1) Project backgroundEducation and businesses, whether for-profit and non-profit, are facing change like never before. Numerous driving forces to this change include rapidly expanding marketplace (globalization), and increasing competition, diversity among consumers, and availability of new forms of teaching technology, methodology and approaches. In this environment, competitiveness at company level depends crucially on the speed with which new products can be brought to the market and new cost-saving improvements made. Innovation - the ability to reap the rewards of scientific achievement - requires much more than the ability to turn a new idea into a working product. It requires the systematic and holistic approach of innovation management. From another point of view, education is on the dynamic path of change and modernisation. New innovative cross-functional and cross-disciplinary approach, engaging business, external stakeholders, the public, researchers and other third parties is essential. The Europe 2020 strategy, its Flagship Initiatives and the Modernisation Agenda of European universities put knowledge at the heart of the Union’s efforts for achieving smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. Including practical experience in courses can help attune curricula to current and emerging labour market needs and foster employability and entrepreneurship (Agenda for the modernisation of Europe's higher education systems, 2011 ). 2) Main aims and objectives of the project• To provide pedagogical methodology and course plan for obtaining competences, skills and knowledge in IM.• To provide European HEIs, researchers, experts and SME managers with fully documented training materials and tools in innovation management.• To increase the competitiveness and the innovation capacity by providing SMEs with the necessary IM tools and practices for their everyday activities. • To increase the European business and training community awareness and to cultivate a common consciousness about innovation management.• To increase the intensity and quality of business-academia collaboration by providing a ready-to-implement model.3) Number and profile of participantsThe APInno proposal has a balanced partnership structure and includes two HEIs, two SMEs, one Research Centre and one NGO active in HEI-business collaboration and adult training. Four different countries were involved: Bulgaria, Italy, Spain, UK.4) Project activities• Cross-Country Needs Analysis of SMEs managers and HEIs' stuff from the partner countries on the topic of IM• The merged results of the study are basis for development of IM methodology • Development of IM course• Development and testing of training materials for students, trainers, SME managers • Development of project web portal• Upgrading the project deliverables based on the feedback gathered from all involved parties (participants, trainers, experts etc) and elaborated final version• Final conference in Bulgaria3) Project Methodology - The APInno applyed a university-industry collaboration methodology through repeated cycles and in smaller portions at a time (incremental), allowing precise quality control for the results.4) Results and impact - The main outputs of the APInno project are the Innovation Management methodology, the IM course, Three sets of training materials, Guide for business-academia collaboration. These products will help both HEIs and SMEs to develop new practices to systematically manage their potential for innovation. Managers of SMEs and other organizations will be able to identify, value, select the best means to develop, trigger and share their most valuable asset: creativity. HEIs have a model for experiential learning approach in IM. Despite the widespread recognition of the need of innovation, practical guidance and systematic approaches to managing innovation were not available in an integrated training framework. This was exactly the overall aim of the APInno project: to transfer, adapt and develop an integrated training package (materials, tools and methodology) for Innovation management to benefit from this knowledge and use it in a practical manner in their everyday activities. All outputs are available on the web portal of APInno.5) Long-term benefits- Direct replication of the Guide for collaboration and APInno experiential model.- If appropriately connected with the industry, academia will be able to impact society, through their advanced identification of upcoming innovation management developments and challenges. Based on their future experience with APInno and the case studies of the work with SMEs academic institutions and researchers will be able to build models and identify upcoming challenges in the field and/or provide ready solutions.- SMEs will gain higher awareness of the benefits and role of IM.

Globalisation has created an extremely competitive environment, where faster pace of innovation is a critical to success. We are at the era of the knowledge based society, in which knowledge itself, incorporated in every product around us, which is the result of a chain of development processes, is a fundamental element of competitiveness. All EU member states demonstrate a percentage of SMEs over 99% (EUROSTAT 2015). If the EU wishes to retain its global position and to improve it against competition, it has to enhance creativity and innovation at that level. INCREMENTA project goal was to develop a set of training materials and tools addressing the development of an innovation management system, based on the new CENT/TS 16555 standard (Part 5-Collaboration management and Part 6-Creativity management) as released in 2013. This system addressed the needs of European SMEs. The INCREMENTA partnership consisted of the University NUI GALWAY (IE) as applicant, the university CULS (CZ), IDEC (EL) an LLL center and consultancy, TREBAG (HG) and KISMC (BG) consultancies on innovation subjects, FCI (ES) an innovation agency of a big Entrepreneurs’ Association, SAE EPE (EL) a major Entrepreneurs’ Association and LCC (PL), the Lodz Chamber of Commerce. The project created the following intellectual outputs:IO 1 . The Innovation Management System Guidebook for SMEs including contents regarding Creativity and Innovation thinking, Collaboration contents and a Health check for creativity and collaboration in SMEs.IO 2 . Training programme for Innovation Management in SMEs including training curriculum and materials developed on the issues of collaboration management and creativity management.IO 3. Online platform for SMEs innovation, including the collaboration board game, the Innovation thinking decision tree tool and innovation management mini games. All project outputs are available online. They were developed in 7 languages. The project started in Oct 2018 and ran for 2 years. Partners have committed themselves to sustain project results for a minimum of 5 years after the project closure. Further to producing intellectual outputs, partners deployed project management, quality assurance, dissemination and exploitation activities to generate long lasting results.The target groups of the project were:- SMEs of all sizes- Professional trainers and training institutes advancing/aspiring to train and develop innovation management competences, and IMS process to the assigned persons of the companies who will be responsible for innovation management within the company.

