Innovation At Work

What is Innovation@Work? Innovation@Work is a “reverse” trade show at which early stage technology companies are invited to present their products and services to a large, host company in accordance with a set of technology criteria developed by the host company.

Program Overview
The Innovation@Work Program provides CTC member companies with the ability to cost effectively:

• Develop a strategic technology roadmap to facilitate the definition of future products and services
• Identify specific needs to support successful implementation of the technology roadmap
• Partner with companies with emerging technologies to satisfy the identified needs
• Facilitate collaboration, technology sharing, and business development opportunities between host and participating companies

CTC has executed several programs since 1994, including host companies: GE, Gerber Scientific, AT&T, UTC, Pitney Bowes, The Hartford drawing in innovative technology and companies from across the country.

Program Benefits
The Innovation@Work Program provides participating companies with the following benefits:

• A strategy-driven technology roadmap that clearly defines the Company’s future products and services
• A proven and cost-effective program that identifies emerging technologies to enable successful implementation of their technology roadmap
• A repeatable, malleable approach that can be modeled to fit the needs of the host company and deployed on a regular basis to assure technological competitiveness
• Allows CT-based companies to source their technology partners and suppliers locally
  

This program is generously sponsored by:

Interested in sponsoring or think that your company would be interested in hosting a program?  Please contact Paige Rasid, CTC, 860-289-0878, x335

More about Innovation@Work:

The Process in Detail
The Innovation@Work Program Development Process consists of four phases:
Marketing
Selection
Design
Execution

Marketing Phase
Using the Cluster Model, or responding to requests by member companies, meetings are conducted with industry sectors to identify those with significant needs.
Sector needs are prioritized based on their openness to innovation and the need for new technology.
Meetings are conducted with sector representatives to identify candidate companies.
A data base of industry sectors and candidate companies for program participation is developed and maintained.
Meetings are conducted to qualify candidate companies using pre-defined qualification criteria.

Selection Phase
A “warm transfer” of the candidate company is made from the Cluster to CTC.
For the qualifying company, a Program strategy session is conducted.
A Business Case for Program deployment is developed and a conceptual program design is completed.
The desired level of CTC sponsorship is determined and the qualifying Company’s value proposition is communicated.

Program Design Phase
Upon the candidate Company accepting the invitation to participate in the Program, the agreement to proceed is documented including:
Approach to be employed
High-level schedule
Sponsorship level
Roles and responsibilities
A program design session is conducted with the host Company. The Company’s technology roadmap and the outputs from the strategy session completed during the Selection Phase are used to complete the detailed design.

Program Execution Phase
Using the Innovation@Work checklist as a planning guide, the Program is executed.
The presentations are scored during the Program and the vendors are placed into one of three categories: probable, possible, don’t pursue.
A validation session is conducted with the host company to assure that follow-up meetings with vendors are conducted.
Progress is monitored at regular intervals and interventions are initiated, if required.
Program successes are publicized in the appropriate news outlets.