In parallel, the EIT Headquarters were set up and developed in Budapest, the location chosen as the seat of the EIT by the European Council.

The first activities of the EIT and its KICs, notably in the fields of higher education and entrepreneurship development were also started in 2010.

To be continued...

EIT Annual Report 2010

José Manuel Leceta: Thank you – I am really excited to be joining such a relevant European initiative for Europe like the EIT following my appointment in May. Regarding my background, I have degrees in innovation management and electrical engineering as well as higher education studies in business administration, strategic management of ICT, economics of telecommunication, international studies, etc. Building upon my previous experience in space industry, I am joining the EIT from CDTI (the Spanish National Innovation Agency), where I served as International Director for six years. My main responsibilities there where fostering Spanish participation in European and global R&D partnerships, representing Spain in high level forums such as CREST, Eureka and TAFTIE – the European Network of National Innovation Agencies - as well as putting in place a number of Bilateral Programmes with counterpart Agencies in Canada, China, India, South Korea, Japan and South Africa.

Could you briefly describe your key motivating factors in taking up the position of Director? What do you consider being the EIT’s success factors?

JML: I have been following the development of EIT with a lot of interest since it was set up in 2008 as I believe it is urgent for the EU to catalyse and empower innovation hubs that foster world-class innovation. [...]

To read the full interview with José Manuel Leceta, please click here.

In front of Prime Minister Viktor Orban (Hungary), Prime Minister Wen JiaBao (People’s Republic of China) and high level representatives from both Eastern and Central European countries and the People’s Republic of China, Dr Schuurmans stressed that whilst the EIT’s main goal is to create a new European way of delivering essential economic growth and societal benefits through innovation, the institute is an EU body with an international vision. To truly drive world-class innovation, the EIT and its KICs (Knowledge and Innovation Communities) must forge close relationships with leading innovative organizations across the globe.

Setting up the EIT and its KICs has been the top priority since 2008. However, in the years to come international collaborations will have to be fully explored and implemented. Indeed, developing the EIT’s international dimension is a crucial component of the EIT’s vision for the future as outlined in its Strategic Innovation Agenda (SIA).

Dr Schuurmans’ speech

The EIT fosters a culture of cooperation between the actors of the knowledge triangle (business, education and research). With entrepreneurship as its key driver, the institute capitalises on Europe’s underused potential to exploit skills, technology and business innovation. The EIT was set up to serve as a role model within the EU innovation landscape: its focus on simplification and leadership could perhaps be emulated by other EU initiatives.

Entrepreneurship is the central driving force of innovation in the EIT and its KICs. By educating a new generation of entrepreneurially minded talent, the EIT and its KICs are paving the way towards a more entrepreneurial labour force and continued growth for Europe. “The SIA presents our vision for increased EIT impact through more KICs, new themes and a wider geographical coverage” states Anders Flodström - Vice Chairman of the EIT Governing Board and Chairman of the SIA Working Group. “Through the proposed new KIC themes we do not only address today’s Grand Challenges but also provide viable and sustainable solutions”, he adds.

European innovation cannot thrive on the current contribution to the KICs and cannot afford not to significantly step up its investment. Shifting from a system based on control of expenditure towards a trust-based system, focusing on outcomes and rewarding performance is perceived as “the” next major challenge for the EIT. In the years to come and through the implementation of the SIA and its increased budget request, the EIT will focus on becoming an entrepreneurially driven innovation impact investment institute.

EIT Strategic Innovation Agenda (SIA)

The EIT's SIA - Frequently Asked Questions

Read the EIT Evaluation

The evaluation confirms the EIT’s added value, its impact, effectiveness, sustainability, efficiency and relevance of its activities as well as their complementarities with both national and EU policies related to the knowledge triangle.

The EIT (the Governing Board, the Headquarters in Budapest and the three KICs) is very pleased with the positive assessment of its vision, mission and achievements, as well as of its unique approach and contribution towards the fostering of entrepreneurship driven innovation by the leveraging of world-class hotspots in Europe as well as its ability to turn grand challenges into opportunities, to attract and unlock talent to create and accelerate new business creation. The EIT Governing Board and Director will integrate results and recommendations of the report and move the EIT and its KICs into their next stage of growth and value creation by further optimizing the role of the EIT headquarter, its interactions with the KICs and its dialogue with stakeholders throughout Europe.

During his intervention, the EIT Acting Director, Dr Ronald de Bruin stressed the importance of the EIT becoming the catalyst for a step change within the EU's innovation capacity and of acting as an icebreaker in the European innovation landscape. He recalled that none of what the EIT has realised thus far has ever been achieved on a European scale before.

