Accenture Launches Open Innovation Initiative in Japan

From Accenture:

Accenture Launches Open Innovation Initiative in Japan
 
Initiative gathers technologies and ideas from startups and provides a wide range of services to support new business development and address community agendas

 
TOKYO; Dec. 10, 2015 – Accenture (NYSE: ACN) announced the establishment of the Accenture Open Innovation Initiative designed to connect various stakeholders including global businesses, academia, startups, and local communities in order to support the growth of clients and address community agenda. The Initiative, which is part of the global Accenture Open Innovation program, aims to become the central hub for open innovation in Japan that gathers technologies, talent, ideas and information needed to facilitate open innovation.
 
The rapid development of digital technologies in recent years has allowed many companies, institutions, and individuals to innovate new products and services, and become disrupters in their industries. At the same time, many companies face difficulties identifying the suitable digital technologies and partners to achieve their growth strategies and gain competitive advantage through innovation. To capitalize on the rapid and wide ranging propagation of innovative digital technologies in society, the development of new ecosystems extending beyond industrial and organizational boundaries is needed.
 
Main support provided by the Accenture Open Innovation Initiative
 
Gather startups, academia, emerging technology companies and innovative digital technologies
The Initiative will serve to uncover cutting edge technologies and ideas held by startups, academia and emerging technology companies throughout the world, and identify those that show the most promise to help our clients advance their business. Accenture runs open innovation Initiatives in various locations around the world, where the technologies and ideas of the global startups are discovered, filtered, and catalogued on an ongoing basis. The Accenture Open Innovation Initiative will create a system for maximizing synergy between startups, major companies, and institutions based on knowledge and information from the world through a close working relationship with those global centers.
 
Support new business creation to meet the needs of companies and institutions
In order to meet the needs of companies and institutions in the digital age, the initiative will provide one-stop client support for driving innovation; from creating new business strategy and models, through business plan creation and pilot experience, to helping new organizations and businesses get launched. According to research by Accenture, advancement in collaboration between major companies and startups will generate approximately 94 billion dollars of growth potential in Japan, equivalent to 1.8% of the GDP. The Accenture Open Innovation Initiative will leverage the abundant track record and know how in management strategy possessed by Accenture to help companies launch and grow their businesses.
 
Build ecosystems to solve the problems of communities and society
In order to develop and operate an ecosystem for solving the latent agendas of society and communities that have so far been inadequately addressed, the Accenture Open Innovation Initiative will engage in proactive dialog with NPOs, educational institutions, government, and companies to identify those latent agendas and provide an opportunity for community citizens to take a leadership role in agenda solving.
 
As one example of specific initiatives, Accenture will enter into a comprehensive partnership agreement with Yokohama City on December 2, 2015 to facilitate open innovation. The initiative will include developing and operating of a digital platform that promotes solutions for problems faced by Yokohama and its economic revitalization, promoting education and use of digital technology, and providing information concerning open innovation that Yokohama City progressively facilitates.
 
The Accenture Open Innovation Initiative will also work closely with the Accenture Digital, which promotes digital businesses such as digital marketing, the mobile business, and analytics, to help promote the adoption of digital technology by businesses and governments.
 
“For corporations and organizations to ensure long term success, they must apply digital technology to all of their businesses, and also form broader ecosystems through cooperation with external stakeholders to achieve speedy and sustained innovation," said Yoshinori Tachibana, managing director responsible for the Accenture Open Innovation Initiative in Japan. "Today, open innovation is garnering attention throughout the world as one of the keys for sustained innovation. In light of this, I am very pleased we were able to establish a Initiative that consolidates the required functions for creating innovation in Japan. Accenture will serve as the lubricant for creating innovation between numerous corporations, communities, educational institutions, and venture capital firms to contribute to driving innovation in Japan.”
 
About Accenture
Accenture is a leading global professional services company, providing a broad range of services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries and all business functions – underpinned by the world’s largest delivery network – Accenture works at the intersection of business and technology to help clients improve their performance and create sustainable value for their stakeholders. With more than 358,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries, Accenture drives innovation to improve the way the world works and lives. Visit us at www.accenture.com.
 

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