This article was originally published in the Bulletin of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Issue 2, 2024, "Policy and Management Research".
GE Chun-lei1, PEI Rui-min1,2, ZHANG Qiu-ju1,2
1 Institute of Science and Technology Strategy Consulting, Chinese Academy of Sciences
2 School of Public Policy and Management, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
Collaborative innovation has gradually become an inevitable choice for the development of science and technology in the era of "big science", and it has also become an important trend for innovative countries to carry out scientific and technological innovation activities.
Compared with developed countries, there are still many drawbacks in the collaborative innovation organization model in mainland China, the breadth, depth, effect and durability of collaborative innovation are limited, and there is no long-term mechanism of collaborative innovation driven by interests. How to effectively coordinate the main body of scientific and technological innovation and innovate with an optimized organizational model is of great significance for the mainland to break through key core technologies, accelerate the realization of innovation-driven development, and promote high-level scientific and technological self-reliance and self-reliance.
As important strategic scientific and technological forces in the German science and technology innovation system, the four major scientific research institutions in Germany, namely the Max Planck Society for the Promotion of Science (MPG, hereinafter referred to as the "Max Planck Society"), the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft (FhG), the Leibniz Scientific Union (WGL) and the Helmholtz Federation (HGF), perform their respective duties in the innovation chain, embody the organizational characteristics of collaborative innovation in key technology research and achieve remarkable results, which is worthy of reference by the mainland.
1 The collaborative innovation organization model of the four major scientific research institutions in Germany
The organizational forms of collaborative innovation of the four major scientific research institutions in Germany are diverse, and they are divided into five organizational models: project-based, integrated, strategic alliance-based, platform-based and network-based, according to the looseness of the cooperative organizational structure.
Project-based organizational model
The project-based organization model is a dynamic, scalable and flexible cooperation model, with a compact organizational structure, high closeness of scientific research cooperation between participants, fast and flexible management, and efficient collaborative efficiency. A typical example is the joint initiative of the Max Planck Society and the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft (Figure 1).
Fig.1 Project-based collaborative innovation organization model
Purpose of cooperation. Since 2005, we have cooperated in the development of new technologies with application potential in the interdisciplinary fields of basic and applied research, transformed first-class basic research results into innovative applications, and completed projects through the cooperation of two or more Max Planck Institute and Fraunhofer Institute research institutes, so as to achieve scientific research goals that cannot be completed independently and fill the gaps in the innovation chain.
Organizational mechanisms. The cooperation projects adopt the methods of internal bidding, internal competition, joint evaluation and joint funding, and approve 2-4 new projects every year and provide funding for 3-4 years. The Max Planck Society and the Fraunhofer Gesellschaft invest more than 4 million euros a year in joint projects.
The role of government. In 2005, the German Federal Government and the Länder Government concluded the Research and Innovation Convention, in which the German Federal Government and the Länder Government have strengthened their position in the German research system by continuously increasing the budget of non-university research institutions, including the four major German research institutions, to ensure funding for non-university research institutions. Under the guarantee of steady growth in funding, scientific research institutions have pledged to take more measures to further improve the quality of scientific research, one of which is to deepen cooperation between scientific research institutions and narrow the gap between basic theoretical research and application.
Effectiveness of cooperation. Since its inception in 2006, the Max Planck Institute and the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft have invested around 58 million euros in 55 projects. These projects cover a wide range of topics and have enabled technological innovations such as new rare earth-free magnetic materials, double-comb spectroscopy technology, and attosecond-class extreme ultraviolet pulsed lasers.
An integrated organizational model
From the overall and strategic point of view, the integrated organization model breaks the decentralized organization model with a single organization as the main body, integrates the organizational elements with different functions into an organic whole, and makes the functions of the organization qualitatively mutate through mutual complementarity, improves the supply capacity and comprehensive competitive advantage of the overall solution, and amplifies the overall effect. A typical example is the German Microelectronics Research Plant (Figure 2).
Figure 2 Integrated collaborative innovation organization model
Purpose of cooperation. Launched in 2017 by the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft in cooperation with the Leibniz Scientific Union, the German Microelectronics Research Factory aims to combine scientific research and application, research and processing, research and production through cross-regional cooperation, build a bridge between basic research and customer-specific product development, provide users in the scientific and industrial fields with new technologies and one-stop, high-maturity solutions covering the entire innovation chain, and promote the development of the semiconductor and electronics industry in Germany and Europe.
Organizational mechanisms. The German Microelectronics Research Factory organizes more than 2,000 researchers and R&D equipment from 13 research institutes in 2 institutions, and integrates the research focus into four future technology fields of "silicon-based technology", "compound semiconductor", "heterogeneous integration" and "design, testing and reliability", and through "microwave and terahertz", "power electronics", "design, manufacturing and system integration of complementary metal-oxide semiconductor circuits", "optoelectronic systems", "sensor systems" and "microelectromechanical system actuators" Six technology platforms integrate relevant capabilities to provide customers with total solutions. The office in Berlin is responsible for organizing, coordinating operational activities and strategic development.
