Ocean Open Innovation

The aim of the project is to establish structures and processes in the cluster network that will make it possible to counteract the shortage of skilled workers in the field of marine engineering professions in the long term. Particularly in the Rostock regional center, in an area like MV, it is important not only to create attractive living conditions for a well-trained workforce, but also to inspire local young people to train in the marine and underwater technology sector of the future. By creating the appropriate framework conditions, more companies will settle here in the long term due to an appropriate potential of skilled workers in the region, and likewise skilled workers will be attracted by an improved job offer.

The strategy of the cluster to promote the regional economy and the science location in the field of marine technology and underwater technology will be supported by establishing a critical mass of skilled workers at the location. In particular, talent development, various specially designed training courses at the most modern level and better accessibility to labor for companies will be achieved through the planned measures. The creation of greater transparency and permeability of previously isolated structures and better cooperation between companies and institutions also creates a climate in this area that is determined by "open innovation".

Ocean Gender offers Ocean Technology Campus facilities expertise and service in strategy development in the HR area with a focus on gender equality, particularly on the topics of personnel recruitment and marketing as well as talent promotion.

One of the main objectives is to attract female junior staff and specialists to the underwater technology sector and to Rostock as a location, thus counteracting the shortage of skilled workers. Ocean Gender supports Ocean Technology Campus institutions in identifying and dismantling structural barriers and exclusion mechanisms so that the innovative strengths of all genders can be brought to bear. Ocean Gender sees itself as a service as well as a think tank and platform for sharing experiences, raising awareness and identifying needs.

Such actions include:

• Governance: Development and support of the Ocean Technology Campus network, Equality and equal opportunities of the Advisory Board, representing the network in the Ocean Technology Campus Steering Committee, providing gender equality advice
• Talent promotion: female inventor camps and mentoring program "Stairways to your future" for female STEM students,
• Female Recruiting: Image film, recommendations for action, guides on tender channels and non-discriminatory staffing procedures.

The project described here is intended to advance the establishment of processes and methods for establishing gender parity in the occupational groups of UW-Technology, both in the area of apprenticeships and in the academic, engineering area. For this purpose, a diversity coordinator will be hired and her competencies will be built up in order to present the occupational profiles for girls and women attractively on the one hand and to remove gender-specific access barriers on the other hand within the cluster network and beyond with targeted measures.

The strategy of the cluster includes above all the establishment of sustainable structures and processes in the interaction of all participants in order to develop the location in an innovative and future-oriented way in the sense of the innovation field Ocean Open Innovation. This can only succeed if equal opportunities and support for disadvantaged groups are guaranteed from the outset.

The project takes an essential position in innovation support: It aims to develop and test the essential processes, structures, infrastructures and methods for close, cross-organizational communication and cooperation in the cluster. The functions of information procurement on markets and technologies, strategic planning, innovation management and external presentation, which have so far always been isolated within the organization, are to be opened up and restructured in the cluster on the topic of marine technology. This is intended to enable the participating cluster partners to respond more quickly to technological innovations and market needs. Another important goal is also to reinterpret the previously disadvantageous small-scale economic structure and develop it into agile, virtual companies. The first three years in particular also aim to build trust between the players (at management and working level), which is of considerable importance for the opening up mentioned above. This is where the project comes in and gradually creates the prerequisite that innovation capability is raised to a new level through close cooperation between the partners and a lived cluster.

The "International Ocean Accelerator" (IO-Accelerator) will be an innovative offer in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania for "technology-oriented founders" from countries where marine and underwater research is carried out in order to give well-educated talents from there the chance to implement their ideas at the Ocean Technology Campus Rostock. Marketing measures are intended to publicize this offer, especially in emerging markets (O5 countries) and the UK, where a large potential of ideas and teams is suspected. Talents from Germany and the "rest of Europe" coming from marine and underwater science (university or research institution) as well as business (industry and medium-sized companies) are also in focus. Technology providers who have already developed their own technology, are currently developing it, or who have ideas for a technology and want to develop it in the future are to be supported in the Accelerator just like technology takers, i.e. specialists who want to use an existing high-technology in order to implement it commercially.

The "IO-Accelerator" project aims to create a space on the Ocean Technology Campus in the fishing port of Rostock where teams can come together and further develop their start-up ideas related to underwater marine topics. Due to the spatial proximity, the teams can easily exchange ideas with each other at short notice on various topics, e.g. product development, sales set-up, etc., and thus benefit from each other. In addition, they have short distances to interesting mentors. At the IO-Accelerator, they will find a complete working infrastructure, from individual workstations to laboratory and consulting rooms, as well as IT and back-office services. They also receive English-language consulting, coaching, and seminar support from the Accelerator team to make fundamental progress in the following areas:

1. Completion of team competencies
2. Technological progress in product or service development
3. Generation and protection of intellectual property
4. Access to target markets
5. Funding of the project.