Manchester Institute of Innovation Research ANNUAL REPORT 

the Academy of Management, the Atlanta Conference on Science and Innovation Policy,
DRUID, EURAM, the Global Tech Mining Conference, the R&D Management Conference,
and the Society for the Study of Nanotechnology and Emerging Technologies. Several
Theme 1 members are involved in the Innovation Co-Lab (see highlight). Theme 1 members
also engaged with many other organizations in 2011, including the UK Defence Science &
Technology Laboratory (DSTL) and the US National Academies.
Highlight: Innovation Co-Lab – a leading-edge international collaboration
The Innovation Co-Lab was launched in early March 2011, a strategic partnership between MIoIR,
the School of Public Policy and Enterprise Innovation Institute at Georgia Tech (USA), and the School
of Management and Economics at Beijing Institute of Technology (BIT, China). Initial sponsorship
was provided by the British Council. Colleagues from three private-sector affiliates are also currently
associated with the Co-Lab. The Co-Lab offers a collaborative framework for extending mutual
research capabilities in science, technology and innovation domains, with a focus on trajectories
and implications of emerging technologies. Activities include virtual and on-site research
collaboration, academic exchanges, joint student training, collaborative bids for sponsorship, and
active dissemination of methods and findings. Research has focused on nanotechnology (including
research developments and commercial pathways in three areas: dye-sensitized solar cells,
biosensors, and graphene) and on “green goods” technologies (with a new ESRC-sponsored Co-Lab
project underway to examine growth strategies of innovative green goods sector companies in the
UK, China and USA. Regular e-lab (video conference) and workshop exchange activities are features
of the Co-Lab, with training modules for young researchers held in 2011 on advanced methods of
data mining and web scraping. The Co-Lab is sponsoring an International Conference on Innovative
Methods for Innovation Management and Policy in Beijing, 21-24 May 2012
(http://www.aaaa.org.cn/im2012/), including a short-course program in Beijing led by MIoIR staff.
The Co-Lab Directors are Prof. Philip Shapira (MIoIR), Dr. Jan Youtie (Georgia Tech), and Prof.
Donghua Zhu (BIT). MIoIR members of the Co-Lab in 2011 include Ozcan Saritas, Sally Randles, Elvira
Uyarra, Kieron Flanagan, Denis Loveridge, Abdullah Gök, and Evgeny Klochikhin.
Going forward, the newly-designated AIMS theme will build on a strong base of work in
Theme 1 and across MIoIR. This includes our long tradition of work on resource based and
evolutionary theories of the firm and their application to our understanding of fundamental
questions about the nature of organisations, the management of the innovation processes
and the character of strategy. AIMS will focus on emerging research themes associated
with the innovation process, its management, organisational and strategic dimension
within firms and other organisations. Our interest is on the whole innovation process from
idea generation through to commercialisation as well as the interface between innovation
strategy and business strategy. AIMS seeks to advance understanding and practice not only
in technological innovation but also innovation in business models and organisational
structures and processes as well as the context conditions that influence the innovation
process. A primary objective of AIMS is to provide a forum for MIoIR staff to discuss areas
of common research interest and a platform for engagement with practitioners from firms
and other organisations. In particular, AIMS will seek to enhance engagement with the
practitioner community through links to Daresbury, other University unit (e.g. the
Manchester Enterprise Centre and the University of Manchester Aerospace Research
Institute), external intermediaries, and individual companies.
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