The European public sector faces major challenges, including the need to modernise internal processes while delivering high quality public services. By introducing a comprehensive procurement strategy that uses Pre-Commercial Procurements (PCP) and Public procurement of innovation (PPI) in a complementary way, public procurers can drive innovation from the demand side.  But while Public Procurement represents approximately 14% of the EU GDP, less than half of this budget is purchased from SMEs. They play a vital role for the European market, as they are considered crucial engines for growth and job creation – however, SMEs have only limited possibilities of exploitation and international opportunities.

The Innovation Procurement Network has been launched as a response to the need of supporting SMEs and public buyers in the process of innovation procurement in order to over-come current barriers such lack of interaction with procuring organisations, the use of over-specified tenders and poor management of risk.

The network is working closely with its members to fully capture innovation through procurement by launching sustainable partnerships and making use of digital tools for open collaboration. As innovation intermediary the network will contribute to building up capacities on both supplier’s and buyer’s side enhancing dialogue and innovation diffusion at all levels.

Interdisciplinary as well as international research collaboration is key to achieving innovation and encompassing progress. Therefore, the Innovation Procurement Network pursues the target of interconnecting primarily SMEs with all relevant stakeholders in order to foster research projects and thereby generate increased quality and higher output within the field. Being connected facilitates the establishment of matching research consortia for either totally new project creations or in order to bring additional members on board of already ongoing projects.

Public procurement of innovation needs an intermediation structure that is appropriate to support companies and public bodies across the various procurement situations and their corresponding challenges and as such: The Innovation Procurement Network aims to intermediate innovation by:

• supporting diffusion and technology transfer
• enabling innovation in the context of organisational innovation management
• providing a general infrastructure for bridging within systems and across networks in a broader, systemic sense e.g. funding organisation bridging between policy and research performers
• enabling specific systems and networks functions

To ensure long-standing sustainability of the Innovation Procurement Network we have set-up a roadmap to guide our members. This reflects the long-term vision proposed while having in mind the current trends in Innovation procurement.

INVITE – at the formative stage the Innovation Procurement Network will include and invite the relevant organizations and experts in the field of innovation procurement from Europe and beyond.

PROVIDE – setup the web platform as the main point to co-create content and share updates while continuously delivering and improving its modules.

CONNECT – foster dialogue among network members in order to build strong partnerships for upcoming research and innovation projects.

ORGANISE – delivery of workshops and events for projects established within the network by bringing together partners while creating new opportunities to collaborate.

COMMUNICATE – stimulate the uptake of innovation by raising awareness on the wealth of results created in these projects and support agenda setting in research and innovation for future cooperation.

As one of the fastest growing research and innovation companies in Austria, Interspread is constantly on the search for next big challenge to solve together with our partners. We build partnership relations based on integrity and trust by taking responsibility and acting ethically.

We are an independent network that is managed and operated in Vienna, Austria. This network acts independent and has no political affiliations. We uphold strong moral principles and do the right thing in a reliable way with a Code of Conduct for ethics and works in a collaborative and non-competitive fashion.