Startup Thinking

Activities

• Tech Scenario and Scouting Workshops (Italian and English): 5 Research cycles related to specific areas chosen each edition, to identify and analyze the most interesting Italian and international startups in the specific field. For each defined Research area, a census, mapping, and startup analysis are conducted. The following are also developed for each census: a detailed Database, a Scenario Booklet, detailed Fact Sheets. Each Research cycle ends with a Pitch Workshop (5) to discuss the innovation opportunities analyzed, and startup pitches (approximately 10 per meeting) selected with the partners. Partners are actively involved in the pre- and post-Workshop phases through one-to-one sessions with Researchers. Support is also provided to Partner companies to arrange direct one-to-one meetings with startups of interest and for in-depth discussions with Researchers. Over the pasts ten years, over 21,000 startups have been analyzed and surveyed.

• Methodological Insights Workshops The project also includes 4 annual workshops focused on processes that characterize the approach to Open Innovation and Corporate Entrepreneurship, to acquire skills and methodologies, and share best practices. the workshops feature the participation of professors from Politecnico di Milano and other universities, experts, guest speakers, and direct experience sharing among partners and experiential work groups.

• Annual Open Conference Each year there is also an open Conference addressed at all those who involved in innovation, where Partners can participate as speakers in round tables. The event is organized jointly with the Startup and Hi-tech Scaleup Observatory and the Digital Transformation Academy Observatory. Last year the Conference was attended by approximately 30 speakers and over 500 participants.

• Discovery Session: every year the Observatory organizes a visit to an excellence in innovation ecosystem to which the entire community of partner organizations is invited. The objectives are to raise awareness and establish contact with technological excellence at national and international level, improve the development of the community, the climate of trust and collaboration, and enable work that brings “out of the box” ideas for innovation.

• Collaboration and Discussion Tables Each edition includes Discussion/collaboration Tables among partners, focused on topics such as cultural transformation and revision of innovation processes, and topics of interest to the partners. In methodology and operational terms, the tables are supported by experts from Politecnico di Milano.

• Project work with students Startup Thinking is opening the doors to some of the many assets of Politecnico di Milano. It offers the opportunity to work on projects with students from the Politecnico di Milano on briefs of interest to partners and to have privileged access to startups hosted by Polihub Innovation Park and Startup Accelerator of Politecnico di Milano.

• Community Startup Thinking brings together the first and most dynamic Community of Innovation Managers in Italy. The eleventh edition of the project attracted over 500 individual participants from Partner companies at project meetings.

• Visibility actions for Partners The project supports the visibility of partner organizations engaged in their cultural transformation journey towards open innovation with an impact on their brand awareness and attractiveness, with the additional aim of revitalizing and stimulating the entrepreneurial ecosystem of our Country. Visibility is supported through participation in discussion and collaboration forums, round tables, Workshops and Conferences of the Digital Innovation Observatories, as guest speakers at GSoM Politecnico di Milano Courses and through collaboration with publications (EconomyUp, Startupbusiness, over 60 publications in the eleventh edition), with agreed periodic publications covering the experiences of our partners, as well as actions on social media. Partners can also host one of the scheduled events, ensuring visibility inside and outside the company of their innovation activities conducted with Politecnico di Milano.

• Weekly Newsletter and Project Repository Research and Workshops are accompanied by a weekly Newsletter with the most important news on Italian and international startups and open innovation, to provide comprehensive and ongoing knowledge on the opportunities offered by this sector and the most promising business organizations. All the results of all editions are accessible through the project repository.