IPST/CPBIS TechnoBusiness Forum Focuses on Open Innovation and Enterprise Transformation

Atlanta, Georgia -- June 13, 2005 -- Flowing from exceptional positive feedback gained from the 2004 IPST / CPBIS TechnoBusiness forum, IPST and CPBIS invite you to attend the 2005 TechnoBusiness Forum on September 19th and 20th in Atlanta, Georgia at the Georgia Tech Hotel and Conference Center.

TechnoBusiness -- The term implies a bond between technology and business, an interdependence that drives both to achieve more together than separately. It is a term well-suited to the forest products industry, where research and innovation have driven process improvement and new product development for decades. The 2005 Forum program is being designed around a theme that embraces Open Innovation and Enhanced Platforms for Innovation and how they collectively relate to Enterprise Transformation.

The opening keynote address will focus on Open Innovation, a concept developed by Henry Chesbrough in his book, Open Innovation; the New Imperative for Creating and Profiting from Technology . Rather than relying entirely on internal ideas to advance the business, an “open” approach to innovation leverages internal and external sources of ideas. Rather than restricting innovations to a single path to market, open innovation inspires companies to find the most appropriate business model to commercialize a new offering—whether that model exists within the firm or must be sought through external licensing, partnering, or venturing. Later, a CTO and other leaders' panel representing a cross section of the industry will lead an open discussion on current uses and potential merits of open innovation in the forest products industry.

Attendees will also participate in discussion panels to highlight the need for and issues around pursuing an open innovation approach to tomorrow's key industry developmental issues. These discussion panels will focus on the role of open innovation in the development of nanotechnology and biorefineries, and how these technologies can help sustain and grow the industry.

The content for this year's Forum is being developed in close collaboration with the Tennenbaum Institute (TI) for Enterprise Transformation at Georgia Tech and its director, Dr. Bill Rouse. The Tennenbaum Institute focuses on developing business practices and organizational cultures that help existing enterprises become more cost-effective and competitive will address enterprise transformation and its relationship to innovation. A portion of the forum will engage the participants in a demonstration of TI's R&D World, an organizational simulation to analyze and improve R&D decision-making.

The forum is led and hosted by the Institute of Paper Science and Technology (IPST) and the Center for Paper Business and Industry Studies (CPBIS) at the Georgia Institute of Technology and co-sponsored by TAPPI.
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