Leading progress · collaborative execution of strategy

Do you seek to scale?

The organisations that lead tomorrow are building the capabilities and enablers today. For structure and execution Novactum comes in.

NOVACTUM
InnovateSmart/Partnerships
InnovateSmart
/Partnerships
by Mike Vermeer  ·  Novactum
272 Pages
25+ European Cases
150 Scientific Papers

“In an era defined by rapid technological change and unseen global challenges, the power of collaboration has never been more decisive.”

“The reality is that no single entity can thrive in isolation, let alone being successful in innovation on a structural basis.”

“The future belongs to those who can forge meaningful partnerships, embrace new ideas together, and collectively drive innovation forward.”

“79% of CEOs agreed that companies must collaborate with external partners to drive innovation effectively. · PwC Global Innovation Survey”

“Firms that pursue an open innovation strategy are 50% more likely to introduce successful new products. · Harvard Business Review”

“Organizations embracing collaborative approaches were 5 times more likely to achieve significant business results. · World Economic Forum”

“Companies that engage in partnerships report a 30% increase in innovation productivity. · Bain & Company”

“Collaborative firms are more likely to report product innovations: 81% vs 58% for non-collaborative firms. · European Commission”


Want to speed up
innovation & transformation?

Organisations rarely stall for lack of ideas. They stall on execution: legacy structures, the pull of day-to-day operations and missing capabilities hold back the power to build. In a world that changes this fast, readiness decides who scales. Novactum has navigated that ambiguity many times over.

We have worked from every seat at the table: investor, partner, operator, leader and advisor. Over more than two decades, across hundreds of projects, programmes and collaborations, we have helped deliver billions in new business growth and efficiencies. That is what we bring to yours.

"No single entity can thrive in isolation, let alone succeed in innovation on a structural basis."

Mike Vermeer · InnovateSmart/Partnerships, Novactum 2025

If the task is clear,
execution is the challenge.

Ever thought of a due diligence of the strategy, the ideas, the investment and the talent? We break down what is needed to execute, when and how: technically, commercially and through the right partners. At scale. Novactum has seen it almost all, with two decades of hands-on experience, a European network and a toolbox built on practice and academic foundations.

For general managers

You need to move faster. We close the gap between strategy and results.

Your organisation has ambition and resources, yet priorities blur, teams pull in different directions and pilots never become programmes. We step in as interim leader, programme lead or NED, set the priorities, build the partnerships and make your people able to carry the change. You get results that hold, with someone accountable for them.

Typical frictions
Pilots that never scale · procurement that blocks innovation · teams without the skills for what comes next

For entrepreneurs

You have built an edge. We add the architecture to scale it.

Your product, platform or technology can go further. What you need now is a commercial engine, the right partners and a case investors believe in. We sharpen the business model, make you investor-ready, open doors to customers and co-investors and, where we believe in the case, invest and take a board seat.

Typical frictions
No commercial engine yet · investors who hesitate · partners who sign but never deliver

For investors

You are investing. We protect and accelerate the return.

A venture needs more than capital and governance to succeed. We work alongside investment firms, family offices and corporate venture teams from day one: due diligence through a scaling lens, co-investment on the same terms, board involvement and hands-on support on strategy, team and commercial traction. Our incentives follow yours: outcomes over hours.

Typical frictions
Portfolio companies that stall · thin operational depth · value lost after the deal

Execute through partnerships

Skin in the game.
On the same terms.

For founders raising capital and investors looking for conviction, we run a clear path from preparation to closing. And we stay after the deal.

01

Prepare

We sharpen the story, the business model and the structure until the case holds up under investor scrutiny. Plan, governance and data room in order.

02

Match

We open our network of corporates, strategic investors, family offices and venture funds, and introduce the partners that fit your stage and sector.

03

Commit

Where we believe in the case, Novactum co-invests alongside the lead investor on the same terms, and supports you through negotiation and closing.

04

Build

After the deal we stay. Board seat, interim leadership, commercial doors and partnership building, so capital turns into progress.

One accountable partner, shared milestones and regular progress updates. Transparent from the first call to closing.

Discuss a partnership or co-investment →

Four ways in.
Twelve problems solved.

In a fast-changing world, readiness decides who scales. We meet the same frictions again and again, in corporates, scale-ups and investment portfolios. We tackle them in four ways, across twelve lenses.

01

Getting things done

We co-develop the growth plan, set priorities and decide what comes first. As NED, interim leader or programme lead, we make sure the strategy has an owner who delivers.