The EIT currently follows three strategic main strands: building up the EIT and the KICs by further development of the Headquarters and the KIC Co-location Centres as hotspots driving innovation effectiveness; development of entrepreneurship education within KIC higher education institutions, sealed and branded with an EIT label; keeping a continuous focus on business creation leading to new products and services for existing industry as well as new businesses inclusing SMEs.

The EIT needs to maintain and further develop its independent role in acting as an entrepreneurially driven European impact institute.

The KIC CEOs, Prof. Mary Ritter (Climate-KIC), Diego Pavia (KIC InnoEnergy), and Prof. Willem Jonker (EIT ICT Labs) outlined the concept and the objectives of their respective KICs highlighting their specific added value for excellence driven innovation, for entrepreneurial education and for European cohesion.

Presentations were followed by a discussion and exchange of views with Members of the European Parliament who acknowledged the EIT's achievements to date, in particular its learning by doing approach combined with a result focused performance measurement. Members of the ITRE Committee reiterated the need for the EIT to remain lean and flexible in order to fully assume its role as an engaged investor.

Watch the session live

Mr José Manuel Leceta, formerly International Director at CDTI, the Spanish Innovation Agency worked on the fostering  of Spanish participation in European and international R&D programmes and the representon of Spain in R&D related forums.

As the EIT Director, Mr Leceta will lead the EIT Headquarters in Budapest and will work closely with the three Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs) towards delivering impact in the European innovation landscape and results in the field of entrepreneurship education and the creation of new business.

"I congratulate Mr Leceta on his appointment as EIT Director" says Dr. Martin Schuurmans - Chairman of the EIT Governing Board. “Mr. Leceta comes at a crucial moment, when the EIT is increasing its focus towards becoming an entrepreneurially driven impact investment institute. The Board and I are confident that Mr. Leceta will deliver on the common aim of the EIT and its KICs to bring more innovations and more innovative people for Europe. I look forward to working together with him."

Mr Leceta is a respected specialist in innovation economics and has held the position of International Director at the Spanish Innovation Agency for the past six years. A technical engineer with vast experience in international collaboration, Mr Leceta is a strong believer in the capacity of pan-European partnerships to unleash Europe's innovation potential.

Following a rigorous selection procedure driven by the European Commission, the EIT Governing Board yesterday interviewed the candidates put forward by the College of Commissioners and took the final decision. Mr. Leceta’s appointment makes the EIT management complete and takes place within the context of the EIT hiring a number of high-profile strategists to lead its activities.

José Manuel Leceta biography

Previous workshops held in September and December 2010 and February 2011 had provided a forum to discuss common strategic priorities in the field of entrepreneurship and new innovation models as well as the tools which may serve to implement them. Building on those workshops, the KICs have since been able to transform the identified objectives into concrete models and initiatives supporting the creation of new as well as the acceleration of existing businesses in their specific sectors.

The fourth Entrepreneurship Workshop consequently provided an opportunity for each KIC to share evidence from its own experience as well as case stories from the Co-Location Centres. These discussions will serve to pave the way for the establishment of best practices and common parameters in applying the high-level strategies in practice.

This was followed by a short introduction on the Draft Strategic Innovation Agenda and on lessons learned from setting the EIT HQ and the KICs by Ronald de Bruin, EIT Acting Director. Co-operation opportunities, for example in the area of entrepreneurial education have been deliberated.

Come and learn more about the EIT at the Europe Day Festival, at the Millenáris Park in Budapest, Saturday, 7 May from 14 pm till late!

Waiting for you in the information tent nr. 10

More info about the programmes

“The SIA in which the EIT will present its vision for becoming an entrepreneurially driven innovation impact investment institute, will have to be based upon the needs of the European innovation landscape” says Dr. Martin Schuurmans, Chairman of the EIT Governing Board. “This is of particular importance for the potential themes for future Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs)”.

The themes which the EIT is considering as societal challenges to be addressed by means of a future KIC are: added-value manufacturing; ageing population; biotechnology; food for the future; healthy childhood; human learning and learning enhancements; security and safety as well as territory and smart cities. These initial ideas are to be thoroughly discussed in the upcoming months.

