How to nurture a world-class innovation ecosystem
Oxfordshire is one of the world’s most well-regarded locations when it comes to science and innovation. With competition from the likes of Silicon Valley, Boston and Beijing stiffening, how is Oxfordshire standing out as the innovation destination of choice?
In a recent episode of the OxTalks podcast, OxLEP spoke to Artem Korolev, Founder and CEO of Mission Street – a specialist independent investor, developer and operator of science and innovation real estate – about how Oxfordshire stands out globally compared to other innovation hubs and how it nurtures its innovation ecosystem to be the best it can be.
Oxford has an international-renowned identity shaped by hundreds of years of innovation stemming largely from the University of Oxford, which has played an instrumental role in shaping the county’s wider innovation landscape.
Today, the region is home to a wealth of incredible opportunities in terms of the anchors, clusters and skills, making it an ideal location for innovators.
So, what are the keys elements in maintaining such a world-class innovation ecosystem?
Investing in an innovation mindset
It is important to maintain an innovation mindset and not presume your global position is permanent, because of historical legacy and reputation. Work needs to be done to support the pipeline of emerging organisations, particularly in the current global economic climate.
Many companies are struggling to raise money and there is a distinct lack of infrastructure to support them. So, having the right financial backing and opportunities are vital in helping start-ups grow and remain in Oxfordshire.
Building an innovation community
It is equally important to ensure companies can access an environment where they can thrive through collaboration and innovation. As an investor and developer, Mission Street’s aim is to act as a facilitator for this growth by collaborating with core industries to ensure they have the real estate necessary to evolve and support emerging operators.
Rather than building out-of-town science parks, the focus is centred around creating locations, or clusters where science already exists – to encourage urban innovation and collaboration between local companies.
Speaking on the podcast, Artem said: “Look what Oxford has – this is important when looking at any location.
“What is the reason behind a cluster forming in a particular location? You can't just go and build buildings in random places where there isn't a fundamental reason for companies to actually go.
“The starting point is you (Oxfordshire) have the universities and the benefits that they bring – academic and research strengths.”
Creating spaces that support growth
Companies need access to facilities that meet their needs, supporting growth ambitions, so part of staying competitive involves ensuring you have the right property stock to support businesses throughout the whole life cycle – from start-up to a global enterprise.
As building new properties can take four to five years, it’s important to work collaboratively with industry clusters in the community to understand their requirements for evolving the sector and create spaces that allow that to happen.
Engaging local people
While physical infrastructure is important for supporting innovation, so too is access to talent.
By creating spaces such as cafes or shared working areas, we can encourage spill over from growing industries to people who may not have had exposure to careers in STEM or creative industries from a young age. This is putting growing sectors at the heart of the community encouraging interest and new talent.
Oxfordshire is an attractive global location – there is no doubt
The global standing of the UK’s science and innovation community isn’t up for debate – Oxfordshire in-particular has led the way in many key areas, most-notably, the development and delivery of the Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine.
Perhaps partly-driven and influenced by this world-leading advancement, the UK government last autumn announced it would be investing £520million into the life sciences sector.
Can Oxfordshire capitalise on this? Artem believes the county is well-set.
He said on OxTalks: “There are many strong, emerging economies in Oxfordshire, including pharmaceuticals, quantum, biotech and green tech growth – but where the true opportunity lies is in maximising collaboration across these sectors.
“The opportunity here is pretty incredible in terms of the cluster, in terms of the skills that are available here. The pipeline of companies emerging here is still incredibly strong.
“We are in a more challenging global economy – it is more difficult to raise money and this goes both for our customers and from a real estate standpoint, frankly, in terms of building that infrastructure.
“But I think Oxford and Oxfordshire is as good a place as anywhere in helping tackle those issues.”
Find out more about Mission Street and its Oxfordshire innovation spaces.