The role of government. The German Microelectronics Research Plant is a supporting initiative of the German Federal Government under the framework of the pan-European program "European Union Common Interest Project" (IPCEI), and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research has funded the R&D projects and infrastructure construction of the German Microelectronics Research Plant with a total of about 400 million euros, including about 350 million euros for the renewal and expansion of the first experimental equipment, about 280 million euros for the Fraunhofer Society, and about 70 million euros for the Leibniz Scientific Union.
Effectiveness of cooperation. As Europe's largest cross-regional microelectronics R&D consortium and the world's largest technology and intellectual property team in the field of intelligent systems, the German Microelectronics Research Plant has made an important contribution to the successful implementation of "Industry 4.0", digitalization and the solution of future problems such as resource efficiency in Germany.
Strategic alliance organizational model
The strategic alliance model is a strategic, loose, long-term cooperation model consisting of two or more organizations with common strategic interests. The organizational model emphasizes that the partners as a unified whole, in the selected field to jointly use resources to develop and occupy the market, so as to achieve the ultimate strategic goal of enhancing competitive advantage and improving the overall visibility. A typical case is the Munich Quantum Valley program (Figure 3).
Fig. 3 Strategic alliance collaborative innovation organization model
Purpose of cooperation. Initiated by the Max Planck Society, the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft and the German Aerospace Center of the Helmholtz Association, in cooperation with the Bavarian Academy of Sciences, the Technical University of Munich, the University of Munich and the University of Nuremberg, the Munich Quantum Valley Project aims to make Munich one of the world's most advanced regions in quantum science and technology within the next 10 years and help Germany achieve a leading position in the field of quantum technology.
Organizational mechanisms. Munich Quantum Valley deeply explores quantum science and technology from the three aspects of research, development and talent, and seven partner institutions have established the "Munich Quantum Valley Association" in the form of a "registered association", which is responsible for guiding and coordinating the work of Quantum Valley, integrating and allocating resources, and accepting the supervision of government and industry representatives.
The role of government. The Bavarian state government has provided a total of 300 million euros in funding for Quantum Valley in Munich within the framework of the "Bavarian High-Tech Agenda". At the same time, Quantum Valley in Munich received a grant of 80 million euros from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the Federal Ministry of Economics as part of the German Federal Government's "Future Plan". In addition, Quantum Valley Munich cooperates with companies in the field of quantum technology and receives funding from industry.
Effectiveness of cooperation. In just over a year since its establishment, Munich Quantum Valley has made significant achievements in the important theories, software and hardware development of quantum information science, decisively promoting the development of quantum technology and making Bavaria a leading region for quantum research and innovation. At the same time, it has played a pioneering role in creating an interdisciplinary ecosystem, with the number of researchers nearly doubling from 200 at the beginning of its establishment.
Platform-based organizational model
The platform-based organization model is jointly built by a leading unit and multiple partners, aiming to establish an open and dynamic collaborative platform, through the openness of the platform to achieve effective integration and cooperation of resources, partners have strong mobility in the process of platform construction and development, and the advantages of each partner on the platform complement each other and promote each other, so that the platform releases huge energy and jointly creates a "win-win" ecology. A typical case is the Network Valley project (Figure 4).
Figure 4 Platform-based collaborative innovation organization model
Purpose of cooperation. The aim of the Cyber Valley is the participation of 12 members of the cooperation between the German government, science and industry, with the aim of creating a research and entrepreneurship ecosystem and creating a "Silicon Valley" in Germany.
Organizational mechanisms. Spanning the two cities of Stuttgart and Tübingen, the Cyber Valley is divided into three sub-areas: expertise and talent, economic development and social impact. In terms of organizational and management structure, Cybervalley has a general meeting and an executive committee. The plenary session is responsible for deciding on the most fundamental and overarching development issues and strategic interests of the Network Valley, with the Max Planck Institute, the Baden-Württemberg state government and companies each holding 33.3% of the vote. The Executive Committee, which is responsible for the ongoing projects in the Web Valley, is composed of three members elected by the General Assembly: representatives of the Max Planck Institute, representatives of the Baden-Württemberg state government and universities, and representatives of companies.
Method of funding. Cybervalley is co-invested by all partner members, with an investment of approximately EUR 165 million in the first phase. The Baden-Württemberg State Government, the Max Planck Institute, the University of Stuttgart and the University of Tübingen are responsible for funding the construction of new research buildings, professorships, research groups, graduate schools and other major facilities, with the Baden-Württemberg State Government as the largest funder with more than 160 million euros. The research team from the University of Stuttgart and the University of Tübingen provided support totalling around 7.5 million euros and funded two grant professorships. In addition, Cybervalley is supported by foundations such as the Carl Zeiss Foundation.
Effectiveness of cooperation. Cybervalley is the largest artificial intelligence research organization in Europe and enjoys an excellent reputation throughout Germany and internationally, and is also highly ranked in relevant rankings. Since its inception, the cooperation between the members of the Cybervalley has contributed to the prosperity and development of the AI ecosystem in the Stuttgart-Tübingen region of Germany, and the state of Baden-Württemberg, where the Cybervalley is located, has become a research and innovation hub for machine learning, robotics and computer vision in Europe and around the world, and its momentum as a core hotspot is becoming more and more obvious.
