WILBERT

Description: This ICB Research Report constitutes the proceedings of the following events which were held during the Requirements Engineering: Foundation for Software Quality (REFSQ) conference 2011 in Essen, Germany. Requirements Engineering Efficiency Workshop (REEW). Requirements Prioritization for customer-oriented Software-Development (RePriCo). Workshop on Empirical Research in Requirements Engineering: Challenges and Solutions (EPICAL). Empirical Research Fair. Empirical Live Experiment. Doctoral Symposium

Description: The automobile industry is experiencing unprecedented change. Despite its century-old history based mostly in the art of mechanics, increased development of technology and heightened awareness of environmental issues has pushed traditional automobile manufacturers to completely re-examine their strategies. It has also newly invited nontraditional players such as electronic and IT tycoons namely, Samsung, Google, and Apple into the game. The advent of electric cars with cutting edge technology requires active participation and collaboration from diverse industries requiring cross-over joint ventures and M&As. In this light, the recent acquisition of Harman Incorporated for eight billion dollars by Samsung Electronics in 2016 is a significant event that signals great change. As the electronics tycoon expands its boundaries preparing to become an important player in the automobile industry, this study examines how Samsung increases and integrates its knowledge base and innovation capability through the M&A deal with Harman in attempts to enhance its competitiveness in the rapidly evolving automotive market.

Description: [Foreword] After a delayed start, the Federal Government has presented numerous plans for research and innovation policy in the new legislative period. The Commission of Experts comments on some of the most significant plans in chapter A 1. In the new High-Tech Strategy 2025, the Federal Government has once again committed itself to the target of spending 3.5 percent of gross domestic product on R&D by 2025. However, the funds currently budgeted are not sufficient to meet this target. The Commission of Experts therefore once again calls for the introduction of tax-based support for R&D, focused on SMEs. It also recommends that the Federal Government grants considerable freedom to the proposed Agency for Disruptive Innovations. Unless it is granted independence from political control, the agency will be unable to meet the expectations placed upon it. The Federal Government's Artificial Intelligence Strategy (chapter A 2) documents the high regard in which it holds this field of research. The funding volume of €3 billion (by 2025) appears to be appropriate. The current version of the AI Strategy, however, remains vague on numerous points and must be substantiated without delay. The Commission of Experts expressly warns against adopting a scatter-gun approach to research funding. However, the Commission of Experts considers a wide-ranging transfer of knowledge to be necessary. It supports the systematic expansion of European collaborations so that, as part of the association of EU partner countries, Germany can keep pace with the USA and China as the leading nations in the field of AI research. In chapter A 3, the Commission of Experts examines the funding structures implemented by the German Research Foundation (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, DFG), Germany's largest research funding organization, and compares them with those of key research funding organizations in the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the USA. This examination shows that the DFG places strong emphasis on funding programmes intended to foster collaboration and structural development. It also highlights that the average funding provided by the DFG for new single project applications is comparatively low, and the average funding duration relatively short. The Commission of Experts suggests that a review be conducted to examine whether the high weighting given to structural funding formats should be adjusted in favour of single project funding. In chapter B 1, the Commission of Experts acknowledges the importance of start-ups in the innovation system. In Germany, a vibrant start-up scene has developed in recent years that is highly concentrated in regional terms. To promote globally visible start-up ecosystems, it is important not to counteract this geographical concentration but, instead, to expand existing and emerging ecosystems. Start-ups in Germany - particularly those in the growth phase - still have problems in accessing sufficient venture capital. With this in mind, the conditions for private investments in start-ups must be further improved; in particular, incentives should be created to encourage institutional investors to invest more heavily in start-ups. In chapter B 2, the Commission of Experts investigates the contribution that research and innovation policy can make to the energy transition. Important innovative technologies and business models for decarbonisation of the German energy system are already market-ready, or will be so in the near future. However, their diffusion is hampered by CO2 prices set too low as well as by regulatory requirements. In order to remove these barriers, taxes and levies on energy across all sectors of the economy should be geared to the damage energy sources inflict on the environment or to their CO2 content. To avoid putting the success of the energy transition at risk, political actors should structure potential reforms in a socially sustainable manner - without curtailing the steering effect of climate-protection measures. In chapter B 3, the Commission of Experts discusses blockchain technologies, which provide an immutable, forgery-proof way to store and transfer digital data. Germany is well positioned to exploit the economic and social potential of such technologies. However, it is important to promote the use and further development of blockchain technologies with a flexible regulatory framework, such as by setting up regulatory test beds. It will also be necessary to develop skills and knowledge in society and administration in order to reliably assess the opportunities and risks involved in the use of these technologies. In chapter B 4, the Commission of Experts analyses the digitalization of German tertiary education (TE) institutions. The German TE institutions surveyed ascribe a high level of importance to digitalization, but this is yet to be reflected in the level of digitalization achieved. The Commission of Experts therefore considers there to be significant potential for development, especially in the areas of teaching and administration. The governance structures currently in place in TE institutions hamper the progress of the digitalization process. To ensure that digitalization can succeed on the whole, TE institutions must continue to modernize their administration. The Commission of Experts recommends supporting TE institutions in this process by introducing a lump-sum digitalization payment. [...]

