International and Regional Case Studies

Aisling Smyth, Programme Manager, 4CNW Business Support Programme

Creative Credits Programme – NESTA (UK):

• Creative Credits was the first scheme in the UK that sought to harness the expertise and innovative potential of the creative industries to SME growth.

• Manchester City Region (September 2009-Sept 2010).

• B2B innovation vouchers to encourage SMEs to innovate in partnership with creative service providers (e.g. designers).

Creative Credits Programme – NESTA (UK):

• NESTA's research has found that:• “ UK businesses that invest twice as much in

creative services as the average firm are 25 per cent more likely to introduce product innovations. However many small businesses are unaware of these benefits or do not have the capital available to experiment”.

Creative Credits Evaluation: Some Relevant Findings:

Benefits for SME’s include:• Enabled projects to happen - that would not

otherwise.• Accelerated innovation and brought forward

projects that might have happened much later.• Increased awareness of the opportunities for

growth of business and encouraged SME’s to think about development in new areas.

Benefits for SME’s – continued

• New developments and new products were produced to a higher standard than without the scheme.

• New skills transferred from partners: many

reported new areas of learning.

Key Implementation Lesson of Creative Credits :

Importance of Brokerage and Matchmaking.

• Getting the matches right between SME’s and Creative Supply is crucial.

• Under-estimated in Creative Credits Programme - no direct brokering of relationships between SME’s and Creative Services.

• Website “gallery” to facilitate B2B relationships.• Resulted in contrasting outcomes.• 4CNW – facilitates direct brokering/matchmaking.

Further Reference:• Aston University Innovation Voucher Scheme:

http://www.innovationvouchers-wm.co.uk/case-studies/

• Nesta Local Knowledge: http://www.nesta.org.uk/publications/assets/features/local_knowledge

• Design Council Designing Demand: http://www.designcouncil.org.uk/designingdemand/casestudies

• Centre for Design Innovation – Innovation by Design http://www.designinnovation.ie/downloads/Innovationbydesign_2008.pdf