Intellectual property rights can build stronger, competitive and resilient SMEs
World Intellectual Property Day 2021 shines a light on the critical role of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the economy and how they can use intellectual property (IP) rights to build stronger, more competitive and resilient businesses, as it runs under the theme, “Intellectual Property & SMEs: Taking your ideas to market”.
Nust Innovation Hub: Advancing University Innovation
Far too much otherwise usable university research fails to find its way to advanced stages of research, commercial products, or other uses.
Given the fundamental nature of much university research, a certain amount of this research will appropriately reach its potential with publication and classroom instruction, but a substantial volume of these innovations instead deserves life in products, services, research tools and methodologies, and other uses. Unfortunately, exploitation of university innovations does not seem to be what it could be in Zimbabwe and is significantly below its potential for evolving to later stages of research, advancing human welfare, and spurring economic growth. There are success stories that should be celebrated, but when measured against potential and opportunity, much more must be expected from and more must be done by industry, government, universities, and their respective leaders.
The government has declared and reiterated that our country’s development thrust shall be to support and pursue the usefulness of the fruits of research conducted using government funding, including through increased collaboration between and among industry, universities, and government. This calls for maximising results of research that contributes to or can result in economic growth, industrialisation and advances in human welfare.
Context for advancing university innovation
The more traditional roles of universities in teaching and basic research are critical means by which universities advance knowledge, pursue innovation, and contribute to the well-being of society. Innovations derived from universities and other Research and Development (R&D) institutions have transformed our communities, nation, and our world in exciting and fulfilling ways. A new reality has evolved in recent decades in which universities pursuing their research missions are now positioned to catalyze innovation and economic growth and improve the human welfare in the country. In this quest, the government has established Innovation Hubs in select universities in the country. The government’s education 5.0 policy thrust is anchored on universities driving the industrialisation of the country through coming up with innovations that can be commercialised.
Educational benefits of advancing university innovation
People frequently consider money as the primary benefit to a university that advances its innovations, but money may be among the least important. Yes, revenue is available from royalties, license fees, equity positions and options, and sponsored research. In addition, success and good experiences can increase donations from alumni and others associated with the university experience, which can enhance labs, facilities, equipment, endowed chairs, and more. However, there are direct benefits to the university’s core academic mission. Evidence suggests that when universities engage well with business and strive to maximize their innovation potential, staff, students, and the university itself can experience profound educational benefits. For academic staff, the experience of engaging with industry while advancing innovations can enhance professional development and lead to coaching or mentoring relationships and other experiences that benefit them in the lab and the classroom.
In the lab, researcher interactions with business might help them keep current with or get ahead of trends and recognise new, different opportunities for their existing or future research or its results. Researchers and staff also might better understand valuation, development, and commercialisation processes. In the classroom and as advisors, such academic staff might have more credibility, be able to relate more tangibly to their students’ work aspirations, and provide a better window into real world content applications and processes.
For students, hands-on research opportunities increase knowledge and marketability. Working with professors who have commercialised innovations can improve what and how the students learn and can open doors for internships, fellowships, advanced education, and jobs—all of which also benefit industry and our society. These interactions, between universities and industry, also contribute to the mutually beneficial social networks that facilitate research collaborations, shared ideas and healthy debates. These interactions allow for the direct flow of ideas from the university to business and vice versa across a wide range of disciplines.
Moreover, university-business relationships can enhance the university’s reputation, thereby allowing it to recruit higher quality staff , who attract more research funding that yields advances in research and results, which perpetuates a cycle—all to the benefit of academic staff, students, and the university. Industry has a vested interest in preserving academic and research integrity or it risks losing money invested in developing products based on faulty research, their profit potential, and opportunities lost because of the wasted time and focus. Such problems also can affect the quality of the workforce and can devastate companies and their employees, creditors, investors, and even communities. In addition, ethical lapses can undermine reliability of research results that are or are perceived to be compromised.
Intellectual Property
Universities best at advancing innovation understand that there are a variety of options when addressing intellectual property issues regarding ownership, exclusivity, use rights, and other matters. They also understand that different innovations may warrant different strategies; different stages of development afford varying degrees of leverage; and different market demands, risks, and opportunities may justify different tactics.
Patenting may be the best approach when it is essential to preserve a legitimate competitive advantage, to exploit the invention for substantial commercial or social gains or both, or to arm against infringement claims. Patenting may not be appropriate in other contexts or sometimes even if the above mentioned factors are present. Patenting is not the only intellectual property option available for protecting or exploiting university innovations. The precise strategies deployed should depend on any number of factors,
· Including the following:
· The likely commercial and non-commercial applications for the innovation, including uses for further research and exploration;
· The possible commercial and social value;
· The extent to which further development is necessary to realise potential;
· The presence of a unique market demand or opportunity and even if a present or likely future market exists at all;
· The likely business interests, including ease to replicate and time to market;
· The existing and likely competition, if any;
· Whether protection inhibits or enhances basic research
· The effective commercial life for the innovation; and
· The social and other costs associated with a preservationist approach.
