By implementing the VOIS project, the partnership aimed to address the lack of access of local no/low-tech SMEs to OI competencies that are crucial for their competitiveness and ability to engage in meaningful innovation. By developing the Virtual Open Innovation Environment for SMEs the project contributes to increasing access to practical knowledge about the potential OI offers for more resilience, growth and involvement of SME in the agri-food and bio-economy sector. The project results offer SME managers and supporting organisations access to capacitating tools to develop their OI competency and to facilitate effective engagement in OI activities. Direct purpose of the project is the creation of a virtual environment integrating access to cross-disciplinary competences required for successful OI within 3 dimensions: 1/ development of managers OI competencies to set OI at organisational level, 2/ development of individual OI competencies of managers, 3/ repository of resources available for SMEs support to OI processes. The partnership focused on the development of the direct result as well as on increasing internal competences of staff and organisations to better support knowledge-based SME engagement in OI.
The partners applied for this project to address the critical need for local SMEs, particularly in the agri-food and bioeconomy sectors, to improve their abilities to modernise and innovate collaboratively in response to changing market conditions, digitalization, automation and emergence of IoT. These SMEs, crucial to regional economic growth, often lack the ability to independently reinvent their value propositions, leaving them vulnerable to market shifts. While open innovation (OI) is widely promoted, SMEs struggle with accessing the necessary skills and competencies typically found in larger firms and research centres. Recognising OI as key approach for SME innovation despite their limited resources, VOIS offers solutions to develop SME managers' professional competencies for effective OI engagement. It addresses the need to support the knowledge-based engagement of traditional SMEs in OI and collaboration for modernising and innovating the agri-food industry, while also enabling participating organisations to build the cross-disciplinary expertise necessary to support these businesses, foster collaboration, and develop relevant skills within SMEs and their supporting organisations.