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Evaluation methods – for example, some innovation-heavy departments have patent targets against which to compare their activity. How will success be measured? Key takeaways Digital delivery is an important part of our public services, and this is often underpinned by the provision of specialist software. Such software can be central to the delivery of your organisation’s objectives, and can be expensive to develop or buy. These make it a valuable knowledge asset. The Government Digital Service provides a Technology Code of Practice which should be used for all technology projects or programmes.

Patents protect new inventions and cover how products work, what they do, how they do it, what they are made of and how they are made.

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There are a number of different types of protection, not all of which require the exercise of IP rights. The following sections set out the different levels of protection that exist, and the factors that organisations may take into account when deciding what type of protection is most appropriate for a particular knowledge asset. [footnote 4] Level 1 – open access/no protection A. Strategically managing knowledge assets can lead to the realisation of several benefits such as derivation of value from underutilised knowledge assets, saving resources by avoiding the duplication in the acquisition or creation of knowledge assets, and lowered risk of IP infringement. B. Public sector organisations should seek to ensure the UK receives a fair share of the benefits of a knowledge asset.

A knowledge asset management strategy should provide an organisation with an internal guide to decision-making through the life cycle of its knowledge assets. It should be tailored to the core activities of the organisation, but should also set out how the organisation handles assets which might have a purpose of value outside of that core function. This chapter gives guidance around the development of knowledge asset management strategies, including: membership drawn from key parts of the organisation, for example finance, commercial, scientific, technology There is a huge number of organisations that collect data to support their activities across government. Wherever there is systematic data collection, a potentially valuable knowledge asset may be generated.This chapter provides an overview of the high-level principles for effective management of knowledge assets, including:

Note that under the Model Services Contract, IP rights ownership in specially written software will reside in the Crown. Research and development Some of the previous sections which look at how knowledge assets are generated have considered issues of ownership, particularly where those knowledge assets are generated working with other organisations. informal departmental recognition, for example, success stories and individuals who have shown good knowledge asset management being featured through departmental intranet blogs and articles The primary audience of the guidance are those who are seeking support and advice on managing knowledge assets, including programme and project SROs and subject leads (including: commercial, finance, technology, policy, innovation and data leads). market-based – this approach arrives at a market price for the knowledge asset in question, based on comparable assets currently or recently transferred in the open market. While this is a relatively direct and systematic approach, and relatively easy to calculate in theory, in practice it can be hard to find suitable comparators due to the large variety in the shape and character of knowledge assetsThe enthusiasm of senior management is integral to embedding the strategy within an organisation. Senior leaders should champion new behaviours and demonstrate commitment to the new approach and there should be a dedicated senior responsible owner ( SRO) for the knowledge asset management strategy. The degree of formality and seniority with which such a role could be allocated will depend on the type of organisation and the role played by knowledge assets. As part of their knowledge asset management strategy each department should have a clear policy on enforcement, which should be based around the purposes of the department and the overall public interest. Enforcement should, in most circumstances, be a last resort after other forms of dispute resolution have been discounted. peer and performance recognition is an important part of incentivising public sector workers who are rarely driven principally by financial rewards to their work. Being able to ‘make a difference’ and have your impact recognised is a key driver for individuals in the public sector R&D activity is by its nature highly innovative and can therefore generate very valuable knowledge assets. Organisations with significant R&D activity should think carefully about the processes around such activity to ensure these assets are identified and recorded. For example, they might consider their policy around the keeping of invention disclosure forms. Major and novel projects and programmes

This section is not designed to be an exhaustive list of considerations for a knowledge asset management strategy. Relevant considerations will vary significantly between organisations. Implementation of strategy responsible for the management of knowledge assets as part of their existing day-to-day role (distinct from the SRO)derive value from underutilised knowledge assets in accordance with principles of Managing Public Money It should be clear to a third party from your knowledge asset management strategy who they need to approach should they believe they need a licence. Protection requirements over time Knowhow could be associated with any or all of the IP rights, but may not be protectable in itself, other than by trade secrecy and the law of confidence This document will support organisations in fulfilling these responsibilities, providing guidance to help public servants identify, protect and exploit their knowledge assets (including, where appropriate, exploiting them in other markets and applications). The guidance does not define a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach to the management of knowledge assets and each organisation should consider how best to apply the principles based on the extent of their knowledge asset ownership and should take a proportionate approach. Chapter 2: Knowledge asset management principles It may be helpful for a knowledge asset management strategy to consider the organisation’s approach to risk management, in the context of the wider exploitation of knowledge assets. This is described further in chapter 6 and provides a framework against which to assess options to exploit the assets and ensure that activity does not undermine the organisation’s core purpose and objectives.