Title of the presentation | Date | 1

Training Session on Profile Writing

Charlotte Schlicke, Steinbeis-Europa-Zentrum

Initial Training Session EEN-India, New Delhi, 16.-18.01.2013

Basic principles for writing a profile Use everyday English whenever possible: keep very

technical terms to a minimum. Avoid jargon and explain acronyms The profile should stress WHAT the product/technology

does rather than HOW it does it Identify wanted recipient clearly Mentioning trademarks and company names is not allowed

(they are searchable via “Google”) Syntax: make sure your sentences have ONLY ONE

meaning

Crucial parts of the BCD ProfileThe cooperation profile form is divided into four parts: • In the first part, general information about the profile has to be

encoded, such as the contact person within the Network Partner, a reference N°, a summary…

• The second part of the form is used to provide information about the company the Network Partner represents. This includes its descriptions and its NACE code or codes… It should be stressed that the Network Partner will be warned by email when detailed information about the company will be downloaded by the other Network Partners;

• The third part is for describing the type or types of cooperation sought; • The fourth part requests a few details about the type of partner being

sought.

Abstract BCDThe summary of the profile must contain the following elements: • Country of the company • Sector of activity of the company • All types of cooperation offered or required, as selected in the

"types of collaboration" section, in the third part of the profile. • We recommend the following: XXX company specialised in YYY

is looking for ZZZ (for example: Austrian company specialised in manufacture of games and toys is looking for a distributor) but you are free to use a different syntax.

• In addition, if you target 5 or less countries for the profile, we recommend that you mention these countries in the summary.

Crucial parts of the BCD Profile

Many click boxes or small fields (Year established, turnover…) in this form, all are mandatory - see profile template

Company's current products / activities Enter the company's core field of activity relevant to the

cooperation offer or request. No name of products should be mentioned. Do not mention the partnership sought here either.

Type of Cooperation (BCD) A clear distinction is made between what the company has to

offer (offered), and what it requests (required). It should be stressed that a profile may both offer and request a type of cooperation. All you have to do to achieve this is to tick the 2 boxes.

Crucial parts of the BCD Profile

Full description: (Specification of co-operation requested/offered)

• Description of the cooperation requested / offered. • The full description must be detailed and reflect all elements of the

profile (this means that the full description must contain at least the mandatory elements of the summary (country and sector of activity of the company), and that each type of cooperation selected must be explained in details and that you can add any additional information that you find interesting).

• It must be detailed enough to completely understand what your client company is looking for when reading the full description of the cooperation.

Crucial parts of the BCD Profile

Description of the main advantage the company could offer to a potential partner Describe here the advantage(s) offered by your client

company and why it should be selected by the potential business partners

• Field of Activities of the potential partner: Possible choices are “manufacturing”, “services” and “trade”.

Multiple selection is possible. Make sure that your selection is coherent.

Crucial parts of the BCD Profile

• Expected Input / Characteristics of the Partner (Description of what is being expected from the potential co-operation partner) Describe here the input and/or characteristics that your

client company expects from its business partner.

Crucial parts of the BCD Profile

Crucial parts of the BBS Form

Title of BBS profiles The title should be clear and meaningful to

non-experts in the technology or application field. It should be attractive, as well. (BCD profiles have no title)

Abstract BBS A writer has 500 characters to explain

Where (geographically) the TO is from? What sort of organisation is offering it? What is being offered? Put the emphasis on the

"what", not the "how“ What can it be used for? What are the main advantages for the user? Who are the targeted partners? What sort of deal is sought?

Crucial parts of the BBS Profile

Description of BBS (example TO) Describe the technology or product; try to indicate clearly the

innovation you propose (provide quantitative data if possible and put the emphasis on explaining the “what” and not on the “how”) .

Provide information about the expertise or know-how of your client. Do not include a sales promotion of your technology or product here

(will be asked in a following field). Provide a picture or drawing if available (it is possible to insert up to

two images). Do not write your description with a specific market in mind:

concentrate on the technological aspects of the technology/product you want to offer.

The TO profile must remain anonymous – do not refer to concrete website (although there is a optional field for entries) etc.

•

Crucial parts of the BBS Profile

Innovations and advantages of the offer:Describe clearly the innovative aspects, economic advantages/benefits of the technology: Considering elements such as performance, ease of use,

need of specific know-how, or expertise to adopt your technology.

Avoid generalities such as “best” or “unique”, but try to specify innovation by comparison with prevailing technologies.

Whenever possible, quantify the innovative aspects or advantages of your technology/

Crucial parts of the BBS Profile

Technology Keywords (separate list) Try to use level three keywords: they are the most specific. Be aware that a search may be conducted using keywords

alone. Focus on the technology itself, not on its market

application(s). Select max 5 keywords

Further information (Technical details concerning the profile) If useful, provide additional technical information on the

product/technical solution without repeating what already stated in the description section.

Crucial parts of the BBS Profile

Market application codes (separate list) Try to use level three keywords: they are the most

specific. Be aware that a search may be conducted using

keywords alone. Focus on the market application. Remember that it

may be far from the domain to which the technology belongs.

Select max 5 keywords

Crucial parts of the BBS Profile

Current stage of development Development phase – laboratory tested? Available for demonstration? Available for demonstration – field tested? Already on the market?

Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Patent(s) applied for but not yet granted Patents granted Copyright(s) registered Exclusive rights Secret know-how Others (registered design, plant variety right, etc)

Crucial parts of the BBS Profile

Collaboration details Select the type(s) of collaboration(s) looked for.

Do not choose too many types of collaboration simultaneously. Licensing Agreement Technical Cooperation Joint further development Testing of new applications Adaptation to specific needs Joint Venture Manufacturing Agreement (Subcontracting & Co-contracting) Transfer of knowledge in new raw materials New way to use an existing production line Change in the partner soughts‘ currently used technology (installations, process, facilities) Absolutely novel process Commercial Agreement with Technical Assistance Assembly Engineering Technical Consultancy Quality control Maintenance

Crucial parts of the BBS Profile

Comments - Often most read paragraph immediately after Abstract!

Partners contribution - Role and profile of the partners and tasks to be performed.

Indicate clearly: The type of partner sought (industry, academy, research

organisation,…). The specific area of activity of the partner (example:

manufacturer of plastic packages, distributor of plastic packages, recycler of plastic packages, etc.).

The tasks to be performed by the partner sought.

Crucial parts of the BBS Profile

Writing Technology Requests – what to keep in mind

Who looks for what at what technological stage and with what IPR status

It is useful to identify the current activities of the company that inserted the request Why does this company want to improve a current process or product? What is the current technical problem to be solved, what process is to be improved

and why? Include a description of the problem to be solved or technology requested. Provide information about the current process / product to improve. Clearly specify the technical requirements. What are the technologies the company believes could be suitable? What are the technologies the company is sure are not suitable? Are there some specific requirements to take into consideration (temperature,

pressure, size, etc.)?

Crucial parts of the BBS Profile