Nurturing industrial talent

Stephen McCarthy, Royal Society of Chemistry

In a time of pressing global challenges and tightening national budgets it has never been more important for the benefits of chemical science research to be applied in our everyday lives. All too often, however, the results of this research do not fulfil their potential to make a difference outside the laboratory. Innovation – the process by which laboratory concepts become a commercial reality – is held back by a combination of unmet needs.

To bring a technology to market, a small company requires secure financial backing, a wide range of skills ranging from technical expertise to marketing and access to business networks. This combination is so difficult to achieve, that this stage of the commercialisation process is sometimes referred to as the ‘Valley of Death’.

Our industry strategy

Small companies make up 96% of the chemical sciences industry in the UK, and employ 42% of the workforce. Recognising the many potential benefits they offer, as well as the challenges they face, our new industry strategy sets out our plans to support chemistry-using small businesses.

Backed by Council in April, our strategy identified support for small companies as one of its three principal aims. We will do this in two ways: our Emerging Technologies Competition will support innovation and identify and reward the best early-stage chemical technologies in the UK and Europe, and we have ambitious plans to develop EnterprisePlus, our dedicated support scheme for small chemical companies.

What is EnterprisePlus?

Launched just over a year ago, the EnterprisePlus programme has now achieved critical mass, counting over 140 small companies from across the UK’s chemical science sector as members. They receive access to business support services including:

• a free job advertisement on Chemistry World Jobs to help with the cost of recruiting staff;
• 12 free advertisements in the classifieds section of Chemistry World;
• regional and national networking events to make it easier for them to access the information they need; and
• significant discounts on subscriptions to our journals, enabling them to keep in touch with the latest research in their field.

EnterprisePlus aims to support small companies themselves as well as the entire innovation pipeline. This means thinking about the next generation of employees at small and medium enterprises. Many small companies would like to recruit recent graduates who can bring new ideas to the company, but are unable to do so because of the cost of headcount when starting out. Similarly, large numbers of students recognise the value of industrial experience for their studies and careers, but find it difficult to secure opportunities to work in small companies.

Industrial experience for students

We have created our Industrial Placement Grants precisely to meet this need. These grants provide up to £20,000 to help our EnterprisePlus companies cover the cost of a year-long student placement. Working in partnership with Cogent, the sector skills agency, we match the company to a student who then gains vital experience by working on real industrial projects.

The eleven students funded by this year’s Industrial Placement Grants were selected from over 800 applicants and began their placements this autumn. At an Industrial Placement Day that we held at Burlington House on 18 September, the benefits of the grants were already becoming apparent.

“When I graduate, I know that I’ll have built a really strong network of contacts in the industry that I want to work in,” says Dikivitila Fundu, a student at the University of Warwick who is on placement at Reach Separations in Nottingham. “I’m also able to go on a lot of training courses, which I wouldn’t have been able to do if I were still at university.”

Her supervisor at Reach Separations, Phil Abbott, is equally optimistic. “I think we’ve been lucky in getting the grant, because the RSC funding, with the help of Cogent, has meant that we’ve got a scientifically excellent student in the lab. It’s something that we wouldn’t have been able to do as early in the company’s life without the grant.”

“In our particular case we’ve got a project that could really help in advancing the science at Reach Separations. The scientist in me would have liked to have been able to do that project, but unfortunately pragmatism and business requirements meant that it couldn’t be done. Having Diki work with us means that it will get looked into, and it could bring major benefits to us and to the wider scientific community.”

Enduring benefits

The benefits of the grants should last well beyond the end of the placements themselves. Dr Al Dossetter of MedChemica Ltd at Alderley Park is hoping to strengthen links with academic research through the placements. “We would like to get better connected with academic groups because they have new ideas and technologies that are blue-sky and cutting-edge, and this keeps us constantly refreshed.”

Phil Abbott is also interested in long-lasting connections: “If Diki performs well it means that we have access to someone who could come in and work for us as a graduate without any of the added recruitment costs.”

As well as funding their placements, we will continue to support our students as they progress through the year. The programme will culminate in a celebratory event next year, in which the students will be given the opportunity to reflect on their personal development over the course of the placement.

Next year's placements

Even as the first cohort of students begin their placements, we have already begun to prepare for next year’s grants. Al Dossetter is already looking forward to next year’s placements. “This is a fantastic programme – please find the money to do more of these studentships, they’re great!”

Applications for the next round of industrial placement grants will close on 17 November. If your company is interested in hosting a placement student, find out how to apply.