Strategies to Expand and Fortify Your Intellectual Property Asset Base

Strategies to Expand and Fortify Your Intellectual Property Asset Base

Hey, bud! So, I was chatting with this big shot at a big company about how they're trying to beef up their patent game. I was like, "What's your plan for grabbing ideas from your inventors?" He said they do brainstorm meetings, jot down ideas in spreadsheets, and pursue them as needed.

Now, buddy, I ain't gonna sugarcoat it—that's total nonsense in today's world! Ditchin' those outdated Excel sheets, email threads, and half-baked software systems can utterly transform how you handle ideas and turn 'em into valuable IP. There's this awesome platform called Ideascale that's a total game-changer.

You might be thinkin', "What's wrong with the tools we're using?" Well, when you don't have an easy way to catch ideas and thoroughly vet 'em, you run into all sorts of problems:

1. Brilliant ideas getting lost in the shuffle.
2. Weak ideas goin' for the patent route, resulting in rejected or low-value patents.
3. Patents with great potential get overlooked because the business team didn't get in on the action.
4. Duplicating efforts when the company's already got a patent for someone else's idea.
5. Inventors get too busy with the invention and forget all about patenting. Worst case scenario: the product hits the market without any IP protection, and some other scoundrel swoops in to make a bundle.

So, what a company needs is a clear, defined process for capturin' ideas, collaboratin' on 'em, and conductin' thorough internal vetting. A place where all kinds of folks from different corners of the business world—not just R&D and engineering—can contribute and share their genius ideas. That way, only the best concepts move forward for patent protection.

Now, let's get serious about strengthenin' that patent portfolio. Along with a culture of innovation in the workplace and regular portfolio audits, you ought to think about devisin' a smart IP strategy. Here's a quick list of six things that'll prop up your patent portfolio:

1. Effective Innovation Capture

2. Thorough Vetting

3. Creatin' an Innovation-Driven Culture

4. Bringin' in Patent Experts

5. Pruning to Strengthen Your Patent Portfolio

6. Expeditin' the Patentin' Process

Effective Innovation Capture

Everything starts with an idea, so an inventor comes up with a doozy. Maybe they share it with you, maybe they don't. Maybe you review it, or it falls through the cracks. And the inventor's too busy makin' the invention a reality to think about IP protection. Be it patent, trade secret, or defensive publication—you need a defined place for innovation catchin' and progress trackin'.

Hello, friction for inventors to spill the beans and add their ideas to the patent pipeline: "long, non-user-friendly invention disclosure forms cluttered with legalese." Solve that issue with simplified invention disclosure forms—more inventors will hop aboard and share their brilliant ideas.

Thorough Vetting

With a bunch of ideas comin' your way from multiple inventors, there's no way you can pursue 'em all for IP protection. You gotta evaluate the ideas based on different factors like strategic vision, technology relevance in the long haul, budget, and so on before movin' forward with the patent process. That's where a robust idea management tool comes in handy, assistin' with the multifaceted vetting process.

Innovation happens early on in the game—usually before you've got customer or market validation, so all you can do is speculate about revenue down the line. It takes around 3-5 years to get patent protection for an invention. But having ideas vetted by folks from different fields—business, law, engineering, strategy, and the like—can help you make informed decisions about which ideas have the best chance of success.

Creating an Innovation-Driven Culture

"When failure's not an option, we forget about creativity, learning, and innovation."—Brené Brown. Embracin' failure is essential for fostering an innovation-driven culture. You need to have the financial resilience as a company to handle the failures and keep an open mind for those occasional blockbuster successes.

Now, I recently read this book called "The Invincible Company" and came across this fabulous concept called "The Culture Map." This reminded me of the enablers and blockers of innovation in a business.

Blockers of Innovation:

1. Lack of Innovation Strategy
2. Fear of Failure
3. Bureaucracy Slowin' Down Innovation
4. Locked into Current Business Model
5. A Lack of Skills, Knowledge, and Experience

Enablers of Innovation:

1. Strategic Guidance
2. Resource Allocation
3. Innovation Tools
4. Legitimacy and Power
5. Skills Development

Take a look around your organization to see where innovation is bein' held back and supported. This'll help you create an environment where innovation thrives for the company's benefit.

