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Q4 2004 Issue 10 TABLE OF CONTENTS
IP Initiatives – Which ones have the
biggest impact and best return on investment?
Sample IP Improvement Projects for
2005
Companies that have listened to and
benefited from their internal IP advocates
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HAPPY
HOLIDAYS
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LETTER TO IP PROFESSIONALS
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Dear [[firstname]] [[lastname]],
IP
advocacy, selling up the ladder to top management, is the
focus of this newsletter. IP professionals, R&D
professionals, and even business managers continuously
identify opportunities to improve their IP processes and
overall performance. Whether it is to reduce risk, generate
more revenue, or better leverage their IP, the people who
are IP stakeholders are usually advocates for opportunities.
Internal
company advocates may be willing champions for IP, but they
are often stifled by corporate decision makers’ lack of
understanding of IP issues and their own lack of time and
resources. Most IP stakeholders are still dealing with the
onslaught of resource reductions to cost centers like IP.
Most IP organizations can barely keep up with what has to be
done to maintain the status quo. They don’t have the time
and tools to effectively present the opportunities they see.
Quantifying the benefits in terms that management could
understand and value takes time – and often requires
external validation to demonstrate and verify real world
experiences. As a result of these hurdles, most IP
stakeholders move these opportunities to the rear of the
line—often times with great frustration.
PetrashWilliamson helps organizations break the cycle of
inaction and frustration by providing tried and true methods
for measuring IP opportunities and by providing clear and
effective approaches for getting top management support.
We are
dedicated to helping IP professionals and their stakeholders
become more effective at managing and monetizing their IP
portfolios.
I hope
that this issue of the newsletter will get you thinking
about your IP opportunities and how to take a proactive role
in initiating them.
I look
forward to hearing from you. We are always interested in
your insights.
Sincerely,
Rob
Williamson (rwilliamson@ipambestpractices.com)
PetrashWilliamson
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| IP MANAGEMENT QUESTIONS |
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IP INITIATIVES – WHICH ONES HAVE THE BIGGEST IMPACT AND BEST RETURN
ON INVESTMENT?
Do you
have the ear of Top Management?
Do IP issues lack visibility in the executive suite?
Are you looking to establish some IP wins that get Top Management’s
attention and improve your credibility?
One of the keys to gaining top management support
for an IP opportunity is to select one with the right
characteristics. Choose an IP initiative that:
* Would make an impact on the business (reduce cost, improve
sales/profit, reduce risk, impede competition, improve financial
position)
* Has a high probability of success
* Can be implemented and executed in a short period of time
* Has resource and priority
commitment from the function, unit or business that is impacted
by it
* Has a clear plan of
deliverable and the metrics to determine success
* Has a focused project
manager capable of accomplishing the objectives.
* Has a business leader’s
active support
The more of
these characteristics your initiative has, the likelier it is to
receive and sustain support.
Think about what you have to sell,
and what it would be worth to management. To get you thinking
about specifics, here are some successful IP projects that
PetrashWilliamson has been involved in:
* Inventory of patents (profiling
them with use, ownership, value, etc.)
* Supplementing the inventory with
Agreements, Trade Secrets, and other Intellectual Assets
* Documenting procedures and
metrics to support Six Sigma initiative
* Implementing an IP
Intranet as a source of information, communications, training,
forms, procedures etc…
* Developing a procedures guide with tools and processes for
reference and for corporate memory
* Mapping the as-is IP processes and identifying best practices
that should be processes for improvements
* Building an intangible evaluation capability that will allow
internal evaluation of patents and other intangible assets
* Conducting benchmarking meetings that will set targets for IP
performance
* Evaluating donation of IP for potential tax benefit.
(Eligibility is more restricted in today’s environment but a
deduction could still make sense.)
* Building a library of IP best practices that can be referenced
for any IP activity
* Initiating a licensing program
* Monetizing IP (raise capital, reduce the cost of capital)
* Meeting regulatory requirements (FASB, SEC, Sarbanes Oxley)
*SAMPLE COMPANIES THAT HAVE LISTENED TO AND BENEFITED FROM
THEIR INTERNAL IP ADVOCATES
Dow Chemical
PricewaterhouseCoopers
Thomson Multi Media
Samsung
Pechiney
* Publicly disclosed their experiences.
