Paths of Inovation in the Industry of Rio Grande do Sul

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To acess the paper with the results of the project, click here!

The project entitled “Path of Innovation in the Industry of Rio Grande do Sul” (Edital 08/2009 – FAPERGS / CNPq – PRONEX) was carried out between May 2010 and May 2014. The project was interinstitutional character, having counted on the involvement of four of the most important institutions of higher education of Rio Grande do Sul: Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Universidade de Caxias do Sul (UCS), Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos (UNISINOS) and Pontifícia​ Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul(PUC). The project was coordinated by Professor Paulo Antônio Zawislak and the team of the Innovation research Center  – NITEC / UFRGS, aiming to deepen the understanding of innovation dynamics in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. To achieve this objective, the project was divided in three stages:

  1. Theoretical stage: theoretical-conceptual development of the unpublished Model of the Company’s Innovation Capabilities;
  2. Exploratory stage: conducting field research, through visits to conduct interviews with 70 companies from different industrial sectors of the state;
  3.  Descriptive stage: survey of quantitative data with 1470 companies from all industrial sectors of Rio Grande do Sul.

Innovation can be understood, on the one hand, as the simple creation of something new. On the other hand, besides being a novelty, to be considered innovation, certain change initiative must fill knowledge and market gaps, and generate results for companies. Innovation is the result of an activity that, instead of focusing on a place, department or function, spreads through four functions of the company: development, operation, management and commercial. Each company performs these four functions at different levels and combinations, and for each one of them will correspond to a capacity for innovation: Development, Operation, Management and Business. Innovation can come from either of them, be it a new product, a new process, a new organizational form or a new commercial action. From the Model of Innovation Capabilities of the Company it was possible to unveil the dynamics and the paths of innovation in the industry of Rio Grande do Sul.

The dissemination of the results of the project was carried out in the event of December 1, 2015, based on a presentation by the project coordinator and also of cases of success in the industry of Rio Grande do Sul.