Poles of competitiveness, a first appraisal Issue editor: Claude Trink   Editorial François Valérian   Poles of competitiveness: Inventory and prospects in the spring of 2008 Grégoire Postel-Vinay The French policy of supporting poles of competitiveness has set off a momentum. The instruments need, of course, to be improved and adapted. But what is needed to succeed is continuous, visible public support in defining and implementing each pole’s strategy.   Local experiments The nuclear pole in Burgundy, or the art of variance Frédérique Pallez and Stéphanie Fen Chong The relatively atypical position of the nuclear pole of competitiveness in Burgundy apparently ensues from the doctrine adopted when poles were launched. Although some public authorities had a more normative (or selective) conception, the choice finally made was to propose an “institutional shell” while waiting for parties in the field to infuse it with life by choosing the themes, axes, partners, limits, etc. Created on the initiative of the nuclear industry, Pôle Nucléaire Bourgogne has inherited this legacy. This sometimes causes it to be at variance with conventional models and spawns debate locally. The new industrial dynamics in the Nord-Pas-de-Calais Region Francis Wallart Despite its history as a single-industry region, Nord-Pas-de-Calais has proven capable of mobilizing all concerned parties to use its six poles of competitiveness to impart a new driving force to its economy. Although the underlying idea is that economic development depends on innovation, there is no miracle solution. For innovation to occur, there must be a convergence between attitudes, persons and parties. Imaginove, a pole of global competitiveness Ludovic Noël The poles of competitiveness have, in a short time, proven their ability to generate an impetus in their field of concern. Most of these poles are shifting from technological to global competitiveness by providing support for international programs and acquiring new skills and qualifications. The tools are not yet very reliable, and public support is needed to enable the poles to move onwards to a new phase of development. Minalogic and the economic ecosystem in Grenoble Jean Therme Minalogic (Micro Nanotechnologies et Logiciel Grenoble-Isère Compétitivité) is a pole of international competitiveness based on an unusual marriage between microelectronics and software technology. Proceeding from the clearly formulated observation that innovation alone will generate new activities and produce sustainable jobs in Western industry, this pole has proposed endowing firms with a long-term competitive advantage thanks to miniaturization, embedded intelligence and connectivity. Minalogic is located in the ecosystem of Grenoble, France, an area long reputed for its ability to bring research, training and industry together thanks to support from public and private interests. Solutions of secure communications Céline Haouiji Given its strategic position, ambition and structures (with major manufacturers, small businesses and research laboratories), the Solution Communicantes Sécurisées (SCS) pole of competitiveness has turned toward national and international partnerships. This orientation is essential, since the products coming out of projects backed by the pole are made for worldwide markets. A center of applied research contributes to innovation and local economic development: The Eastern Plasturgy Pole Claude Trink and Gilbert Pitance A research center can do much more than support technological progress. It can make proposals and spearhead local economic development. This is what has been achieved by the Pôle de Plasturgie de l Est (PPE), with its grounds in Moselle’s strong manufacturing tradition. Integrating a strategy of sustainable development in the poles of competitiveness: The example of Cosmetic Valley Denis Chabault Setting up a pole of competitiveness does not just impart momentum to a region. The pole becomes a showcase for industry. Close attention must be paid to expectations about the industry in question. Cosmetics must now cope with strong environmental concerns and with demands from activist NGOs. Cosmetic Valley, a pole of competitiveness in Centre Region, is trying to take up this challenge.   A dynamic cluster of information and communication technology in Ontario Allison Bramwell Companies that do not strongly compete with each other and are turned toward world markets, a university where research is conducted in industrial applications and the curriculum alternates periods of work in the classroom and on the job… these are a few factors accounting for the success of the new “technology cluster” in Waterloo, Ontario.

Crossing viewpoints Poles of competitiveness and the agencies that fund research and innovation Jean-François Guthmann When the poles of competitiveness were launched in 2005, the French government substantially modified the cartography of the organizations that fund research and innovation. Two new agencies were set up (Agence Nationale de la Recherche and Agence de l’Innovation Industrielle); and two previously distinct structures, placed under a public “holding” (OSEO: Agence Nationale de Valorisation de la Recherche and  Banque du Développement des PME with its subsidiary, SOFARIS). Three years later, an initial assessment can be made of the place these agencies have taken in funding projects approved by the poles. Training and poles of competitiveness Claude Maury At first glance, we are surprised to see that the poles of competitiveness have not made training a priority. Given the importance of skills and talents, they must develop the dimension of learning. The Observatory of the poles of competitiveness Thierry Weil The Observatory of the poles of competitiveness made a call for contributions; and the selected articles and research findings are published in this issue. We thank Thierry Weil and the staff at the Observatory for their work. The keys to success: A comparison of seven poles of international competitiveness Gabriela Miranda In Grenoble as in others poles with an international dimension, the government, local authorities and other participating parties (universities, private firms) must sustain their efforts to create a web of confidence and become actual economic partners in international projects. Confidence and collaboration are the key words for the future of these poles. A policy comparison: The examples in Japan and South Korea and their partnerships with French poles of competitiveness Christian Vicenty The models of innovative poles adopted by Japan and South Korea tend to be exogenous: top-down development with clearly defined priorities and the stated aim of competitiveness in the international market. In practice however, they are counterbalanced by strong initiatives from private innovators, who play the leading role in funding R&D in these two lands. How to relate poles of competitiveness and centers of transfer? Philippe Lefebvre The poles of competitiveness do not all respond to the same problems in matters of innovation. For some of them, mainly those with participating small businesses, the question of transfers between research projects and firms is central. But how to achieve this? Should “centers of transfer” change or not; and if so, how? The Pole Microtechniques in Franche-Comté is a clarifying example. Poles of competitiveness: Real leverage for innovation in small and midsize firms? Philippe Bassot, Cécile Ezvan and Julie Koeltz Some poles of competitiveness have managed to mobilize small businesses, but much is still to be done to involve the latter in the pole’s organization. The poles must reach out toward firms and make clear proposals regarding qualifications, cooperation, market positions and access to funding. The poles of competitiveness assessed: What “cluster model” for France? Julie Tixier and Luciana Castro Gonçalves Given that poles of competitiveness are of recent date, a quantitative grid for assessing them cannot reflect the reality if it focuses only on performance criteria. Given the current development of these poles, a better suited approach would be to take into account previously existing relations and the relations between the parties participating in a pole. Accordingly, the discriminating factor becomes not a pole’s productivity but its control over information and its mobilization of a collective, cognitive heritage, which distinguishes French regions from rival sites. Miscellany   ISAE: Merging two major engineering schools in a process of internationalization François Bouchet Can engineering schools merge like companies? Common points exist: the need for a plan of action, economies of scale thanks to synergy, distinct “cultures” to be brought together while maintaining respect for individuals, the feeling of belonging together that is to be created within the new establishment… In the quite special education market, two French engineering schools (Institut Supérieur de l’Aéronautique et de l’Espace and Écoles des Officiers de l’Armée de l’Air) are trying to position themselves so as to maintain their originality in the system of grandes écoles.