Optimisation of strategies through innovation, foresight and evaluation

"The economic rise of Finland has long been based on innovation and successful industrial R&D operations. Finland could, however, turn into a victim of its own success, if sufficient courage is not found to remodel the innovation and development operations sooner rather than later."

- Professors Charles Sabel (Columbia University) and AnnaLee Saxenian (University of California, Berkeley) in the Sitra report A Fugitive Success – Finland’s Economic Future, on 18 October 2008

Strategies and innovations through looking back and ahead

Gaia’s innovation, foresight and evaluation services give our clients optimal support for their decision-making related to business and policy development and innovation activities.

Our foresight services help our clients to systematically look to the future, both by conducting in-depth foresight studies and by facilitating the forward-thinking process with methodological tools. Our service portfolio covers methods for technology foresight, forecasting and simulation tools, scenario building exercises, and group process facilitation.

We also assist our clients in making use of public innovation policies to enhance both their growth strategy and their strategies to commercialise research results. Our services include generation and collation of potential business ideas, analysis of market demand, and analysis of investment possibilities. We also help our public and private sector clients to develop and complete technology strategies and reviews.

Gaia’s evaluation services are based on our extensive experience and in-depth substance knowledge in the area of public R&D investments, energy and environment, strategic policy assessment and impact assessments of individual policies. We utilise a wide range of evaluation methods from quantitative benchmarking and cost-benefit analyses to interviews and expert opinions. We can also build effective and participatory strategy processes simultaneously for different organizations or for multiple clients.

Evaluating the past for the benefit of future solutions

Gaia helps its clients to successfully combine evaluations of the past to the assessment of present and future opportunities. This provides a solid foundation to create effective business strategies, optimise business and innovation opportunities, and to solve complex problems such as climate change, safety and security, environmental degradation and energy supply.

Our services assist our clients to evaluate the effectiveness of their solutions, facilitate their strategy processes and policy analyses, and recognise future challenges. The analyses and solutions provide the organisations with a solid basis for business and investment decisions and innovation strategies.

Expertise in technology development and innovation processes

The core of Gaia’s services for business and investment opportunity analysis is our in-depth understanding of energy and environmental technologies and their markets. However, our competence in foresight studies extends beyond environmental and energy issues to the recognition of weak signals and future trends at large.

Our experts have a profound understanding of technology development and innovation processes, and have a long track record in technological issues with expertise in the organisational and innovation policy framework. We have partnerships both with private and public sector clients, both nationally and internationally. Our approach is always geared to finding solutions to meet the client’s specific challenges, and methods tailored to the client’s needs.