The Future of Innovation is Collaboration

At the heart of research lies innovation. And at the heart of innovation lies disruptive change. In previous posts we’ve looked at the disruptive power of trends within IP protection and prosecution; how lab automation is changing the way R&D is done and the unstoppable momentum behind externalization.

The result is that the ‘lab of the future’ is very much on the research community’s agenda, as people try to predict and plan for not only how research will be carried out in the future but also what the shape of tomorrow’s research-oriented organization’s business model will be. From the scientist in the lab, to the executive, we’re seeing that innovating innovation is front of mind.

A problem shared

Externalization and collaboration have gained the kind of traction in the pharmaceutical and biotech sectors that, long ago, propelled players in the energy sector into an almost exclusively externalized business model. As technology helps organizations strike a balance between safeguarding IP and working with partners and collaborators, we’re witnessing the concept of ‘working together’ becoming an increasingly virtual experience, both within in-house teams as well as with third parties.

Great expectations

While research by business pundits has shown that the drive towards collaboration is certainly being led from the top and by business imperatives, we believe this isn’t the full story. As we’ve explored through the topic of user experience in E-WorkBook 10, consumer habits and expectations are infiltrating and influencing the behavior of researchers in the lab. Just as ease of use has come to be expected of even the most sophisticated enterprise data management technology, so business collaboration and virtualization have found fertile acceptance among professionals who regularly use technology to stay in touch with friends and family across continents.

A truly global village

Reports predict that tech-savvy millennials will comprise 75% of the global workforce by 2025. As yesterday’s interns become tomorrow’s end-users and eventually heads of research and beyond, it’s safe to assume that virtualization will continue to gain momentum and R&D technology will have to keep up to meet expectations. It’s why ‘social’ features such as the ability to comment on and discuss others’ findings and the flexibility that comes from a web deployment are so important to the latest version of our ELN platform, E-WorkBook 10.

Connectivity as a way of life

It’s also why IDBS Connect is such an important event. Not only will we be hearing how our customers have successfully managed to collaborate, including in a dedicated breakout session, the whole event really has collaboration at its core. It’s about bringing together experts, thought leaders, end-users and decision-makers to share knowledge and experiences. The event itself promises to offer plenty of opportunity for collaboration and interaction through live polling,Twitter contests and more via the event App.

If you’ve not already got your ticket, you’ve still got until Friday 15 May to register and be a part of Connect 2015.