# Realizing Open Innovation Opportunities in the German Mittelstand

### Introduction

The German Mittelstand has a storied tradition of engineering excellence and innovation. Current global challenges require greater collaboration and openness. Respected national initiatives such as Industrie 4.0 promote partnerships, while firms such as SAP and Siemens have successfully pioneered open models. With a judicious approach to open innovation, your company can uphold German values of quality and social responsibility while accelerating progress.

### The Benefits

- 30-50% faster problem solving through external collaborations (InnoCentive)
- Reduced redundant R&D costs across sectors
- Meeting public demands for transparency and collaboration

### Overcoming Concerns

- Protect core IP, open peripheral areas
- Start small with trusted partners and pre-competitive projects
- Utilize governance models from Fraunhofer, Max Planck, and partners
- Consider incentives from German and EU innovation programs

### Steps Forward

- Pilot open challenges with association networks or clusters
- Develop collaboration guidelines aligned to German innovation frameworks
- Showcase successes internally and externally to inspire broader change

### Call to Action

This is an opportunity to demonstrate German leadership in ethical, sustainable innovation. Let's have a constructive dialogue on how we can safely implement open approaches securely to drive excellence. Combining our strengths with partners can create innovative solutions that benefit our business and society.

### Resources

#### Articles

- [Open innovation – Embracing Collaboration. WIPO Magazine](https://www.wipo.int/wipo_magazine/en/2020/02/article_0005.html)
- [Open Innovation – All you need to know with examples](https://www.steepconsult.com/insights/what-is-open-innovation-a-definitive-guide/)
- [Open innovation Unlocking Success through Open Innovation Strategies – FasterCapital](https://fastercapital.com/content/Open-innovation--Unlocking-Success-through-Open-Innovation-Strategies.html)
- [Bigliardi et al. (2020). The influence of open innovation on firm performance. International Journal of Engineering Business Management](https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1847979020969545)
- [Open Innovation What It Is and Models to Inspire Your Business – MassChallenge](https://masschallenge.org/articles/open-innovation/)
- [Culture-based Open Innovation Approach:
A Case Study of German SME](https://publica-rest.fraunhofer.de/server/api/core/bitstreams/ffb8c790-c693-4b3f-b576-9896e0a2f45a/content)

#### Reports

- [Managing Open Innovation in large firms – Fraunhofer Institute (2013)](https://openinnovation.gv.at/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/Fraunhofer-2013-studie_managing_open-innovation.pdf)
- [Open Innovation for small and medium sized Enterprises: Ways to develop Excellence (2007)](https://publica-rest.fraunhofer.de/server/api/core/bitstreams/6281cc80-6d5f-4222-92af-e20244eb2d29/content)
- [Global Innovation Index – WIPO annual report (2022)](https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2022/)

#### Videos

- [TED Talk: "The Era of Open Innovation" – Charles Leadbeater (2005)](https://www.ted.com/talks/charles_leadbeater_the_era_of_open_innovation)
- [Business Case Study Videos: SAP, P&G, Unilever, Bosch, etc. (2022)](https://innovationcasestudies.org]https://innovationcasestudies.org)

#### Tools

- [Open Innovation Self-Assessment Quiz (OECD, 2019)](http://www.oecd.org/innovation/open-innovation-self-assessment.htm)
- [IP Evaluation Matrix Template (WIPO, 2021](https://www.wipo.int/publications/en/details.jsp?id=4522)
- [Open Innovation Pilot Planning Guide (Fraunhofer, 2020)](https://www.iao.fraunhofer.de/images/iao-news/open-innovation-pilot-guide.pdf)

#### Examples

- [Open innovation success stories repository (EMCC, 2017)](https://www.clustercollaboration.eu/open-innovation-repository)
- [Directory of innovation networks and platforms (WIPO, 2022)](https://www.wipo.int/tech_networks/en/networks.html)
- [List of consortiums & public-private partnerships (NIH, 2021)](https://ncats.nih.gov/precompetitive)

#### Events

- [Open Innovation Summit – Annual conference (2019)](https://www.openinnovationsummit.org/)
- [The guidelines on innovation measurement – OCDE](http://www.oecd.org/innovation/open-innovation-webinars.htm)