Shape the future with agile teams and partners

Innovation & Technology RELATIONS

Shape your company’s future with your employees and partners

With our services concerning innovation & technology relations, we are your first-choice partner. We support you to bring ambitious innovation and technology initiatives to success – together with your employees and partners.

Our Services

Innovation & Technology Relations

Start-Up & Tech Cooperation

Together we develop tailored cooperation to achieve your objectives and valuable business opportunities faster and more creative. Our technology scouting and relation experts support you individually from partner scouting, to IP rights management, to operative coordination.

Coordination of Innovation and Technology Initiatives

We support you from coordination to operative execution of your individual innovation and technology projects - so that you easily break resource bottlenecks.

Incubation & Acceleration

With EARLY BRANDS, you explore global incubation and acceleration programs that will best support success of your company. Benefit from suitable access to start-ups and innovative technologies.

Innovation & Technology Ventures

Find innovation and technology ventures as well as venture capital funds that meet your strategic ambitions best. With EARLY BRANDS as independent “Sparring Partner“ you focus on ventures that will have the highest value from performance as well as strategic perspective.

INNOVATION & TECHnology Relations in Action

Successful Expeditions – Explore how we create value for you

  • PARTNER ECOSYSTEM

    Accelerate success with strong partner ecosystems

    Challenge:

    Our expedition partner is a leading industrial & commercial enterprise, that is willing to realize innovative business models by blockchain opportunities – to open up new income streams and increase competitive edge.

    Expedition approach:

    • Worldwide scouting combined with lead user and expert workshops to identify business relevant blockchain applications
    • Use cases and development of potential business models together with employees
    • Ecosystem building: realization and implementation partners + customers
    • Coordination of an agile pilot development and implementation with “build-measure-learn” principles

    Expedition success:

    • Distributed ledger innovations for competitive edge
    • Success maximization due to perfect matching tech partners as well as the agile development and implementation approach
    • Increase of employee / partner motivation and involvement

     

  • STARTUP RELATIONS

    Cooperation with relevant early stage startups

    Challenge:

    Our expedition partner is an international leading technology company that is willing to early identify and establish contacts to business relevant startups. For this purpose, a strategic positioning to appropriate startup events across Germany should be implemented.

    Expedition approach:

    • Scouting and scanning of business relevant startup events across Germany
    • Evaluation of findings with regard to strategic fit, reach, possible activities as well as budget- and resource frameworks
    • Pre-screen and first contact to event operators and responsibles
    • Creation of an individual startup-event-landscape
    • Creative development and recommendation for implementation opportunities

    Expedition success:

    • Event-landscape with more than 10 combinable event options including recommendations for actions based on strategic fit
    • First assessments for budget and resource requirements
    • Access to direct contact persons and event materials

     

  • TECHNOLOGY VENTURE

    Extend competitive edge with startup cooperation

    Challenge:

    Our expedition partner is an international technology group with products and services for pharmaceutical and consumer goods businesses. To strengthen innovation and to exploit new growth markets a start-up with access to patented technologies and a strong network of development partners should be acquired.

    Expedition approach:

    • Commercial due diligence. Technology assessment and potential analysis for products, services and markets
    • Development of a venture and cooperation strategy with license agreement
    • Coordination and moderation of negotiations
    • Preparation and support of corporate integration of technology assets as well as kick-off of first development and innovation projects

    Expedition success:

    • Access to innovative technologies and knowhow from start-ups
    • Launch of more than 10 product and service innovations within 24 months

     

  • INNOVATION VENTURES

    Open up new income streams in the digital age

    Challenge:

    Our expedition partner is world’s leading beverage company. For the European energy and sports beverage business,  innovation cooperation with packaging suppliers and new start-ups should be build. To exploit new target groups and markets, consisting “power brands” should be combined with new products and packaging options.

    Expedition approach:

    • Strategy development and conception of a technology-orientated corporate innovation venture
    • Research and recommendation for relevant technology partners including existing supplier relations
    • Implementation concepts with focus on customer needs
    • Creation and moderation of innovation and technology business cases
    • Coordination of activities among corporation and technology partners/start-ups: creativity workshops, prototyping with agile methods and support of consumer testing

    Expedition success:

    • Innovation concepts in new product categories with market value > € 250 M. (+ > 10% EBIT margin)
    • Brand equity: rejuvenation of three consisting brands