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OPEN AND INNOVATIVE SPACES FOR COLLABORATIVE WORKING BETWEEN VET PROVIDERS AND BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS
Start date: Oct 1, 2016, End date: Sep 30, 2018 PROJECT  FINISHED 

We are facing very important and long-term changes that go further than the crisis we are undergoing and that have impact in all economic and social changes. These geo-political, economic and social changes are forcing our companies to change their “ways of doing”, to make things better or differently, transforming their value proposals, their international presence and their organisation and management model. They make us innovate permanently in the products and services we offer and question the validity of the business models permanently. We need more and better investment and innovation to back our competitiveness and strengthen economic recovery. Innovation and creativity have to be increased in all levels of Education and Training (ET2020).In this context, the EU has decided to establish for 2020 the objective of achieving a 75% employment rate for woman and men aged between 20 and 64 (Europe Strategy 2020). It is basic to have qualified workers with professional profiles adapted to the new labour market demands and needs in order to reach this objective. The education and training systems should offer the suitable mixture of qualifications and competences to achieve a quick and suitable transition to employment. Talent and innovation are key factors in the equation as a guarantee of employability and competitiveness. In this complex and uncertain context, we use the concept of open innovation as an ally. “In a world that is featured by the disseminated knowledge, we can create more value by integrating external talent and knowledge. When all the talents do not work for the company, it is advisable to find them, get in contact with them and take profit of their capacities” (Henry Chesbrough U:C. Berkeley).Although actual VET Systems are changing the way of doing and starting to collaborate with the business world, it is true than nowadays VET System, in general, are based on a traditional way of doing where the VET student has a passive role and are placed far from the real business world. Our challenge is to address the VET Innovation Systems to generate new opportunities and favour employment creation. Therefore, we need to anticipate the industry/company needs, identify proactively the opportunities to generate new products or productive processes, which improve the competitiveness in the companies and the young people’s employability. We are planning to use all the possibilities and opportunities of the vocational training network, its closeness to companies (particularly the SMEs), to act as a booster for innovation in them, mobilizing the VET young people’s talent. We are willing to use the OPEN INNOVATION MODEL to develop applied innovation projects with companies mobilizing the VET young people’s capacities and talent and strengthening the connection VET–Company (Work Based Learning).Open Innovation is a new innovation strategy under which companies go beyond the internal limits of their organisations and where cooperation with external professionals has a main role. Open Innovation Models combine internal knowledge with external knowledge to develop new and innovative projects and products. Using Open innovation Models, on the one hand, the innovation process is accelerated and the associated costs and risks are reduced and, on the other hand, new possibilities for commercial exploitation of knowledge are opened.The objective of SPACE 4 COCREATE - OPEN AND INNOVATIVE SPACES FOR COLLABORATIVE WORKING BETWEEN VET PROVIDERS AND BUSINESS ORGANIZATIONS project is to create an open model, methodology and tools based on the innovation models, addressed to the VET centre professionals (teachers, mentors, guiders…) to develop innovation projects with companies through young VET teams, stimulating VET young innovation and supporting synergies between education and business world.The main outputs will be:1) SPACE 4 COCREATE MODEL (Open Innovation Model) to develop applied innovation projects with companies and young VET teams. It will define the better way to collaborate between VET Systems and Employment, how to improve synergies between Education, Research and Innovation fields.2) SPACE 4 COCREATE TOOL BOX: methodologies, tools and resources to favour the conceptualisation, design, implementation and validation of applied innovation projects addressed to VET Centres, involving both parts: VET and Business Sector.
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