Building the British Knowledge Economy:
Securing Global Competitive Advantage Conference
The interim Knowledge Economy conference was held on Thursday
6 March at the Park Plaza Riverbank Hotel.
The Conference set out the evidence and present our interim conclusions on how and why the knowledge economy is transforming the basis of our competitive advantage and the way we work - and the implications for policy makers and business.
Speakers at the conference included:
Rt Hon John Denham MP, Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills
Rt Hon John Hutton MP, Secretary of State for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform
Lord (David) Sainsbury of Turville, Businessman, Politician and Labour Peer
Neil Holloway, Vice President, Business Strategy, Microsoft
Vincent De Rivaz, Chief Executive, EDF Energy
Will Hutton, Chief Executive, The Work Foundation
Diane Coyle, Economist and Trustee, BBC Trust
Larry Elliott, Columnist, The Guardian
Ursula Huws, Professor of International Labour Studies, London Metropolitan University and Director of Analytica
Charles Leadbeater, Independent Author and Advisor
Geoff Mulgan, Director, The Young Foundation
Ian Brinkley, Knowledge Economy Programme Director, The Work Foundation
Alexandra Jones, Ideopolis Programme Director, The Work Foundation
Video address by Peter Mandelson, Commissioner for External Trade, European Commission
The Bear Pit
Each presenter was asked to say why a firm should move a research based activity into their city region. The session drew on The Work Foundation’s Ideopolis research programme, building on the nine drivers of successful knowledge cities they have identified through UK and international case studies: http://www.theworkfoundation.com/research/ideopolis.aspx
The Bears
Ed Smith, former Global COO and Strategy Chairman for the Assurance Business, PricewaterhouseCoopers
Tim Campbell, Entrepreneur and Founder, The Bright Ideas Trust, winner of BBC’s The Apprentice
Diane Coyle, Economist and Trustee, BBC Trust
The Participants
Ian Bromley, Chief Executive, Creative Sheffield
Dr Cathy Garner, Chief Executive, Manchester: Knowledge Capital
James Durie, Director, Business West