Network-based organizational model
The network-based organization model is a kind of cooperative organization with the loosest organizational structure, which breaks the boundaries of institutions and regions in the organizational form, and has the characteristics of multilateralism and three-dimensionality. Nodes are the basic units of a network-based organization, which have decision-making capabilities and can complete tasks independently, and are composed of organization members. Since the organizational structure of this model is the most loose, the network organization has the guidance and long-term funding of the state to keep its organizational structure stable, and has a specific coordination management system. A typical example of this model is a health research center (Figure 5).
Fig.5 Network-based collaborative innovation organization model
Purpose of cooperation. The scientific expertise of the cooperating members of the health research center comes from universities and medical research institutions outside the university, and the scientific expertise of the cooperative members is complementary in the medical innovation chain, with the aim of concentrating research efforts in the field of common diseases across the country, creating a national health research network, improving the quality of research, and accelerating the process of translating research results from laboratories to medical services.
Organizational mechanisms. The health research center carries out scientific research activities in a two-tier structure of "working group and work site", and the working group is divided into a scientific working group and a clinical working group, and the cooperative members participate in the research activities of the health research center by joining the working group. Geographically adjacent working groups are jointly formed into working stations to jointly complete the research tasks of the health research center, and the number of working stations in each health research center is usually 5-9.
The role of government. The Health Research Centre is established under the "German Federal Government Framework Programme for Health Research" and is funded on a long-term basis by the federal and state governments on a 90:10 basis. Every year, the German federal government and 13 state governments fund health research centers around 270 million euros.
Effectiveness of cooperation. The Health Research Center successfully bundles basic and clinical research, creating the best conditions for accelerating the translation of research results into medical services. In 2020, the first drug for the treatment of chronic hepatitis D and a new heart valve technology led by scientists from the Health Research Center were approved in Europe, making a decisive contribution to the well-being of humanity.
Differences and characteristics of different organizational models
According to the degree of looseness of the organizational structure, the collaborative innovation organization model of the four major scientific research institutions in Germany can be summarized into two types: compact and loose. Project-based and integrated types belong to the compact type with a small number of cooperative subjects, tight organization and lean structure. Strategic alliances, platforms and networks are loose types with a wide range of cooperation and diverse cooperation subjects.
Table 1 Comparison of collaborative innovation organization models of the four major scientific research institutions in Germany
2 Inspiration and reference
1
Introduce incremental resources to promote collaborative innovation and development
Since 2006, the German Federal Government and the Länder have concluded the Research and Innovation Pact, which has pledged to increase the amount of funding for the four major German research institutions by at least 3% per year, and has also put forward a request for greater synergy between the four German research institutions. The introduction of incremental resources has played a positive role in mobilizing the cooperation and linkage between the four major scientific research institutions in Germany, and has provided an important financial guarantee for the stable operation of collaborative innovation. The mainland should change the status quo that incremental scientific and technological resources are mainly used for competitive projects or new research units, and on the basis of stabilizing the mission positioning of existing scientific research institutions, encourage scientific research institutions to carry out collaborative innovation through the allocation of incremental resources, so as to form a national innovation system with clear main function positioning and complementary innovation advantages.
2
Strengthen the collaborative innovation of the whole chain of comprehensive national scientific research institutions
The mission of Germany's four major research institutes extends from cutting-edge basic research to applied technology development, covering the entire chain of innovation. Comprehensive national scientific research institutions represented by the Chinese Academy of Sciences should give full play to the advantages of systematization and institutionalization of complete disciplines and long innovation chains, break down the barriers of disciplines, fields and teams, take the initiative to connect with the research forces of the upstream and downstream of the innovation chain, give full play to the differentiated advantages of different research units, and accelerate the formation of a scientific research model with a clear division of labor, efficient coordination, independent operations, and joint efforts.
3
Build a strategic scientific and technological force coordination network led by national laboratories
The Helmholtz Federation, which has the nature of a national laboratory, occupies a leading and agglomerating role in the collaborative research of major national strategic tasks such as health research. The mainland should give full play to the leading role of national laboratories as the leading force of the national strategic scientific and technological forces, integrate the advantages of various innovation resources, and form a networked collaborative model with strong integration effect, synergistic effect, radiation effect and amplification effect, so as to significantly improve the efficiency of the core technology tackling system.
Ge Chunlei is an assistant researcher at the Institute of Science and Technology Strategy Consulting, Chinese Academy of Sciences. His main research interests include the German innovation system, science and technology innovation strategy and policy.
Pei Ruimin is an innovation researcher at the Institute of Science and Technology Strategy Consulting, Chinese Academy of Sciences. His research interests include science and technology strategy and policy, innovation management, and think tank theory and methodology.
Article from: Ge Chunlei, Pei Ruimin, Zhang Qiuju. Research on the Organizational Model of Collaborative Innovation of German Scientific Research Institutions. Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 2024, 39(2): 345-357. DOI: 10.16418/j.issn.1000-3045.20230726006.