The purpose of the project is to develop a new methodology and teaching and learning model based on gamification for entrepreneurship compiled of both Entrepreneurship and Intrapreneurship. We aim to develop experiential learning model with a game and external business partners who will act as mentors to pupils and guide them in the process. Pupils work in teams to create virtual companies. At the end of the course pupils make expeditions to real companies and investors to present their businesses.The two target groups of NeXT are: - primary target are high school pupils in 10th,11th and 12th grades. Pupils are from general education and specialization in Management and Entrepreneurship.- secondary group - teachers in Geography and Economics; teachers in Entrepreneurship. Small-scale pilots of the model that we are proposing in NeXT have already been undertaken in the participating organisations and they show this model leads to reduction of early school leavers and higher pupils ‘engagement and thus better grades. By developing the project we have the following key objectives:- to take pupils out of their comfort zone via gamification to focus on user empathy, whole-brain thinking, collaboration, and experimentation;- to encourage pupils to start their own innovative businesses - whether or not they proceed and really found enterprises, they will develop entrepreneurial mindset and key business knowledge and skills; - to create better collaboration between schools and real businesses – in the process we foresee the active participation of managers and experts who will provide guidance and mentorship; - to develop necessary digital skills for both target groups - one, we aim for digital (virtual) business creation by student teams and second, lecturers use open educational resources to deliver the course and make it available widely. The project is set to produce four intellectual outputs as follow:-Teaching methodology and course syllabus; -Game, manual and training materials; -Teacher’s manual and study documentation; -Open education space platform. The ultimate outcome is development of a game and digital tools for starting and developing innovative business. The project will start with a detailed description and outline of the game content with the respective templates, tools and other elements that will be developed. We are focusing to equip the young people with the skills and mindset to start their own businesses Thus we develop our methodology in compliance with it as well taking into consideration the concepts we are using as well:- Innovation management with its elements – innovation culture, innovation process and capacity, innovation leadership. - Entrepreneurship – key elements of how to start a business- Intrapreneurship – how to develop the business- Design thinking – as a process to generate innovative products and services following the Stanford’s d.school framework: Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, Test.The project aims to adapt the development of competences to the changing world. The students will not work to learn new things but to think of new things from scratch and interact with the real business. NeXT project is designed for strengthening the links between school education and business and enhancing the entrepreneurial training by building effective methodology and course framework to be implemented across different schools and applicable to various competence levels.

Nowadays, problem solving skills play an important role in coping with complexity and change in today's society (European commission, 2018). These skills can respond to the growing needs of individuals to develop personally and handle obstacles and change. Problem solving skills apply prior learning and life experiences, with the look for new opportunities to learn and develop.The aim of ADDET is to develop the employability and problem solving skills and competences of VET students. For that aim, the project will develop an apprenticeship model for students in upper secondary and higher VET schools, based on the design thinking methodology as well as problem-based learning.The specific objectives of the project are:To develop problem solving competences and design thinking mindset for upper secondary and higher VET students through an apprenticeship modelTo develop problem based learning through an apprenticeship model that will follow a design thinking methodologyTo support VET trainers by developing a trainers’ guide addressed to trainers in VET schools and companies that will apply the apprenticeship model and will design, support and evaluate the apprenticeship programme. To create VET-company partnerships, experiment and validate the apprenticeship model To spread the idea of problem-based learning in apprenticeship by organizing seminars for trainers in VET schools and companies that are interested to apply the apprenticeship model.The project will produce three core intellectual outputs that are:IO1. Apprenticeship model for the acquisition of problem solving competencies and design thinking mindset. The apprenticeship model will consist in the development of a sustainable business solution, based on real problems of the company that host the apprenticeship. The apprenticeship will use problem-based learning methods to keep the students engaged. The apprenticeship model will include theoretical foundation and guiding principles for the design, implementation and evaluation of apprenticeship programme. The apprenticeship programme will be based on open-end real problems that the company faces. With the support of trainers, the apprentice will formulate realistic and viable business solutions to address the problems. The apprenticeship will also use the processes of design thinking methodology in order to adopt solution focused strategies. IO2. Trainers guideIn order to support the