Human Resources and Innovation

Workshop on Advancing Innovation: Human Resources, Education and Training

17 – 18 November 2008Bonn, Germany

Dirk PilatHead, Science and Technology Policy Division

Contact: dirk.pilat@oecd.org

Overview• The OECD Innovation Strategy• What we know about human resources for

science and technology (HRST):1. Supply and demand2. Research careers3. Women in science4. The international mobility of researchers5. Other work in DSTI

• Human capital and innovation• Gaps and policy challenges

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The OECD Innovation Strategy

• Ministerial Mandate from May 2007• Growing recognition that innovation:

– is a key driver of growth and helps address critical global challenges

– is changing rapidly, involving new actors, approaches, and countries

– challenges governments to develop appropriate policies

• We need new approaches for more effective policies, also for human capital.

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Supply and Demand of HRST

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Many OECD countries are faced with low and declining shares of science and engineering graduates

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45Science degrees Engineering degrees Share of S&E degrees in 2000%

Research careers are increasingly considered unattractive

• Declining interest in research careers:– PhDs mainly employed in universities. – Increase in doctorates has not been matched by increases

in permanent academic positions; tenured positions are being replaced by non-tenured temporary positions.

– Private returns from investing in an S&T research career may be too low relative to other careers.

• Policy issues include: – possible demand-side weaknesses– impacts of insecurity on the attractiveness of science

careers;– public sector employment; and – salaries

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Women remain under-represented

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In particular in certain fields and in higher positions, women are under-represented in research relative to

overall employment

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Women as % of civilian employment Women researchers as a % of total researchers

International mobility is growing

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Foreign talent contributes significantly to overall supply of HRST

Share of foreign-born HRST aged 25-64 in EU-27 and selected countries, 2006

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Other relevant work in DSTI

• Contributed to the EDU Tertiary Education Review– Enhancing the Role of Tertiary Education in

Research and Innovation

• Improving measurement, e.g. Careers of Doctorate Holders:– Project follows the labour market, career and

mobility paths of doctorate holders – data for 27 countries are expected by end-2008

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But human resources in science and technology are not the same human capital

for innovation…

• Human capital – broad range of skills, capabilities, and attributes held by individuals, teams and organisations making it possible for them to innovate

• Partly based on formal education but also involves the creation of firm-specific human capital via vocational or on-the-job training

• Many industries are skill-based without being HRST-intensive.– high levels of firm-specific skills;– inter-sectoral flows of knowledge

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Innovation is changing ...

• Non technological innovation– Organisational and marketing innovations

• R&D and innovation in service industries– e.g. financial services, creative industries

• More “open” approaches to innovation– R&D co-operation, external sourcing of

knowledge, networks etc.

• Growing internationalisation of research– Increasing globalisation of R&D and industry-

science relationships; new global players

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… and requires a broad range of capabilities

• Skills and competencies required for innovation include:– Problem solving capabilities– Addressing growing complexity– International cooperation– Leadership– Continual updating and retraining– Networking and teamwork– …

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What are the gaps…

• What types of skills and capabilities are required?

• Is there a mismatch between supply and demand?

• How do different organisational workplace structures shape peoples’ ability to innovate?

• Is social capital (trust) more important in a climate of globalisation and open innovation?

• Is there an optimal mobility level?• How can we measure performance - we do not

have good indicators on skills• …

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… and policy challenges?

• What kinds of education and training systems are needed to help foster innovation?

• What are the challenges for investing in human capital? Are incentives needed to strengthen private investment?

• How does the composition of human capital supply relate to the composition of demand?

• How do governments ensure policy coherence across multiple actors involved in innovation?

A large agenda for work …

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