02

Execute through partnerships

We co-invest, land partnerships and build ecosystems. Drawing on InnovateSmart/Partnerships and our European network, we connect you to the partners, customers and co-investors that make scale real.

03

Navigate complexity

Our readiness scans and audits give an honest view of opportunity, risk and readiness before anyone commits. From the board seat we keep steering once the work starts.

04

People & thought leadership

Strategy moves as fast as the people carrying it. Through INNDUCE.me we build mindset, skills and teams. Through the book, talks and workshops we share what works.

01Startup scaling 02Corporate innovation 03Collaboration & alliances 04Procurement-led scaling 05Investment & venture 06Licensing & IP 07Market entry & expansion 08Acquisition & integration 09Leadership & capability 10Platform & ecosystem 11Regulation & policy 12Talent & team building NOVACTUM 12 problems we solve for a fast-changing world 360°

Hover a lens to see the friction.
Click to see how Novactum solves it.

Novactum · Leading progress
12 frictions · 360°

12 problems we solve

Each lens names a friction that holds organisations back in a fast-changing world, and the way Novactum removes it. We work for short-term results and long-term direction, and make it stick in the organisation.

Hover for the friction · click for the Novactum solution

The first filter in
every partnership.

Before we commit, we want to understand the challenge. Our scans are structured diagnostics that show where a venture, strategy or programme stands: strengths, weaknesses, opportunity, risk and its place in the ecosystem. Then they chart the path forward.

WHAT SCANS DELIVER

Quick, clear insights for all partners, based on a rational aligned intake, structured personal interaction and pragmatic reporting with 360-degree input. Built on experience that actually works, not theory.

20+
Years scaling innovation across Europe and globally
100s
Of collaborations with corporates, scale-ups, investors and research institutions
€4bn
Of new business growth derived from our hands-on commercial and partnership work
A
Innovation & opportunity scan

Where are the breakthrough opportunities? AI capability, market signals, hidden needs, competitive gaps. Surfaces low-hanging fruit and updates strategy.

B
Scale-up readiness scan

Are you structured to scale fast? Commercial model, team quality, operations, risk map and velocity indicators assessed against investor expectations.

C
Investor readiness scan

Are you investable at your stated terms? Narrative coherence, financial model, team credibility and due diligence positioning reviewed through an investor lens.

D
Innovation partnerships audit

A structured 3-step programme to assess, align and activate your innovation partnerships, built on the InnovateSmart methodology and tested across two decades of real-world collaborations.

Step 01 · Assess

Partnership Landscape Audit

We map your current and potential partnerships against your strategic objectives. Where are the gaps? Which relationships are underperforming? Which opportunities are hidden in plain sight? You receive a clear, honest picture of your partnership landscape — with priorities ranked and quick wins identified.

Deliverable
Partnership Landscape Report · Priority Matrix · Quick Win Shortlist
Step 02 · Align

Partnership Strategy & Governance Design

We co-design the partnership strategy that fits your ambition and your current capacity. Governance structures, selection criteria, negotiation frameworks and success metrics — built to be practical, not just presentable. The result is a strategy your organisation can actually execute.

Deliverable
Partnership Strategy · Governance Framework · Partner Selection Criteria
Step 03 · Activate

Partnership Activation & Embedding

Strategy without execution is just intention. We support the first activation steps — introducing partners, facilitating the early conversations and embedding the partnership mindset in your teams through INNDUCE.me. We stay until it runs without us.

Deliverable
Activation Roadmap · Partner Introductions · Team Capability Programme

Powered by the InnovateSmart methodology · InnovateSmart/Partnerships, Mike Vermeer, Novactum 2025

Indicative investment from €3,500 · Delivered within 2–3 weeks

Request a Scan so we can get connected

Tell us where you are. We\'ll propose the right audit and schedule an intake call, with no commitment.

We respond within one business day. Your data is never shared.

Where we play, invest &
build

We work through platforms that extend our reach, next to direct investments and co-investments. Each one lets us tailor what we bring: knowledge and tools, senior expert capacity, or people development.