In addition to the conference, the European Commission’s Directorate General for Education and Culture (DG EAC) under the leadership of Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou, today launches its open public consultation on the future of the EIT and the potential future KIC themes. It is the European Commission which will present the SIA to the European Parliament and Council of Ministers at the end of 2011. Dr. Schuurmans urges “our stakeholder community to actively participate in this consultation so that the EIT can cement its future role within the future Common Strategic Framework for Research and Innovation”.

Press Release

Link to Open Public Consultation

"With the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, we are pioneering a new collaboration between higher education, research and business. The Commission is keen to listen to the views of our partners before finalising our proposal on the future strategy. The idea of it is to build on the lessons learned from the Institute's first phase and to prepare the way for expanding the EIT. The Institute has the potential to become a powerful motor of innovation and entrepreneurship in Europe," declared Commissioner Vassiliou.

The EIT has an administrative headquarters (in Budapest), but operates from 16 sites throughout Europe, from Barcelona to Stockholm, through cross-border public-private partnerships known as 'knowledge and innovation communities', or KICs for short. The KICs bring together excellent higher education institutions, research centres and businesses. To date, three KICs have been created, focusing on sustainable energy (InnoEnergy KIC), climate change (Climate KIC) and information and communication society (EIT ICTLabs).

The consultation complements a broad debate on the future of EU research and innovation funding (see Commission Green Paper "From Challenges to Opportunities: Towards a Common Strategic Framework for EU Research and Innovation funding", 9 February 2011).

Next steps

The consultation is open for comments from 14 April. The deadline for feedback from interested parties is 30 June. Based on the results of this process, as well as an independent evaluation and also a proposal from the EIT itself, the Commission will present the strategic innovation agenda by December 2011.

Full press release - EN

Full press release - FR

1. Informal Competitiveness Council (European Commission Press Release)

2.  Green Paper on a Common Strategic Framework for future EU Research and Innovation Funding

3. SIA Conference

EIT Newsletter

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IMCO

The Members of the European Parliament, Mr Malcom HARBOUR (Chair of the Committee), Mr Andreas Schwab, Ms Catherine Soullie, Mr Antonio Fernando Correia de Campos were introduced to the EIT and its current field of activities by the EIT Acting Director, Mr Ronald de Bruin, followed by a discussion.

The IMCO Committee will deliver an opinion to the report “Innovation Union: transforming Europe for a post-crisis world” by MEP Judith Merkies.

“I am extremely pleased that Alexander will succeed me as Chairman of the EIT Governing Board in September”, says Martin Schuurmans. “With his drive and entrepreneurial experience within the knowledge triangle and under his leadership, I am convinced that the EIT will continue to move forward and increase its impactful investment into Europe’s underused potential as an innovative continent.”

Full press release

Building on the outcomes of the two previous workshops in September and December 2010, participants were invited to share the progress made in terms of the KICs’ entrepreneurial activities, and to discuss a common toolbox as well as specific EIT initiatives in support of entrepreneurship.

A highlight on the agenda was the “EIT Entrepreneurship Award” which will be granted for the first time at the beginning of 2012. In its pilot phase, the aim of the Award will be to showcase and encourage the first entrepreneurial ventures within the KICs and to help them to develop successfully with the support of a top-level mentorship scheme. The first Award will be given in collaboration with Academic Enterprise Awards Europe. The award was announced at the ACES Academic Enterprise Conference in Zurich on 3 February 2011.

More

Climate-KIC is the Knowledge and Innovation Community designated in December 2009 to address the field of climate change adaptation and mitigation. The KIC has already successfully launched its education and entrepreneurship programmes during 2010. The signature of the agreements opens the way for an already prepared portfolio of 20 innovation and pathfinder projects.

“Responding to climate change offers many opportunities for European growth and jobs and is absolutely essential to the future of Europe” says Dr Martin Schuurmans – Chairman of the EIT Governing Board. Mary A. Ritter, the interim CEO of Climate-KIC equally welcomed the signatures:  “I am very delighted about the recent developments: now we can really focus on the future and the real work of Climate-KIC.”

The other two KICs designated in December 2009, EIT ICT labs and KIC InnoEnergy, signed their framework partnership agreements with the EIT in December 2010: more information.

More info on Climate-KIC: www.climate-kic.org.

The proposed "Common Strategic Framework" aims to create a coherent set of instruments along the whole "innovation chain" starting from basic research, culminating in bringing innovative products and services to market. This would involve the current Framework Programme for Research (FP7), the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP) and the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT)

Stakeholders have until 20 May 2011 to contribute their views on the Green Paper on the Common Strategic Framework.

Consultation on the Green Paper

European Commission press release

EIT Newsletter

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