Description: Under the ca. 15 years of doi moi (renovation) policy, Vietnam's development has been taking place in the two different but overlapping contexts of transformation and swift economic development. These contexts correspond to two different scenarios for the country's future: One scenario of transformation is the Eastern European pattern; the other is the Tiger Scenario, with increasing industrialisation and rapid economic growth. The research and development (R&D) potential created during the period of planned economy could assume a key role in these processes. In the 1990s the R&D system was restructured, with the aim of solving the financial problems that had arisen during transformation, while at the same time seeking to better achieve a functional integration of R&D into innovation processes in the economy. A joint research project carried out by the 'Working Group Transformation of Science Systems (WZB) and the NISTPASS, Hanoi conducted macrostructural research and in-depth case studies in selected industrial sectors and R&D institutions to clarify how this is taking place, which organisational forms are created by it, and how the new structures affect the functions of R&D. This report presents the results of this research. The impact of doi moi policy in the area of S&T must be described as ambiguous: There is an incongruity between successful structural changes and their functional effects, in particular regarding increased innovation activities - which have so far not or only partially been achieved. Some serious problems in the science system, in industrial enterprises as targets of innovations and in infrastructural prerequisites for innovation diminish Vietnam's current and future potential to utilise R&D for economic growth and social welfare.

Description: Die Entwicklung Vietnams verläuft seit etwa 15 Jahren unter der doi moi (Erneuerungs-) Politik in zwei verschiedenen, einander überlagernden Kontexten der Transformation und der raschen Wirtschaftsentwicklung. Diesen beiden Kontexten entsprechen unterschiedliche Szenarien für die künftige Entwicklung: Ein Transformationsszenario nach osteuropäischem Muster und ein ‚Tigerszenario’ mit zunehmender Industrialisierung und einem raschen Wirtschaftswachstum. Dem in der planwirtschaftlichen Periode geschaffenen Forschungs- und Entwicklungs- (FuE) Potential könnte eine Schlüsselrolle in der künftigen Entwicklung zukommen. In den 90er Jahren erfolgte eine Umstrukturierung des FuE-Systems, die das Ziel verfolgt, die im Zusammenhang mit der Transformation entstandenen Finanzierungsprobleme zu lösen und gleichzeitig seine funktionelle Einbindung in das Innovationsgeschehen in der Wirtschaft zu erreichen. Wie dies geschieht, welche Organisationsformen dabei entstehen und wie die neuen Strukturen die Funktionen der FuE beeinflussen, wurde durch ein gemeinsames Projekt der Arbeitsgruppe Wissenschaftstransformation des WZB und des NISTPASS untersucht. In diesem Heft werden Ergebnisse dieses Projekts vorgestellt. Die Auswirkungen der doi moi Politik auf Wissenschaft und Technik müssen als zwiespältig charakterisiert werden: Es gibt ein Missverhältnis zwischen erfolgreichen Strukturveränderungen und deren funktionellen Auswirkungen, insbesondere hinsichtlich verstärkter Innovationsaktivitäten, die bisher nicht oder nur teilweise erreicht worden sind. Einige ernsthafte Probleme innerhalb der Wissenschaft, in den Industriebetrieben, die Ziel der Innovationen sind, und in der relevanten Infrastruktur vermindern Vietnams aktuelle wie künftige Möglichkeiten, FuE für Wirtschaftswachstum und Wohlstand nutzbar zu machen.

Description: In this paper we use new data to describe how firms from 15 European countries organise their innovative activities. The data matches firm level accounting data with information on the patents that those firms and their subsidiaries have applied for at the European Patents Office. We describe the data in detail.

Description: It is the government's role in the science and technology sector to foster cooperation between government, academe and industries; establish a competitive science research funding mechanism; promote the development of science and technology manpower; and establish a system to monitor, assess and forecast technology. To strengthen science and technology education at the elementary and secondary levels, however, requires an upgrading of laboratory facilities and equipment and hiring of qualified teachers. This paper enumerates measures to address the incentive problem in the science and technology sector, suggests ways to enhance research and development delivery system; and offers solutions to improve the science and technology coordination mechanism.