The professionals in PetrashWilliamson have contributed to the
successes of the above companies in identifying and getting
support for internal IP initiatives. Additionally we have seen
similar successes with global companies we have worked with in
Healthcare, Oil and Gas, Major Manufacturing, High Technology
and Biotechnology.
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Dear IP Professional,
I would like to take this
time to thank those of you who have contributed,
collaborated and engaged with us to achieve our great
success in 2004. As we enter year number three of our
practice, we are excited with the great opportunities and
expanded services we will be providing. We will be expanding
our benchmarking efforts to provide you greater levels of
insight. Additionally, we plan to offer more interactive
dialogues on leveraging best practices to apply the right
practices.
Let’s make 2005 a stellar IP year.
Happy Holidays,
Rob Williamson, President
PetrashWilliamson
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Click here to request >>
How Metrics Can Put IP at the Heart of Your Company’s Agenda
Requires Adobe Acrobat
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Other White Papers and Articles
CLICK HERE TO GET MORE INFORMATION ON PETRASHWILLIAMSON
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Newsline:
SURVEY
ON STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY |
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Over
60 Companies participated in the Survey on Strategic
Management of Intellectual Property.
This
comprehensive report includes over 150 questions and 60
exhibits and graphs. It is organized into three strata of
companies, delineated by invention disclosure activity.
Additional delineations are by major industries.
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(Study was organized into
three groups based on Annual Invention Disclosures- 0-150
Disclosures, 150-500 Disclosures, and > 500 Disclosures)
Sample
Findings:
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All (100%)
of the Larger Companies (>500) measure the effectiveness of
their IP group by # of patent applications filed and # of
patents granted whereas 69% of Smaller Companies measure the
effectiveness of their IP group by # of patent applications
filed.
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Most
companies surveyed, regardless of size or IP activity level,
stated that “lack of management support” and “lack of
understanding” are the biggest challenges in managing IP.
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Most IP
portfolios are audited annually or rarely, if at all.
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Less than
50% of the surveyed companies do a patent search before
initiating any R&D or product development.
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Marketing
plays a more significant role in IP decisions in smaller
companies than in the larger companies.
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Over 50%
of the companies do not use quantitative criteria to guide
patenting decisions.
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Larger
companies (75%) are more apt to use specialized software
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applications
to automate or support IP management decisions.
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IP
headcount reporting directly to operating units is more
prevalent in smaller companies (48%).
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Education
is the highest priority for IP Departments in Large Companies.
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Over 69%
of the companies had a Patent Review Board.
For more
information please contact us. 630-416-7459
Contact
PetrashWilliamson to purchase or request the overview
630-416-7459
>>Click
here to get details on the complete report. |
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| BENCHMARK REPORT |
Organization
of IP Function
Patent
Data
Intellectual
Property Processes
Intellectual
Asset Portfolio Maintenance
Intellectual
Asset Portfolio Management
(Strategic/Portfolio
Exploitation)
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Intellectual
Property Asset Management Benchmark Report: 10 Industry Leaders This Benchmark
Report is a unique offering from PetrashWilliamson. It provides your
IP leadership with tremendous insights of 10 leading companies IP
program. Included in the report are Process, Metrics,
personnel and technology. Large companies get a picture
of what their contemporaries are doing and small/medium size
companies get exposure to companies practices to learn for future
application.
The authors
provide you with a synopsis of the interviews as well as the detailed
answers. They discuss the complete IP lifecycle.
>>Click
here to get overview on the complete report. |
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| TOP
14 CHALLENGES FOR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY PROFESSIONALS
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1.
Excessive reporting requirements
2.
Business people do not understand Intellectual Property
3.
Delusional Management
4.
Extensive reporting requirements
5.
Lack of definition & context
6.
Ad hoc
processes
7.
Determining where to start
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No consistent process
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Inefficient
& costly
10.
Functional
silos
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Under
leveraged portfolio
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Lack
of alignment with business strategy
13.
Difficult
to develop metrics
14. More
to-do and less resources
CLICK
HERE TO TELL US IF YOU AGREE OR DISAGREE |
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630 416 7459