Sunderland businesses and voluntary sector organisations are invited to join this free Expo Sunderland event, in collaboration with Innovation SuperNetwork, which offers an interactive platform for your team to enhance their innovation skills and problem-solving capabilities.

Innovation isn’t just about new technologies; it’s about understanding root causes and engaging diverse perspectives. During this session, attendees will:

• Understand Innovation: Grasp key concepts and the importance of innovation in business.
• Identify Opportunities: Define problems and recognise areas for change.
• Engage Stakeholders: Learn to map and understand stakeholder needs.
• Prototype Solutions: Apply rapid prototyping techniques to test ideas.

Full Agenda

9:30 - 10:00am: Registration & Networking

10:00 - 10:30am: What is innovation and why is it important?

10:30 - 11:00am: Enablers of and Barriers to Innovation

11:00 - 11:30am: Defining the Problem to be Solved

11:30 - 11:45am: Break

11:45 - 12:30pm: Engaging the Right Stakeholders and Stakeholder Mapping

12:30 - 1:30pm: Lunch

1:30 - 2:15pm: Understanding User Needs

2:15 - 2:45pm: Brainstorming Ideas and Considering Future Trends

2:45 - 3:00pm: Break

3:00 - 4:00pm: Prototyping Innovative Solutions – How to Test Early-Stage Ideas

4:00 - 4:20pm: Feedback on Your Developed Solutions

4:20 - 4:30pm: Wrap Up and Close

If you are a Sunderland based business, start-up or voluntary sector organisation working in the following areas, this Bootcamp is for you:

Future Homes including solutions that contribute to delivering greener, affordable homes for all Sunderland residents. This may cover retrofit, new build, modern methods of construction, new materials, and innovative solutions used within the home to ensure homes that are greener, energy efficient and better to live in.

Future Living including solutions that support happier, healthier, more connected lives for all Sunderland residents, with community engagement and community-led initiatives central to solutions developed.

Future City including solutions that help to realise the potential of Sunderland, utilising assets such as its position as a connected, smart-city as well as its existing industrial base, infrastructure and environment, and build pride and engagement across the city and surrounding neighbourhoods.

This event will provides a great opportunity to bring together those who want to see the potential of Sunderland as an amazing city in which to live, work, learn and do business, and to ensure that the innovators of Sunderland can access growth opportunities that will deliver social as well as economic benefit.

This project is funded by UK Government through UK Shared Prosperity Fund.