1. Czech Benchmarking Experience
Jiří Loudín
Sofia 19th November 2004

2. Czech Public R&D – EIS 2003
Sofia 19th November 2004

3. Czech BERD – EIS 2003
Sofia 19th November 2004

4. Czech Innovation – EIS 2003
Sofia 19th November 2004

5. Innovation trend – IES 2003
Sofia 19th November 2004

6. Evaluation system - Academy
soon after Academy of Sciences - international standards – international evaluators
defensive strategy against attacks – to prove scientific excellence
1993 – AS R&D personnel reduced by a half
evaluation applied in reduction
Sofia 19th November 2004

7. Spreading of system
university growing – not strong need for evaluation
industrial research privatised
late 90ies – adoption of evaluation by other public R&D organizations
various schemes and standards
Sofia 19th November 2004

8. Weak points
oriented on science indicators while neglecting innovation (patents, products, etc.)
unsatisfactory ex-post evaluation
weak link to funding
low standards and requirements (to preserve what survived from R&D)
Sofia 19th November 2004

9. Evaluation guidelines 2004
government resolution on evaluation R&D
unification and quantification – „to make it objective“
based on centralized available statistical data
administrative (bureacratic) form of institutionalization?
Sofia 19th November 2004

10. CZ Benchmarking in public RTD not well established yet
neither well defined nor institutionalized
rather „informal benchmarking“
intuitive benchmarking in communication and
conducting research
Sofia 19th November 2004

11. Institutionalization
advanced world based on institutions
transition countries culture: strategy of individual ingenuity and survival
B: not to pick up champions (we know them) but to analyze and specify their success – to fix it in some schemes to be followed by others –
to enable to „everybody“ to become excellent
we are suspicious and sceptical about institutns and schemes
Sofia 19th November 2004

12. RECORD CZ Quantitative survey: 401 R+D units addressed
140 R+D units responsed
including
- 52 HE units
- 42 AS CR units
- 37 BERD units
Sofia 19th November 2004

13. Readiness for benchmarking
successful R+D units
business-like R+D units: benchmarking as PR, self-promotion, image-building
interested in learning
curiosity
Sofia 19th November 2004

14. Reluctance to benchmarking
mental block: to be compared with friends and neighbours?
difficult task: to mix competition and co-operation
fear to fail
no benefit for us
Sofia 19th November 2004

15. Qualitative benchmarking
QB – necessity
live interactions/interview
learning process for both sides
B as specific expertise/know-how
self-reflection - BB
Sofia 19th November 2004

16. Case studies Department of Cybernetics, CTU
Centre for Molecular and Gene Biotechnology, AS
Aeronautical Research and Test Institute
Centers of Excellence
Sofia 19th November 2004

17. Case studies lessons+reflections
balanced distribution of competencies
synthesizing competencies – to mix science and business culture
human factor – do charismatic leaders matter so strong due to low level of institutional infrastructure/culture?
to convert individual excellence into a system
Sofia 19th November 2004

18. Troubles with champions
exceptional people/institutions are exceptional – contingency
search for excellence or for learning potential?
high learning potential of failures and dynamic cases (they move fast either up or down)
Sofia 19th November 2004

19. Benchmarking know-how
learning process for both sides
who should be benchmarkers? –administrative bodies, reseachers/peers, benchmarking experts?
benchmarking as expertise
Sofia 19th November 2004

20. Communication strategies
defence strategies of evaluated units:
effort for self-promotion, hiding the weak points
denying the competences of the interviewer –
expert-lay (master-disciple) relationship, supremacy of specific scientific discipline
B as co-operative/competitive project – interviwer must prove his excellence, he is „benchmarked“
Sofia 19th November 2004

21. Thank you
and
good luck
in benchmarking
Sofia 19th November 2004