Service Innovation and Public Policy
In recent years policy makers have begun to consider the potential for promoting services innovation as part of their economic development strategies. Such consideration has, in part, been driven by the growing contribution that services activities make to national and regional economies. It also reflects the emerging recognition that traditional policy measures such as R&D grants and technology transfer supports have been developed from a manufacturing perspective of the innovation process.
The European Commission and the OECD has been particularly active in seeking to generate reflection on services innovation and its policy implications. This has resulted in studies such as the OECD’s reports into knowledge intensive services, and the European Commission Expert Group report on services innovation - the report of the group, "Fostering Innovation in Services" as well as various TrendChart studies. The European Commission has also launched a number of Knowledge Intensive Services Platforms designed to act as laboratories for new public policies for services innovation. Few economic development agencies at the member state level, and fewer still at the regional level, have translated this new thinking on services innovation into policy action. Finland is an exception, where knowledge intensive business services have been a focus of much regional work (esp. the Uusimaa region).
Finland has been active in thinking about the policy implications of services innovation. This has seen TEKES – the Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation - launch the SERVE initiative, designed to support ‘Finnish companies and research organisations in the development of innovative service concepts that can be reproduced or replicated and where some technology or systematic method is applied .’a Germany has also undertaken initiatives for services R&D, and Canada and Norway have programs as well.
Ireland has been considering a services-focused innovation policy, with Forfás – its national policy and advisory board for enterprise, trade, science, technology and innovation – having undertaken a review of Ireland’s existing policy and support measures for innovation, and outlined options for a new policy and framework environment in support of service innovation activity.
At the regional level, limited information is available on how Europe’s regions are responding to the challenges presented by service innovation. has recently published a European survey on services innovation and regional policy responses. The results of this suggest that very few regions in France, the UK and Ireland have an explicit focus on services and innovation. Many do, however, express a desire to address this issue in the coming future.
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