Innovation Platform
Founder · Author

InnovateSmart.nl

AI-powered innovation management platform. 13 pillars, suite of tools built on academic fundamentals, curated knowledge library and AI Opportunity Scanner. Partnerships is the first pillar — published as a book and gifted to new members.

innovatesmart.nl →
Expert Collective
Co-founder · Chair

NICE Collective

New Ingredient Collective Europe. A networked collective of senior food technology and ingredient specialists delivering advisory, scanning, and commercial matchmaking across the European ingredients sector.

nicecollective.eu →
Development Platform
Investor · NED

Innduce.me

An enabler for personal, team and organisational development on innovation and transformation skills and mindset. The 4T framework (Test, Train, Team Up, Transform) builds the human capability that makes strategies executable and change sustainable.

innduce.me →
06 Insights

Ideas, cases &
perspectives

Thinking from Novactum and InnovateSmart — on innovation, partnerships, AI and the practice of scaling organisations.

LEADERSHIP · INNOVATION · COLLABORATIVE EXECUTION
Article

Unlocking collaborative innovation: why front-line ideas stagnate and how leaders fix it

Organisations have more innovation capacity than they use. The bottleneck is rarely creativity — it is the structure that allows ideas to move. How leaders build the bridge from front-line insight to ecosystem-level value.

Mike Vermeer · Novactum Read →
OUTSIDE-IN · INNOVATION · PARTNERSHIPS
Article

X-Teams: Thriving with an Outside-In Perspective in Innovation Partnerships

Why the most effective innovation teams prioritise external exploration over internal harmony — and how to implement the X-Team approach in your organisation.

InnovateSmart / Partnerships Read →
AI · COLLABORATION · TRANSFORMATION
Book Excerpt

How AI Transforms Partner Collaboration — Chapter 17

A six-step blueprint for leveraging AI in partnerships — from generative AI to agentic systems. An excerpt from InnovateSmart/Partnerships by Mike Vermeer.

InnovateSmart / Partnerships · Ch. 17 Read →
ECOSYSTEM · NETWORK · COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE
Case Study

ASML: Growth and Competitive Advantage Through Innovation Networks

How a Philips spin-out became the world's most indispensable technology company — by building an innovation ecosystem that no competitor can replicate.

InnovateSmart / Partnerships · Case Read →
CORPORATE ENTERPRISE START-UP SCALE-UP EIC VENTURE · CORPORATE · INNOVATION PROGRAMME
Programme Analysis

Elevating Innovation Through Structured Corporate-Startup Engagement

Insights from the EIC Corporate Partnership Programme — a framework for strategic alignment, commitment and experimentation between corporates and startups.

EIC · Corporate Partnership Programme Read →
07 References

A few of the organisations we have worked with:

Novactum brings a network of experts across the fields needed to lead progress — from ideation to delivery, from technology to business development, from procurement to ecosystem building.

Currently available from the InnovateSmart network:
Mike Vermeer
Mike Vermeer
Innovation Management & Transformation Leadership

Two decades leading innovation, transformation and new-business at multinational and scale-up level — P&L up to several hundred million euros, teams of 30 to 150+. His base is innovation leadership across industries: at the intersection of demand, technology and people is where he has built the deepest know-how, network and track record.

Available for engagements
Connect on LinkedIn
Michel
Michel
Senior professional · Sourcing, Procurement & Contract Management

Specialist expertise in the procurement of innovation and (IT) transformation. Track record: Aluchemie Rotterdam, SABIC, Arcadis, NXP, Sara Lee, Starbucks EMEA, Selecta, Vanderlande.

Available for engagements
Fernando
Fernando
Senior professional · Food Tech, Sweeteners & Dietary Fibers

Three decades of technological expertise in the food tech markets. Expert in sweeteners, dietary fibers and probiotics. Combines technological and BD abilities with a realistic view. Has played CTO, CSO and VP BD roles at leading ingredient companies.

Available for engagements
Andreas
Andreas
Senior professional · Synthetic Biology & Industrial Biotech

Over 25 years of experience in chemical, biochemical and food ingredient industries, complemented by building and scaling a successful, well-funded synthetic biology start-up. Translating technical insight into scalable development paths, industrial partnerships and robust go-to-market execution.

Available for engagements
Explore the network on LinkedIn ↗
Book a call to connect

“The companies that win the next decade will be those that build true partnership capability — not as a tactic, but as a structural competence baked into how they operate.”

Mike Vermeer · InnovateSmart/Partnerships, 2025

InnovateSmart
/Partnerships

The Essentials of Innovation Partnerships,
how to create Success and manage Risks.

“In an era refined by rapid technological change and unseen global challenges, the power of collaboration has never been more decisive.”

A comprehensive 271-page guide across 20 chapters — from defining innovation partnerships to navigating VUCA environments and ecosystem leadership. Built on decades of hands-on experience, an Executive MBA research foundation, and insights from academia and industry across Europe.

