Innovation: Fuelling Growth and Success in Europe
That innovation is of paramount importance in driving growth and success in
Europe is of no doubt to anyone in the corporate or political sphere. For the
past few years, it has been the most common theme running through the speeches
and messages delivered by ministers, educational establishments and CEOs. Why
is innovation so important? The high cost of labour and social security in Europe
has driven much of its traditional manufacturing capacity to cheaper places. Now,
Europe needs to deliver value of a different nature, and of a different magnitude.
From this need springs the innovation imperative. As a company which has
been a leader in technology innovation since its inception, Oracle places innovation
high on the executive agenda. This ethos reflects our strong underlying belief
that the constant ability to innovate and to adapt to new markets and customer
demands is crucial in sustaining our leadership position. The diversity
of the European market challenges our corporate imperatives of globalisation.
At the same time, it is fertile ground for innovation. With one-third of our revenue
coming from the 75,000+ Oracle customers and 10,000+ partners in the Europe, Middle
East and Africa (EMEA) region, we have a vested interest in helping to boost growth
and innovation in Europe. This vested interest is more than just academic.
Over the past years, we have been building a comprehensive 'innovation' agenda
that focuses specifically on Europe. Reaching far outside the company itself,
this programme aims to foster and reap the benefits of innovation: -
amongst ourselves
- with customers
- with partners
- with leaders
The
question is simple: how can companies stimulate, guide and leverage innovation
to create value for their customers and their enterprises, and thus for the community
at large? The answers are many and complex, and Oracle is committed to helping
Europe find them. To help Europe's quest for innovation, Oracle organises,
sponsors and participates in events and think-tanks to share experience among
enterprises and, most importantly, with the EU and Europe's policy makers. Under
the banner 'Innovation Initiative', we organise events with large enterprises
and SMEs, to build bridges with the EU and help to guide investments towards innovation.
Led by the conviction that valuable, sustainable innovation flourishes
best in an organisation where customers are directly and continually engaged in
the process, we launched a formal Innovation programme in EMEA at the beginning
of 2001, to proactively seek and leverage customer- and partner-driven innovation.
Sponsored by the EMEA Management Board, the Innovation Network is driven from
the field and encourages employees to explore new ways of creating value for end-users.
It identifies, assesses and rewards innovation initiatives, and most importantly,
encourages deployment of such innovations both horizontally across markets and
vertically back into our core products. Since the scheme began, more than 1,000
innovations have resulted in an estimated 5% of pipeline sales, 15 new products
and 10 major process improvements. Our partners also play an important part
in front-line innovation by developing cutting-edge solutions and services for
their clients using our products and technology. In 2004, we created the Oracle
PartnerNetwork Innovation Award. In addition to the award itself, the winners
receive support for an advertising campaign to promote the winning solution, access
to a Marketing Development Fund for business expansion into other countries, and
enjoy greatly enhanced visibility with the Oracle sales force. Innovations
that come to life are the product of a consciously planned and actively driven
effort, where teamwork is paramount. Oracle is convinced that this teamwork has
to extend beyond our own boundaries into our customer, partner and community networks.
As we move forward, we hope to inspire you and your organisation to join us in
the pursuit of continuous innovation.
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