Clusters and competitiveness - PRO INNO Europe
Clusters and competitiveness - PRO INNO Europe
Clusters and competitiveness - PRO INNO Europe
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This working method led the members of the micro-cluster through three consecutive<br />
stages.The first stage identified the main challenges of the micro-cluster from the members’<br />
point of view. The work in this stage consisted basically of holding interviews with the<br />
companies, <strong>and</strong> generating a climate of trust. At the same time, a mapping of the activity<br />
was carried out, which provided the delimitation of the micro-cluster <strong>and</strong> the identification<br />
of the various strategic segments in which it competed.<br />
The second stage united the members in a common task: formulating a joint proposal for<br />
a vision of the future. In this stage a competitive diagnosis was carried out, in which new<br />
points of view originating from the technical analysis usually emerged, as a rule differing<br />
from the sector’s conventional wisdom. It was very useful to make trips at this stage, to<br />
learn, at first h<strong>and</strong>, examples of how other countries had responded with good practices to<br />
problems similar to those of the micro-cluster.<br />
Finally, the third stage, based on the work of the previous ones, defined the guidelines to be<br />
followed in order to strengthen the micro-cluster’s <strong>competitiveness</strong>.<br />
Figure 6. Diagram of the process of agreed change<br />
Month 1 Month 2 Month 3 Month 4<br />
Establishing<br />
the microcluster's<br />
challenges<br />
1 st public presentation<br />
Launching <strong>and</strong> motivating<br />
48 CLUSTERS AND COMPETITIVENESS: THE CASE OF CATALONIA (1993-2010)<br />
Proposing a<br />
common view<br />
for the future<br />
Source: Conejos, J. et al. (1997): Canvi estratègic i clústers a Catalunya.<br />
2 nd public presentation<br />
Breaking with the sector's<br />
conventional wisdom <strong>and</strong><br />
proposing a view of the<br />
future<br />
Defining<br />
the lines of action<br />
3 rd public presentation<br />
Achieving cooperation<br />
actions<br />
Within this theoretical framework, over twenty specific initiatives to strengthen<br />
<strong>competitiveness</strong> at micro-cluster level were set up in Catalonia between 1993 <strong>and</strong> 2004,<br />
developed as part of a largely non-interventionist industrial policy, recommending<br />
strategies decided by the companies themselves, <strong>and</strong> offering support focused on<br />
opportunities rather than problems.