“External collaborations continue to be an area of increased emphasis…  participation in alliances and joint R&D ventures consistently tops the list of tools for external collaboration, as the venue for the most investment." 
                                      -- Industrial Research Institute  R&D Trends Forecast for 2012

 

We are specialists in R&D collaboration.
StarNet, LLC is a management services firm which for 20 years has helped leaders design and manage R&D partnerships, consortia and alliances to meet specific innovation objectives. Our clients are leaders within innovation networks large and small, who step up to collaboratively drive innovation and technology commercialization.  Their goal - to evolve their industries forward.  

We help players across innovation networks collaborate in structured ways -- sharing leadership responsibility and formalizing the connections and commitments across the five key functional points of an innovation ecosystem.  Together, a cross-connected “star” of solution providers, supply chain players, technology sources, potential capital sources, and legacy and policy players can achieve systems-integrated breakthroughs, and drive innovation uptake within their industry. Each innovation alliance targets specific objectives on the path to successful innovation, ranging from R&D co-development, to standards setting and certification, all the way to market development and technology adoption. 

Leaders come to us in response to problems and opportunities in their industries, which they urgently face or are early to recognize.  At times, we take initiative ourselves in response to our observation of an industry, reaching out to coalesce the thoughts and needs of leaders and helping them to recognize the possibilities before them.  We work by assessing the players and drivers within an innovation network. We outline options and make recommendations; recruit potential partners; and design and build paths forward.

Collaboration can be as challenging as it is powerful.  The experienced team at StarNet, LLC offers decision support and professional services to industry leaders who embrace formal collaboration -- every step of the way.   Through decades of working with lab directors, CEOs, and government leaders, we have developed unmatched expertise in Innovation Alliance design and creation.  From initial conception and assessment, to business planning, alliance design and member recruitment, and onward to launch, execution and ultimate success -- we are there for you.