Friday 27 May 2011

The business matchmaker

There are often opportunities within a business that if progressed, could deliver benefits such as a new product range, increased market share or international expansion.

Sometimes, there could be internal issues that if addressed could cut costs, enhance business processes or increase productivity.

However, it is often the case that businesses do not have the internal skills, knowledge, know-how or technology to address these opportunities or issues. Nor can such skills or knowledge be simply bought “off-the-shelf”.

TechFast® is a program designed to overcome that by by identifying and linking businesses with the right people and organisations in deeper partnerships.

The TechFast® program is delivered by the Australian Institute for Commercialisation and supported by the Queensland Government Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation (DEEDI). Since 2004 the program has assisted more than 194 businesses across Australia, including 59 in Queensland.


Via five key stages, TechFast® connects businesses to the right external capability to:

• Solve product, process or service issues
• Identify and access technical capability to fill internal gaps
• Identify new growth opportunities for business

The five stages of TechFast® are to:  

1.    Identify the external capability that a business needs to progress an opportunity or address an issue

2.    Search for the right external capability to meet the needs of the business

3.    Connect the external capability and the business

4.    Facilitate the collaboration or partnership to achieve successful outcomes

5.    Monitor the partnership to ensure the desired outcomes and results are achieved

How does this differ from simply finding the right supplier? Of course, a business can do this itself if an off-the-shelf product meets its need. However, here we are talking about seeding deep collaborations that involve sharing and implementation of new ideas that result in innovation and wealth creation.

TechFast® is a needs-driven business support program that works with businesses to assist in areas that require external capability by providing practical, hands-on support, expanding businesses networks and providing introductions to potential partners of interest.

The program gives access to additional innovation, commercial experience and new sources of ideas, and provides independent facilitation of new commercial negotiation and partnership agreements.

The outputs of the TechFast® program are targeted toward connecting business with the
right organisations to deliver real business innovation solutions. A recent report undertaken by an independent economic consultancy quantified these outputs.

TechFast®  participants were interviewed about results they had already achieved, or expected to see in the future, and independent economic researchers concluded that many businesses would not have commercialised ideas or diversified product lines without the AIC’s assistance through the program.

However, consultation with program participants indicated that direct benefits to their business (e.g. increase in sales, employment, or exports) were not directly seen until approximately two years after the initial program participation, over which time, products are developed and tested in the marketplace.

The impact of the TechFast® program to date is estimated to be worth over $350m each year to the Australian economy. These benefits have recently convinced the Government to renew its support of the program, which has already helped almost 200 companies to grow.

It estimated that the TechFast® program generated an average benefit to each participant of almost $1M in additional revenues each year and created an average of three new FTE positions per company that participated in the program.

TechFast Case Study - Rip Curl:
The AIC’s TechFast program helped Rip Curl, a global brand synonymous with surfing products and beach culture, find new technologies and advanced materials to develop its second generation power heated wet suit – the H Bomb.

It did this by helping Rip Curl find and seal partnerships with the research and private sector that resulted in the production of prototypes and manufacturing capabilities for the new wet suit.

TechFast Case Study - Frontline Australasia:
Frontline Australasia, a Victorian-based manufacturer and supplier of precision components and assemblies, engaged with the AIC’s TechFast program to facilitate a relationship with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) which subsequently resulted in a licence agreement to use its innovative manufacturing techniques as well as a multi-million dollar collaboration project to commercialise the technology.

“The Australian Institute for Commercialisation was successful in facilitating the negotiations between Frontline Australasia and CSIRO, in establishing the research project, and helping achieve the outcome targets.”  (Kevin Hooper, CEO, Frontline Australasia)

Contact us to find out how TechFast® can help your business connect to the necessary capabilities at info@ausicom.com or visit our website www.ausicom.com
 

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