SusChem Strategy: Moving to a European Technology & Innovation Platform. We want your views!

Today (17 April) the SusChem Stakeholder event will hear a briefing from SusChem board member Rodney Townsend on how SusChem is planning to adapt its strategy in response to the forthcoming European Commission Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme.

It is vitally important that SusChem thinking and strategy is aligned to maximise our engagement with the Horizon 2020 programme. It is critical that the chemical and biotechnological industries, that are responsible for a large proportion of total European GDP, remain at the heart of a prosperous, growing, sustainable and competitive Europe. Therefore, delivering effective solutions to the major challenges facing society requires the active participation of SusChem stakeholders across industry and academia.

The board believes that SusChem needs to move from being a European Technology Platform (ETP) to become a European Technology and Innovation platform (ETIP). This change is not just a semantic one: it requires rethinking our strategy, business plans and objectives and, where necessary, governance structures to address both the Research and Innovation challenges for sustainable chemistry along the value chain and to equip the Platform to deliver on behalf of its stakeholders throughout the Horizon 2020 Programme and beyond.

ETIP Briefing
The Briefing Paper on SusChem strategy that Rodney Townsend is presented at the Stakeholder Event can be downloaded here.

The paper covers:

• Background and context to the proposed changes
• Core strategic imperatives for undertaking the changes
• Business thinking and planning
• Governance issues
• Business tools that may be required
• Activities already underway
• Deliverables, and
• Brand and logo issues

Your feed back please!
Delegates to the SusChem event will receive a copy of the briefing document. We encourage all of you, at the stakeholder event or elsewhere, to read this document and give us your comments. The briefing document is intended to stimulate your input to the process as SusChem stakeholders.

You can send us your thoughts and comments in a variety of ways:

• You can use the ‘Comment’ facility on this blog (below)
• You can send a tweet to @suschem (using #suschem2012 please)
• You can send an email to suschem@suschem.org
• Delegates at the SusChem Stakeholder event can also use a printed feedback form if they wish

The process of change will progress during 2012 and your input is possible and welcome at any point, but we are hoping to make a first summary of feedback at the end of the Stakeholder event on 18 April – so get your first thoughts in quickly!

Specific Questions
Comments on any aspect of the strategy and briefing are welcome. However we are seeking specific immediate input on a number of key questions. These are:

• Are the suggested strategic imperatives correct? Have we missed an essential element?
• Are there extra SusChem unique selling points that you can suggest?
• Are there any particular changes in the governance of SusChem that you think necessary?
• How can SusChem make more effective use of its network of National Technology Platforms?
• How might we change the SusChem Enabling Technology Pillars to better engage with Horizon 2020 and the wider innovation challenge?
• Are there other tools that SusChem needs to be able to deliver the sustainable chemistry solutions required under Horizon 2020?
• Are there more important deliverables for the new strategy that we should add?
• Have you any comments on the new SusChem website? What do you see as the most effective form of communication that SusChem uses? What extra would you like SusChem to do in its communication activities?

We look forward to your input! #suschem2012