These factors help universities determine whether to patent, to assign, to license, or to make the innovation freely available as open source, through publication, or otherwise.
If the university pursues licensing, it then must determine whether the licence should be exclusive or non-exclusive, limited in time or perpetual, limited in geography, limited to a particular use, or if the terms and restrictions should vary depending on whether the use is for commercial, academic research, or charitable purposes.
Ways To Protect an SME’s Intellectual Property
When it comes to your company’s intellectual property (IP), you can never play it too safe. Enforcing nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) is a good first step toward protecting your business, but these documents may not cover everything. Sometimes you have to think outside the box to attain an optimum level of protection for your business’ proprietary data.
- Restricted Data Access
To protect your intellectual property, SMEs must restrict access to it. For one, not all of an SMEs employee needs full access to the complete product in order to work on it. By restricting their access to the full product, you can better protect it. Also, SMEs must be sure to store all important files and documents in a secure location with not just a simple password, but adaptive authentication.
- Education About Your Company Policies
SMEs need to ensure that employees across all levels of their company understand company policy, especially when it comes to confidentiality. They need to understand the various levels of IP protection. In regulated industries like healthcare, people are usually more disciplined, but for less-regulated industries, education and policy is the only way to avoid loss and leakage of IP.
- Contractual Language And Protective Controls
Beyond nondisclosure agreements, there needs to be contractual language that specifically addresses intellectual property use and ownership. This should be clearly stated and agreed upon by all parties. In addition, technological controls must be placed on the intellectual property itself to protect it from being accessed, modified, used or transferred in accordance with the agreements.
- Pre-Vetted Messages For Discussing Protected Topics
A lot of unintentional disclosure happens because someone is struggling to convey a message and can’t think of a better way to say it. SMEs must prepare vetted content that allows employees to talk about important topics, both publicly and with partners and market vendors, without giving away secrets. Make sure employees understand why approved phrases work and listen to their feedback when more is needed.
- Better Physical And Digital Security Tools
SMEs must be aware of the tools available to them to protect their confidential data. That means doing something as simple as installing hard locks on doors where your IP is kept or installing strongly encrypted firewalls to protect your digital data, along with facial/fingerprint scanning for access to such IP data. Keeping track of the tools available and the people who access it is important.
- A Holistic Approach To Data Ownership
It is important for SMEs to understand that Agreements, awareness training and technology work in concert to create an overall environment of data protection and confidentiality. People are more likely to protect data if they own it, understand its value and importance and see how it applies to them. Technology such as well-implemented data loss prevention strategy acts to validate and ensure that an SMEs IP is safe.
- Pursuing Legal Action When Necessary
SMEs must understand that having an employee agreement and IP/patent strategy are worthless unless they are willing to back it up when challenged. If a third party infringes on a patent or steals IP and the SME does not pursue litigation, it will be sending the market a message that those assets are fair game.
- Non-Communication
The best advice one could receive in terms of IP protection is that unless it is a question of life or death, SMEs must never communicate anything that they really think is core to their business differentiation in terms of implementation. Just discuss the outcome, not the way to get there.
- Accessing The Right Tools For Handling Data
SMEs must always Keep in mind that their IP protection is all about providing employees with the right tools to handle data in an obvious, easy and natural way that is also secure and safe. At the end of the day employees want to do the right thing—give them the tools to easily do it.
- Strong Vendor Vetting
It is extremely important that business leaders, assess the different ways they can be exploited for intellectual property. One of the easiest things to overlook is your market vendors. The easiest, strongest advice is to make sure your market vendors operate legally in a jurisdiction where they would be legally liable for IP wrongdoings.
- Deeper Knowledge Of The IP Creation Structure
Usually SMEs think a NDA is thought to be the most important document, but in many cases, the IP is created in a complex scheme in which subcontractors, contractors, temp workers—local and overseas—are involved. It is strongly recommend that SMEs study and follow this structure in full and ensure you cover IP creation properly with each individual contributor (preferably with explicit IP transfer agreements).
Far too many meaningful university innovations lie dormant and under-utilized. Given the amount of money spent annually to further university research and the relatively low levels of quantitative return, one can argue that this under-utilization creates enormous waste, unrealized potential, and even moral failure. Among these innovations may lie more effective ways to cure, treat, and prevent disease; ways to better conserve, exploit or replenish natural resources; technologies that allow us to better understand science; or any number of other useful discoveries. We need sustained efforts to advance university innovations as envisioned by the Education 5.0 policy. The government could also offer tax incentives to enterprises investing in collaborative research, thereby bridging the current “valley of death” to “increase economic welfare and the productivity of government R&D investment.-chronicle.cl.zw
