koleva - an innovation management consultant and secretary of Knowledge, innovation and strategies management club (KISMC) with practical experience in industry and management consulting. She talked about "educating business people and scientists to cooperate on innovation" and briefly presented the initiative of KISMC for Innovation Management Academy - i.e. creating organizational, resource, and staff conditions for dissemination and practical application of innovation management in companies as an instrument for competitiveness. Nowadays everyone is talking about the gap between academia and business, but does it really exist? Can business be more innovative without the cooperation with academia and vice versa? And where is the fine line between the two, given their common goal to produce innovations for a better future for all of us?

  • Tsvetoslava Kyoseva - an Innovation and Business Development consultant with more than 11 years practical experience in the telecom industry. Her professional career began in Mtel, where she held various positions gradually as a manager of local and international projects, and later on leading the development of long-term strategies for the implementation of various technologies and innovative products within the company. Currently she is a PhD candidate in the field of technological innovation at the Technical University of Sofia and she is specialising entrepreneurship and innovation in Vienna, Austria. She talked about “The innovation-invention gap between the two worlds of business and academia”.

  • Prof. Venko Beshkov - director of the Institute of Chemical Engineering, BAS, and of ICHEM-BAN OOD, on the successful commercialisation of knowledge in chemical engineering.

  • Emil Komatichev - a senior expert in the ‘Innovation and Entrepreneurship’ Department, 'Economic Promotion Policies' Directorate of the Ministry of Economy. He has participated in the development of important strategic documents of the Bulgarian Government including the ‘Innovation Strategy for Smart Specialization’, assessments of many innovative projects under OP Competitiveness, in the setting up of entrepreneurial centres in technical universities, in the development of schemes to promote cooperation between business and science (e.g. the voucher scheme) and others.

  • Teodora Georgieva and Ruslan Stefanov - work for the Applied Research and Communications Fund (ARC Fund), the premier Bulgarian innovation policy and research institute. They are co-authors of Innovation.bg, an annual assessment of the current performance of the national innovation system and the implementation of the national innovation policy. At the Mercury-Jupiter meeting, they presented information and conclusions from the latest edition of this assessment in order to discuss how people from the science and business sectors can contribute to improvements in Bulgaria's innovation performance.

  • Simeon Stoyanov - graduated from Sofia University in chemistry, physics and mathematics, and then obtained his PhD in physical chemistry from the University of Essen. He is now a senior scientist at Unilever R&D in the Netherlands, being deeply involved in Unilever's research co-operations with various universities (including Sofia University). He combines this position with part-time professorships at 3 universities in 3 different countries. He presented on what it is like to work as a scientist in a multinational company, how he combined this with his professorships, and how this could be applied to improve connections between business and science in Bulgaria.

  • Zlatina Karova - the Head of Unit, Centre for technology transfer and project work of Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski". By education, she is a lawyer with specialisation in international law and justice. She has a master's degree in European Public Administration from Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski", has a number of certificates and completed additional training courses for trainers at prestigious international organizations. Zlatina Karova talked about the experience of the Centre for Technology Transfer in connecting people from science and from business in Bulgaria.

  • Eleonora Carnasa - the Head of “European Innovation and Information Center” at the Bulgarian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. She has an extensive experience in supporting the Bulgarian business and is specializing in innovation management capacity assessment and sources of finance. Eleonora speake about crowdfunding – online practice of funding a project or venture by raising monetary contributions from a large number of people. Crowdfunding has raised over $5 billion in 2013 and is suitable for business, social and artistic causes. Eleonora holds a MBA degree from Nantes University, France and is trained to organize crowdfunding campaigns.

  • Mihaela Savova - the Ambassador of Hello Tomorrow (HT) in Bulgaria – an international organization that connects innovators from all generations and fields – from science and technology to business and investments. HT’s ambitious mission is to provide its global community the platform to build a better tomorrow through tech innovations. Mrs. Savova talked about the World Community, Global Startup Challenge and International Conference, organized by HT, and shared how the organization would connect people from science and people from business in Bulgaria.
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Workshop on business needs at Middlesex University [Action Project for Innovation]

11/5/2015

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On 7 May 2015 an interactive workshop was held at Middlesex University where the draft methodology based on initial research under the Erasmus + Project - Action Project for Innovation (APInno) was presented and discussed. Feedback from delegates was gathered and reflected in the revised methodology and final outcomes. The presentation was followed by a practical workshop where delegates were given the opportunity to experience the proposed learning methodology through real business challenges.

Action Programme for Innovation (APInno) involves partners from across the EU to develop a methodology to facilitate the transfer of innovation skills from Higher Education Institutes (HEI) to business. The project aims to develop an experiential learning programme (at degree and/or masters level) as part of the HE curriculum.

This will integrate the critical fundamentals of business, innovation management, growth, competitive dynamics and market simulation. The planned outcome will be the development of innovative course materials, online tools and a platform enabling idea generation and capture; including team work and analysis at successive stages of the curriculum, through to the final presentations.

Participants from academia and business had the opportunity to network and discuss  the draft methodology to date and played interactive games where the entrepreneurs and business delegates had to solve specific challenges.

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