Fostering CCI in industrial regions
Fostering CCI in industrial regions
For whom?
Creative Entrepreneurs
As a creative entrepreneur you can join an existing local or regional CCI association or network. If you don’t have a CCI one in your region, meet with other creatives and start one. With an CCI association representing the interests of creatives it’s much easier to influence policy making in your region. See “How to do a focus group” for gathering tips.
Creative entrepreneurs can be actively involved in an “CCI competency training” as experts. Such a training can be organised by your local or regional CCI network or another organisation supporting CCI.
To find out what CCI offers in your region already exists, search the internet for events and support services for creative entrepreneurs. You can check for events of your local/regional business support organisation, Chamber of Crafts, Chamber of Commerce, CCI network/association.
(Industrial) Companies & Clusters
Working together with creative entrepreneurs has many advantages. For example new approaches to any stage of the production phases as well as in integrating creatives in the development of new innovations. Check out the practical test cases “CCI factory” or “Future Creative Industries” to get inspired. If you work together with creatives you will also benefit from formats like “Design Thinking” or “Creative Problem Solving”
Do you know about a creative network in your region? If yes, get in touch with them for contacts to creative providers. Often CCI associations or networks as well as regional development agencies and Chambers of Commerce and Crafts do have surveys of CCI entrepreneurs or can connect you.
You can integrate innovative workflows in different ways. Creative professionals can become part of certain production processes or counsel where creative solutions become necessary. There are already tested formats and best practices in other regions, where e.g. designers or artists work together with industrial companies, research or crafts. Check out our test case “Future Creative Industries”, “Industrial Hackathon”, “Living Lab” and “CCI Factory” for inspiration. Ask in your regional CCI network for experiences. “Art thinking” or “Design thinking” are two of the formats that can be very useful for designing an innovative workflow. Check out our “formats” section to get to know about these creative formats.
The best way is learning from a creative business itself. Check out if there are events in your region organised by your local or regional CCI network, regional development agency or equal institution that supports an exchange between creative entrepreneurs and other sectors. If there is no event coming up, you can initiate an exchange by inviting a creative business to yours to tell something about (daily) creative business methods.
Education, Training Centers & Schools
You want to start an educational project to get to know how creatives work? And you know creatives in your region who have already worked with schools? Or schools that already participate in projects with creatives? Ask them for cooperation and inspiration. For some inspiration from the “InduCCI” project please have a look at our test cases “Cross-over Curriculum” and “Future Creative Industries”.
Business Support Organizations
As you accompany resident companies and support them in their growth, you are connected to the existing entrepreneurs and factories in your region. To support local CCI adequately, first of all, you should know what creative workers exist near you (entrepreneurs, solo self-employed, start-ups, creative factories, …). In the next step, it is recommended to be able to give an overview of the funding structures that support CCI in their needs, like e.g. start-up advice and business support. Furthermore, you should know whom to connect them to in case of any special need you can’t help them yourself. Therefore, it is recommended to get in contact with the local CCI and find out on what topics they need support and collect possible answers to their questions.
As contact persons for both sides, industrial companies and CCI, you know the necessities of both sides. You can find out what they are struggling with, which problems they may face at the moment and give advice. According to this knowledge you can extract interfaces and initiate possible cooperation.
Find out what other organisations are offering similar advisory like you do. Furthermore, it is recommended to have an overview of all the organisations CCI are consulting and get in touch with each other. Exchange constantly about upcoming topics in your region to have an overview of the actual local situation.
You could establish a regular round table with other organisations to agree on similar topics and perhaps you divide up among yourselves as experts in certain subject areas. This way, if somebody asks you about something another member of your roundtable is expert in, you can connect them with each other before giving the wrong advice.
Education & Research Organizations
Normally, industries start to plan an investment and decide to involve a creative worker in the development of the product itself. It is recommended to involve creative professionals in early stage research because on the one hand, they can give you another perspective of your idea and, on the second hand, they could come up with different ideas to solve your problem you may never have thought of before. Creative workers often are used to diverse creative techniques of problem solving that may help you in the development process.
Get in contact with creative Hubs or coworking spaces in your region. Furthermore, regional chambers may give you an overview of registered entrepreneurs in your region or - according to existing privacy protection - they may connect you with locations where you can find creative workers.
Artistic interventions are a form of action to intervene in the current trends of your city or region. Socio-political or current technical developments are dealt with artistically as well as everyday questions of coexistence in cities or non-urban areas. For this purpose artists work together with local initiatives or research institutions to bring important issues on the table and make them accessible for inhabitants. Check out “Arts meet technology” for getting to know about cooperation between research and art and “Kulturcafé” for artistic intervention in city life.
Creative interventions by artists can help find new perspectives in a certain stage of research development or for a product that is currently developed. For example, if you are developing new materials (e.g. programmable materials), artists can test these materials against the backdrop of their artistic year-long experience for daily use. New approaches to these materials will arise. Check out the video for “Arts meet technology” where international artists worked together with Fraunhofer research institutes and the Saxony Textile Research Institute in Germany for inspiration.