Partnerships is the first published pillar of the InnovateSmart innovation management platform. New members receive the book as a welcome gift. Featuring real-world cases from Heineken, Novo Nordisk, IKEA, Philips, Unilever, Stellantis, ServiceNow, ASML, Lamb Weston, Cosun and more.

79%
of CEOs agree companies must collaborate externally to drive innovation · PwC
5×
more likely to achieve significant results through collaborative innovation · WEF
50%
more likely to introduce successful new products via open innovation · HBR
35%
increase in innovation success for collaborative strategy · Deloitte
AuthorMike Vermeer MBA MM
PublisherNovactum, 2025
ISBN978-90-9052-6421
Pages271 · 20 Chapters · 15+ Cases
Platforminnovatesmart.nl
Request a copy →
InnovateSmart/Partnerships

Free Library

A selection of case studies and research insights from inside the book. Full library access is available to InnovateSmart members at innovatesmart.nl.

Case Study Chapter 12

ASML: Growth and Competitive Advantage by its Innovation Network

Founded in 1984 as a Philips spin-out, ASML became the global leader in photolithography equipment through a systematic evolution from bilateral partnerships to a full innovation ecosystem — rooted in the Brainport region of Eindhoven.

Read full case ↓

ASML's most significant early partnership was with Carl Zeiss AG, whose precision optics were critical to developing Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) lithography — enabling smaller, faster, more efficient microchips. Alongside this, VDL provided essential manufacturing components while Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) supplied a continuous pipeline of talent and research.

Former CTO Martin van den Brink championed the shift from isolated partnerships to an integrated Innovation Network — linking suppliers, customers, universities, and research institutions in a shared ecosystem. Major semiconductor customers including Intel, TSMC and Samsung became co-developers in the process.

Competitive outcomes: Technological leadership in EUV, high barriers to entry for competitors, deep two-way partner loyalty, and sustainable growth as the industry moves toward 5nm chips and below. ASML's case exemplifies how collaborative ecosystems can become the most durable form of competitive advantage.

Source: InnovateSmart/Partnerships, Mike Vermeer, Novactum 2025

Introduction Pages 11–15

Why Innovation Partnerships Are a Strategic Necessity

Innovation is no longer confined to internal R&D. In today's complex environment, it thrives in an ecosystem of collaboration — where diverse stakeholders co-create solutions that no single organisation could achieve alone.

Read more ↓

The pace of innovation adoption has compressed dramatically. Where the automobile took decades to reach mass adoption, AI-driven transformation unfolds in years. This acceleration makes the ability to collaborate — quickly, selectively, and with risk-awareness — a strategic necessity rather than an option.

Europe faces unique pressures: limited venture capital compared to the US and China, fragmented markets, and complex regulatory environments. Yet Europe's collaborative culture — rooted historically since the Middle Ages — is itself a structural advantage. Smaller organisations and economies can pool resources, share risk, and co-create value in ways larger, more bureaucratic economies cannot.

The book provides a stepwise framework: defining objectives, selecting partners, establishing governance, measuring outcomes, and scaling. Each chapter features real-world cases and actionable insights applicable immediately.

"InnovateSmart / Partnerships is not just a book — it is a leadership philosophy and a call to action for leaders and organisations to harness the power of collaboration in driving innovation and execute for a sustainable future together."

Mike M.A.J. Vermeer MBA MM — Breda, November 2025

Research Insights Foreword

The Evidence for Collaborative Innovation

Seven major research institutions — from PwC to Bain — converge on the same finding: organisations that collaborate consistently outperform those that innovate alone.

See all data ↓
79%PwC Global Innovation Surveyof CEOs agree companies must collaborate with external partners to drive innovation effectively.
50%Harvard Business Reviewmore likely to introduce successful new products when pursuing open innovation strategies.
+20%MIT Sloan Management Reviewhigher innovation success rate for firms leveraging external partnerships.
81%European Commissionof collaborative SMEs report product innovations vs 58% of non-collaborative firms.
5×World Economic Forummore likely to achieve significant business results through collaborative innovation.
+35%Deloitte Insightsincrease in innovation success rates for organisations pursuing collaborative strategies.
+30%Bain & Companyincrease in innovation productivity for companies engaging in partnerships and alliances.
Access full Insights at InnovateSmart.nl →

Start a conversation

Capital and ambition are seldom the constraint. Knowing how to scale is. Whether you lead an organisation, build a company or invest in one, we welcome the introduction.

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