Rapid Appraisal of Local Innovation Systems

Rapid Appraisal of Local Innovation Systems is a method that gives you
  • a diagnosis of the strengths and weaknesses of your local innovation system,
  • an opportunity to engage directly with key actors in the local innovation system,
  • a set of proposals for practical activities to strengthen your local innovation system.
Why should you be concerned about your local innovation system? Innovation is a main driver of competitiveness. The capacity of companies to come up with innovative products and services, and their ability to use innovation to increase their internal efficiency, is perhaps the single most important determinant of their position in competitive markets.

The innovative potential of companies does not only rely on their internal skills and processes. It also depends on

  • the pattern and intensity of interaction with other companies, be they suppliers, customers or even competitors,
  • the pattern and intensity of interaction with supporting institutions, be they providers of standard services (such as standard skill profiles or product testing and certification) or providers of highly customised and specialised services (such as product development and design).
A RALIS Exercise is a brief diagnostic effort which will usually take about two weeks. It is conducted by a team of external RALIS Facilitators and key stakeholders from within the local innovation system. It is based on
  • Miniworkshops that are conducted with representatives of important subsectors in the local innovation system,
  • qualitative interviews with key players in the local innovation system.
A RALIS Exercise can also include a two-day Participatory Foresight Exercise, which will give you a strategic perspective at technology and innovation trends and their implications for upgrading necessities in the local innovation system.

For more background on RALIS, please consult mesopartner Working Paper No.2.

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RALIS and
Local
Innovation
Strategy

Conceptual
Underpinnings
of RALIS

The
Background
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