NEWS5 July 2021
The ideal partner for this initiative is facing a genuine business or sector-related opportunity or challenge.
A great opportunity for a tenant firm to access new ideas, the challenge is part of the Skillfluence programme, an online collaborative initiative which specialises in upskilling researchers and academics to work effectively with businesses.
The Business Challenge: The challenge or opportunity should be genuine and of wide interest, typically related to operational, logistical or global societal or economic issues. Previous examples include:
- How to reduce plastic use in farming.
- Helping a multi-national technology company design a digital factory of the future.
- Improving recruitment in the care sector.
- Stick or pivot – changing a business model in response to COVID-19.
- Helping a technology retailer develop strategies for reducing their carbon footprint.
- Addressing new markets – how a tech start-up could accelerate product development for these opportunities.
The researchers will work in teams to build their commercial knowledge and skills and bring a number of academic disciplines together to create a compelling presentation of their recommendations or ideas at the end of the three week programme.
Time Commitment (approx. 3 hours):
Time commitment from the participating business is minimal. Participants will only be required for an initial briefing to co-produce a written draft and video recording of the challenge. They will then be asked to attend a Q&A session and the final pitch session, providing their feedback afterwards. The date is to be confirmed but estimated to be mid-August.
If you are interested in getting involved please contact d.shanks@surrey.ac.uk.