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Learn Engage Create
Across Europe governments wish to “Unlock the potential of cultural and creative industries” (EU Green Paper) given their positive impact on economic, cultural and social development. More specifically, policy focuses on promoting technical and “soft” innovation to help individual Creative Companies (CCs) achieve their potential and become highgrowth SMEs. In practice though, CCs are unlike other types of SMEs and face different barriers to innovation, including constant battles between creative value v. commercial value. Traditional business education has not often responded well to CC needs, but fortunately many universities are generating collaborative projects for CCI partners, sharing applied research, technology applications and clustering. Beginning in 2010, the SUPORT project developed resources to train SMEs to successfully collaborate and access innovation alongside HEIs. Despite very successful pedagogical materials, the results were limited by a homogenous approach to SMEs. Learn Engage Create (LEC) adapted these resources specifically for CC managers and employees. The project was led by Northern Chamber of Commerce, representing over 1500 companies (many CCs) in West Pomerania and included Prestige Brand, a successful Polish CC, a French innovation expert, a UK specialist in elearning and digital marketing and the European BIC Network, reaching enterprise support providers all over Europe. This included 3 of the original SUPORT partners, ensuring the optimization of original results in this new sectoral/ geographic context. Project outcomes are delivered via a dynamic website and multimedia DVD and includes: • User friendly, visual, interactive roadmaps to accessing innovation and research• Classroom training course designed for use by business support providers • Self-guided e-learning materials for SME owner managers and senior employees Thanks to a focussed needs analysis, rigorous pilot test, participatory dissemination process and comprehensive exploitation, LEC was a highly effective training option allowing CC employees to learn flexibly and acquire new skills for business growth. The distribution of the DVD for use by SME training organizations throughout Europe contributed to the further goal of increasing the ability to respond to the specific needs of the CCI and embedding HEI partnership skills as a new element in business teaching curricula.