The Finnish Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment has published the findings of an independent evaluation of VTT's role in Finland's research and innovation system.
The evaluation was commissioned in June 2018, and the report, drawn up by Gaia Consulting Ltd, was published on 31 January 2019. The report praises VTT's competence and identifies customer centricity as its challenge.
"I am pleased with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment's decision to commission this evaluation, as it shows that the government is beginning to understand the effects of R&D cuts", says VTT's President & CEO Antti Vasara. "I agree with the report's conclusions on our strengths and weaknesses – they give us a springboard for tackling global challenges to benefit our customers and the entire society even more efficiently than before."
The report calls particular attention to innovation ecosystems and identifies them as the best platform for cooperation between VTT and businesses. "Innovation ecosystems provide a dynamic collaborative platform for solving complex challenges and inspiring a range of parties to work together using new, flexible forms of cooperation", Antti Vasara explains.
The objective of the evaluation was to identify areas in need of improvement and new ways for both VTT and the government to improve state ownership steering. The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment's release on the findings of the evaluation can be found here (in Finnish). Antti Vasara has also written about his views on research funding and the future of innovation policy in VTT's blog, which can be read here (in Finnish).
