Evaluation and Impact Analyses

The German government wants to use the R&D tax credit to help increase the share of R&D expenditure in gross domestic product to 3.5 % by 2025 and to supplement the existing project funding. In this project, the Austrian Institute for SME Research and the Institute for Advanced Studies (IHS) as well as the Ifo Institute Munich investigate the possible databases and methodological challenges for a future evaluation of the measure. The results lead to a coordinated evaluation plan, which should allow a deep analysis of the impacts.

In this project, The Austrian Institute for SME Research (KMFA) supports Innosuisse in developing a concept for the agency's impact analysis. In this context, impact logics for the most important funding instruments and the agency as a whole are developed. These form the basis for the development of an indicator system that can provide information on its own activities and the resulting effects to the client, policymakers and the public in a clear systematic manner.

The outcomes of the impact analysis concept are used for strategic optimisation and learning for the whole organisation.

The study explores the competitiveness of the engineering industries in the EU against its major competitors USA, Japan, South Korea and the BRICs countries. It compares regulatory frameworks of EU and major third country competitors in the field of engineering industries. Furthermore, it analyses the impact of digitalisation on the EU engineering industries and its effects on the global market position. The study also provides a strategic outlook and an assessment of the challenges and opportunities ahead for the European engineering industries.

The evaluation of the German Central Innovation Programme for SMEs (ZIM) with its three R&D programme pillars - individual projects, cooperation projects and innovation networks concerns one of the most important instruments of innovation policy in Germany.

The evaluation focused on the programme period 2015 to mid-2018 and integrated a theory-based approach with a strong empirical basis. Methodologically, the evaluation implemented a coordinated set of analytical-quantitative and qualitative approaches, such as a control group approach as well as a broad set of qualitative methods, including the analysis of spillover-effects of the different programme pillars.

The study on behalf of DG GROW assessed the feasibility of including societal criteria (environmental, innovation, employment-related) in upstream space procurement within the European Union Space Programmes, Copernicus, Galileo and EGNOS. The study required carrying out three tasks: Task 1) Investigate the legal feasibility of including societal criteria in the procurement of infrastructures for the EU Space Programmes, Task 2) Estimate the impact of including selected societal criteria and Task 3) Draw conclusions regarding the most appropriate societal criteria to be included in future procurement.

The accompanying impact analysis and evaluation of the Swiss "CTI Entrepreneurship" Training Programms assesses its conception, implementation and short to medium-term effects. The analysis, carried out by the Austrian Institute for SME Research in cooperation with B, S, S Volkswirtschaftliche Beratung AG in Basel, is based on theories of social psychology and their empirical implementation against the background of heterogeneous support infrastructures in the Swiss regions.

This accompanying evaluation of the implementation of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) 2014-20 in Austria involves a consortium of six partners, and applies a broad evaluation design.

From the variety of methodologies applied in this evaluation, the Austrian Institute for SME Research implements, apart from some qualitative analyses, a conditional difference-in-difference to investigate the impact of ERDF subsidies on enterprises.

Austria has already a longstanding engagement in outer space affairs. For example, it participates in programmes of the European Space Agency (ESA) since 1975, it set up the Austrian Space Applications Programme (ASAP) in 2002 to support national stakeholders to engage in future international activities. Since 2012, there is also a space strategy of the Austrian Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology in place.
This evaluation focuses on the activities from 2012 up to 2018 and develops recommendations for the further development of the national space strategy and the national ASAP programme.

This project implements the accompanying research of a technical research project, which shows the economic and technical potential of the external component activation for the renovation of existing buildings with prefabricated façade elements and defines the respective conditions and develops new methods. Above all, the accompanying research includes analyses along the project-relevant value chain, such as analyses, of needs as well as potential impacts etc.

The impact monitoring of RTDI funding for Austrian companies and research organisations, managed by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG), assesses direct impacts of the funded projects on RTDI inputs, behavioural changes, and outputs. The results of the analyses serve as an input for the further development of the portfolio of the funding agency.

Climate and Energy Model Regions (KEM) is a programme of the Austrian Climate and Energy Fund (KLIEN), which supports regions in the development and implementation of climate change-related measures. The evaluation focuses on the design, implementation, the outcomes as well as the impacts of the program, and derives recommendations for the follow-up period.

The interim evaluation analyses the quality of the mission-oriented RTDI programme „Mobilität der Zukunft“ (mobility of the future). Main focus of the evaluation is on the analysis of the programme design and the processes with special attention to the learning processes within the programme. The output and the preliminary outcomes of the programme are reviewed compared to the objectives (targets and indicators). At the same time indicators of the programme selected for an internal impact assessment are evaluated. The evaluation is based on a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods.

The subject of the project is the evaluation of the programme(s) for the promotion of studies for commercial, international technology transfer" (kit4market, kit4market 2.0). The evaluation focuses on answering evaluation questions on programme design, the integration of the programme into the relevant funding portfolio, the programme processes and the effects achieved so far. To this end, interviews are conducted with programme owners and Austria Wirtschaftsservice Gesellschaft mbH (aws), and the funding recipients are asked about their experiences with the program and the effects achieved.

In 2017 and 2018 the implementation of HORIZON 2020 and ERA, as well as EUREKA, COSME and EEN in Austria was evaluated by a consortium consisting of AIT, Joanneum Research, KMFA and ZSI. The evaluation focused on three key areas: 1. Evaluation of Austrian Research Promotion Agency’s (FFG) advisory and support services for HORIZON 2020, EUREKA, COSME, EEN and ERA 2. EU performance monitoring of FFG 3. The ERA Observatory Austria, which forms an overarching framework for the integration of the individual tasks in the field of governance for EU-RTI policy in Austria on the part of the BMBWF (Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research).

The evaluation analyses to what extent the concept for innovation promoting public procurement (IÖB) established in 2011 has been successfully implemented or whether the corresponding setting enables efficient implementation. The evaluation is based on a mixture of quantitative and qualitative methods and also develops recommendations for further implementation with the help of an international comparison.

The BRIDGE programme funds basic science research projects at universities and other public research organisations that already demonstrate realistic application prospects. Thus, the BRIDGE funding will facilitate the transfer of basic science results into industrial applications.
Companies participate in these projects financially or non-financially by providing equipment and guidance to the research institutes. The evaluation focuses on the different facets of impacts of the programme and on the more recent modifications in the programme design during the period 2009 up to 2016.

This evaluation aims to analyse the portfolio of Upper Austria’s funding and support measures provided to companies. At the centre of this exercise is the analysis of the interplay of different measures with regard to their conceptual and design-based orientation towards additionality and broadness/specificity. Based on the results, the evaluation will develop recommendations for the client’s future funding and support policies after 2020.

The evaluation of the AWS and FFG promotion agencies essentially addresses the question whether and to what extent ambitions and expectations of the predecessor organisations consolidations, which happened in the context of the structural reforms more than a decade ago, have been achieved. Applying a theory-based evaluation approach (TBE) the evaluation analyses organisational and content-related functionalities, inherent properties, functional logics and impacts of both institutions, in order to draw action-relevant conclusions.

The overall objective of this study was to evaluate the results and impacts of the participating SMEs within two initiatives of FP7: the cooperation programme and the research for the benefit of SMEs schemes under the capacities programme, including the impacts on economic performance, European added value, behavioural additionality and innovation. The evaluation study assessed the relevance, efficiency and effectiveness of the two initiatives.