Bringin' in Patent Experts

Under-par patent draftin' can lead to rejection. Check out the most common reasons for patent application rejection:

• Improper and insufficient description of the invention and how it works.
• Lack of novelty.
• Non-patentable subject matter like new uses for a known substance.
• Erroneous Writing: Issues with line numbers, reference numbers on drawings, or paragraph numbers.

If you don't have in-house patent experts, find a reputable IP firm with expertise in end-to-end patent work. Make sure the person who's writein' the patent has deep technical knowledge, a solid background in the field, understands the basics of a patent, and so on.

Pruning Your Patent Portfolio | Abandonin' 'Out-of-Date' Patents

Suppose you have a patent portfolio stuffed with patents—50 or more. Only a few of 'em will be worth a heap of cash. The rest will suck up your time, effort, and money, but prunin' your portfolio can strengthen it.

Maintenance fee alone can become a significant expense with numerous patents in the portfolio for quite some time. Have a look at the maintenance fee for patents due at different intervals:

Prunin' means knowin' when to let go of bad IP assets. Strategic decision-makin' can be boosted by learnin' about patent monetization and the difference between valuable and outdated patents.

By the way, some patents in your portfolio might relate to obsolete technology, changed patent laws in different countries, or no commercial interest. Use that dough saved on brainless cases to invest in more promising innovations. An old technology isn't a guarantee that it'll be relevant forever. Some patents might've run their course.

Expeditin' the Patentin' Process to be First in Line

Once upon a time, it took over three years to get a patent up and runnin'. Thank goodness those days are gone, and expedited patents are available for a few grand in the U.S. While it might seem expensive for a new startup to get that advantage, if it means you can build your portfolio quicker, it's worth it.

Wanna hear more about patent portfolio management? Check out the video by our co-founder:

In summary, here's a quick rundown of the steps to help you beef up your patent portfolio:

1. Implement a well-defined innovation capture process to convert ideas into valuable IP.
2. The process should include thorough vetting from strategy, market, legal, feasibility, financial aspects.
3. Foster an innovation-driven culture by removin' the blockers and supportin' the enablers.
4. Collaborate with patent experts for accurate patent applications to avoid rejection.
5. Regularly prune your patent portfolio by abandonin' outdated patents to enhance strategy decision-makin'.
6. Expedite the patent process for a few thousand bucks to be at the market in time.

Now go out there and revolutionize your patent portfolio! And remember, keep it simple, silly!—not legalese.

Note: The following is general business advice and not legal advice. IP laws vary by country, and licensed legal counsel is advised to confirm this information. Any opinions expressed are of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Triangle IP or any other entity associated with the presenter. This content is meant to help, but it shouldn't be relied upon without confirming the advice and accuracy with local legal counsel. Any comments or questions are not confidential, so please discuss your issues directly with counsel.

1. Overhauling the traditional tools like Excel sheets, email threads, and outdated software systems can revolutionize the way ideas are handled within a company, transforming them into valuable IP.
2. Ideas often get lost in disorganized systems such as Excel sheets and email threads, making it essential to adopt a user-friendly platform like Ideascale for capturing ideas effectively.
3. A lack of an easy way to catch ideas and exhaustive vetting can lead to brilliant ideas getting overlooked, weak ideas going for patenting, and patents with great potential being absurdly ignored.
4. Streamlined invention disclosure forms are necessary for encouraging inventors to share their ideas but are sometimes hindered by complicated legal jargon and lengthy forms.
5. Robust idea management tools are essential for handling an assortment of ideas that come from multiple inventors and aiding in the multifaceted evaluation process.
6. Innovation management ensures the company culture thrives, fostering an environment where only the best concepts move forward for patent protection.
7. To bolster a company's patent portfolio, a targeted IP strategy is crucial, including effective innovation capture, thorough vetting, creating an innovation-driven culture, bringing in patent experts, pruning the patent portfolio, and expediting the patenting process.
8. Effective innovation capture involves a defined space for capturing innovations and tracking their progress, be it patent, trade secret, or defensive publication.
9. Thorough vetting of ideas requires evaluation based on factors such as strategic vision, long-term technology relevance, budget, and more, aiding informed decisions about which ideas have the best chance of success.
10. By fostering an innovation-driven culture, companies can overcome obstacles like fear of failure, bureaucracy, lack of skills, and locked-in business models, enhancing their ability to create a space where innovation flourishes for the company's benefit.

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