design, implementation, management, evaluation and validation of the apprenticeship model, the second intellectual output is a guide for trainers, in VET organisations and companies. The guide will prepare and train trainers from VET providers and companies to apply the apprenticeship model and to integrate innovative learning approaches (problem based learning and design thinking). The guide will also include successful stories from the piloting of the model, as well as instructions, suggestions to enhance the apprenticeship programme among new coming enterprises. IO3. VET – company partnerships guideThe third intellectual output of the project will focus on the creation of partnerships between VET providers and companies for the successful implementation of the apprenticeship model. The guide will present practical support for the creation of partnerships, benefits for companies and VET centres, practical steps and guiding principles for the establishment of a partnership for apprenticeships and lastly quality assurance principles of a VET-company partnerships. The direct target groups of the project are VET trainers and companies involved in apprenticeship programmes, yet, the final beneficiaries are students enrolled in upper secondary and higher VET schools and centres. The partnership consists of 7 partners: CEIG from Romania, ZBB from Germany, KISMC from Bulgaria, APDNE from Turkey, IDEC from Greece, CESIE from Italy and Magenta from Spain.The project is designed to have an impact at local/regional/national and european levels. ADDET will contribute to the promotion of apprenticeships and the development of networks and partnerships between VET organisations and companies. ADDET will also contribute to the promotion of apprenticeships at EUropean level.

SMEs are Europe’s motor for growth and employment. They represent 99% of all businesses in the EU and account for two thirds of EU28 employment. The availability of skilled labour is an important prerequisite to their prosperity. Nonetheless, there is a mismatch between the skills the labour market demands and those that the education and training system provides. Realising this mismatch, the European Commission has identified that quality work-based learning and apprenticeships can be an efficient way of addressing labour market imbalances. In countries, where there is a well-established apprenticeship system, such as UK, Austria and Germany, SMEs contribute strongly to the training of the future work force through their involvement in work based learning and apprenticeship schemes. On the contrary, in countries with more school based systems, like Slovakia, Spain, Portugal, Greece and Bulgaria, the engagement of SMEs in the supply of placements is more challenging as they lack the support systems and fail to realise both the financial and social benefits. The SMEs awareness of the cost-benefit analysis deriving from the work-based learning is therefore crucial in order to determine their participation to the apprenticeship system. Based on this need, “RoI of WBL and apprenticeships” project suggested the development of a return on investment (RoI) model and digital tool that allow European SMEs to calculate and visualise how investment on WBL and apprenticeships can manifest to multiple benefits. The innovative force of the project is the focus of its model to SMEs needs as well as the integration in the model and the digital tool of both SMEs-related benefits as well as society-related ones in order to clearly demonstrate the multilevel outcomes derived from work-based learning & apprenticeship practices. The general objectives of the project were: - make apparent the benefits of WBL and apprenticeships at the level of individual SMEs and the society. - promote WBL and apprenticeships by motivating the engagement of SMEs. The direct target groups were SME’s entrepreneurs, managers and staff as well as VET providers (vocational training centres, professional schools, employment centres) that cooperate with SMEs for the provision of WBL and apprenticeships. At second level, it targeted VET stakeholders and policy makers, national representatives of European networks as well as VET practitioners and experts. The main results of the project are: - A model for the calculation of RoI of WBL and apprenticeships by SMEs - A digital online tool that will demonstrate in visual way the RoI model - A Good Practices Guide addressed to SMEs, giving guidance on how to design, implement and monitor profitable apprenticeship practices which can benefit the enterprise, the apprentice and the entire society. - Creation and promotion of an apprenticeship-friendly SMEs badge to increase the engagement of companies in the provision of WBL. - Promotion of VET – SMEs cooperation, through experimentation and validation of the RoI model. - Organisation of promotional events addressed to SMEs entrepreneurs, VET centres and stakeholders that are interested to apply and promote the RoI model and tool. The project was implemented by 8 partners from 8 different EU countries in order to create results that have European wide applicability and impact, including countries that are still lacking in the engagement of SMEs in WBL (Slovakia, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Bulgaria), taking benefit from countries that are more advanced (UK and Italy) and using the technological know how of others (Cyprus). The expected long term benefits deriving from the project are: - increased supply of WBL and apprenticeship opportunities from SMEs - empowerment of mainly young people by expanding apprenticeship offer - better matching between skills needed by SMEs and those provided by the VET centers - increased number of VET business partnerships - contribution to the establishment of sustainable funding of WBL and apprenticeships through the self-motivation for investment from the side of the SMEs.