Dubai - MENA Herald: In line with the directives of the President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, declaring 2015 as the ‘Year of Innovation’ and as part of the UAE Innovation Week announced by H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice-President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, the Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry announced its strategy to stimulate innovation in the private sector which is based on three main pillars including enablers of innovation enablers, measuring innovation and honouring innovators under the Dubai Innovation Index launched in the second half of this year and whose results will be announced soon. H.E. Hamad Buamim, President and CEO, Dubai Chamber, stated that the objectives behind the launch of this innovation strategy is to promote and support innovation in the private sector in line with the Chamber’s mission to represent, support and protect the interests of the business community in Dubai. “This is also to consolidate the Chamber’s reputation as one of the leading Chambers in the world to invest in stimulating innovation among the employees by creating a conducive work environment based on high standards of global human resources management,” he said. The President and CEO of Dubai Chamber further stressed that Dubai Chamber has developed an integrated strategy covering all stages of the innovation process in the private sector, adding that the growth and development of innovation requires the contribution of all segments of society, and on its part, the Chamber’s innovation strategy is based on three main pillars. The first pillar of the Chamber’s innovation strategy, which is based on innovation enablers coming under the innovation and creativity management system, is the Dubai Chamber Innovation Lab, which is a unique system being applied for the first time outside the United States to stimulate creative ideas and innovative initiatives having a positive effect on the economy. The Innovation Lab is based on four stages. The first phase features a process of receiving and compiling innovative ideas and includes the development of skills training in the field of creativity and innovation, and providing incentives to owners of innovative ideas while activating communication with customers. The second phase aims to achieve ‘Pioneers of Innovation’ status through digital platform and research centre activities to transform ideas into concepts which is one of the main pillars in the process of enabling innovation by providing a fitting platform for receiving innovative ideas that will help enhance Dubai's reputation as an international destination for trade and finance. The third phase includes the formation of a private sector working group represented by operators from various economic sectors in the emirate to follow up on the development of innovative ideas through stimulating workshops and meetings where these ideas are studied and analysed leading to their application or are forwarded to competent authorities for further action. The last phase involves coming up with recommendations and solutions to stimulate innovation in the work environment. H.E. Buamim pointed out that the Mohammed bin Rashid Smart Majlis (Council) launched by H.H. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice-President and Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, helps to provide everyone in the emirate and the world over to come up with innovative ideas and comments in improving the quality of life and making Dubai the smartest and the fastest-developing city in the world, he said. The second pillar of the innovation strategy is based on measuring innovation through the Dubai Innovation Index which is an innovation management system launched by the Chamber in cooperation with PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC), one of the largest professional service networks in the world. This Index’s aim is to help identify the driving factors of innovation to encourage companies to adopt effective approaches to innovation, enabling them to measure the results on the basis of business development in particular and Dubai economy in general. The Dubai Innovation Index, whose results will be announced soon by the Chamber, is a composite benchmark of innovation in the emirate, and is a qualitative and quantitative indicator of the performance of the economy. While most innovation indices in the world measure innovation at a macro level, this Index measures innovation in the private sector, and gauges its impact on the overall innovation levels in the city. The Chamber studied global indicators to adopt what is best suited to Dubai’s economy, creating the first index in one of the world’s emerging economies. The Index measures innovation in eight key sectors which are retail and wholesale; industry; real estate; tourism; transport and logistics; medical care; and financial services and education. It highlights the rate of innovation in each sector, and how it affects innovation in general in Dubai. H.E. Buamim pointed out that in the first phase, the Chamber identified several actions necessary for the development of innovation in the private sector, the most prominent of which is the importance of measuring the current status of innovation to develop it further. “The Chamber also made a comparative study involving innovation-driven cities of the world to identify opportunities for improvement and chart recommendations for business, academic and government communities to develop innovation. The first phase also stresses on the need to honour innovative companies to create benchmark models and remain up-to-date with annual follow ups on innovation development,” he said. The index is based on the study and evaluation practices, drivers and results, by studying best practices, and evaluating the results, to show the private sector’s contribution in the process of innovation and creativity of Dubai's economy. The third and final pillar of Dubai Chamber innovation strategy is to provide incubators and a stimulating environment for innovation by supporting and honouring innovators through the Chamber-organised Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Award for Business Innovation launched by the Ministry of Economy in cooperation with Dubai Chamber during the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Business Award’s eighth session. “With its objective to encourage national companies and organisations to adopt innovation, both in their operations and services, which will not only enhance the stature of the country in global competitiveness reports that rates international businesses, but will also encourage them to adopt productivity improvement initiatives to serve their customers better,” added H.E. Buamim. The Chamber’s internal strategy focuses on investing in staff by the developing their skills through training in the area of creativity and innovation while honing their talent by receiving and compiling their creative ideas and providing incentives to creators and owners of innovative ideas, as well as activating communication with the staff and customers. The Chamber plans to invest AED 100 million during the next three years in innovative projects and initiatives such as the Dubai Innovation Index and the Dubai Chamber Innovation Lab as well as smart applications that enhance customer experience while strengthening Dubai’s position as one of the best global business destinations. This investment is part of Dubai Chamber’s strategy to invest AED 500 million over the next three years to serve the business community and to enhance its global competitiveness.
