Ecosystem Mapping: The Shortcut to Faster Innovation

Why Ecosystems Matter More Than Ever

Innovation in pharma, chemistry, and biotech has never been more complex. Developing a new therapy, diagnostic, or digital solution requires not just brilliant science but collaboration across startups, corporates, OEMs, research institutions, and investors. Yet in many regions, these stakeholders remain disconnected. Startups struggle to find their first customers, corporates duplicate research instead of partnering, and promising technologies get delayed or lost in silos.

This is where ecosystem mapping comes in. By systematically visualizing the players, assets, and connections within a given innovation cluster, companies and policymakers gain clarity on where to focus, whom to partner with, and how to accelerate value creation.¹ Done right, ecosystem mapping is not just an analytical tool; it's a shortcut to faster innovation.²

The Problem: Innovation Without a Map

Without structured mapping, ecosystems often fall into familiar traps:

• Duplication of effort: multiple labs or startups solving the same problem in isolation.
• Missed partnerships: corporates don't know which startups to watch, and startups don't know which OEMs or pharma groups are open to pilots.
• Underused assets: expensive infrastructure (labs, bioreactors, data platforms) sits idle because potential users don’t know it exists.
• Investor hesitancy: without clear visibility, early-stage investors perceive higher risks and delay funding decisions.

According to a study by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG), regions with structured innovation clusters grow faster in startup formation and investment than regions without them. In life sciences, where capital and timelines are critical, these differences are game-changing.

What Is Ecosystem Mapping?

Ecosystem mapping is the process of identifying and structuring:³

• Stakeholders - startups, corporates, universities, accelerators, investors, regulators.⁴

• Assets - labs, equipment, IP, data, pilot facilities.⁵

• Connections - collaborations, funding relationships, joint ventures.⁶

• Gaps - missing infrastructure, weak links between research and industry, underrepresented players.

The output can be a digital dashboard, a searchable registry, or a visual map. More than just a database, it becomes a strategic tool for making better decisions, faster.⁷

Case Example: Regional Clusters in Europe

In the Ruhr/Westphalia region of Germany, initiatives like Klic2Go are creating digital "katasters" (registries) of bioanalytics and bioprocess assets. By cataloguing infrastructure across universities, corporates, and startups, they have:

• Reduced redundancy in equipment investment.
• Enabled startups to access infrastructure at lower cost.
• Increased collaboration between research and industry.⁸

This approach is spreading: similar cluster mapping initiatives are now visible in Cambridge (UK) and Boston (US). Each has shown that structured transparency increases trust, reduces duplication, and accelerates deal-making.

Why It Matters for Companies

For OEMs, pharma, and startups, ecosystem mapping is not just policy-level work. It has a direct impact on business:

• Startups - know where to find first partners, pilot sites, and investors.⁹

• OEMs - see which labs or clusters are ready for digital adoption and target them efficiently.
• Pharma - gain visibility into promising technologies earlier in the pipeline.
• Investors - reduce risk by seeing the ecosystem's maturity before committing capital.

In a world where many innovation pilots fail to scale, targeting the right partner in the right ecosystem increases the odds of success dramatically. A 2022 PwC report on digital factory transformation, for example, notes a high failure rate for pilot projects, with 64% of companies still in the initial pilot phase.

How to Get Started with Ecosystem Mapping

1. Define the Scope: Focus on a specific domain (e.g., bioanalytics, clinical trials, digital labs) and a clear geography.
2. Collect Data: Gather information on institutions, startups, investors, and infrastructure.¹⁰ This can be done through public registries, surveys, and interviews.

1. Visualize the System: Create maps, dashboards, or searchable databases to reveal clusters and gaps.¹¹

1. Engage Stakeholders: Use workshops and roundtables to validate findings and build buy-in.¹²

1. Activate the Map: Move beyond analysis; use it to drive matchmaking, partnerships, and investment.¹³

Key Takeaway

Ecosystem mapping is not a luxury; it’s a practical accelerator. By creating visibility across stakeholders and assets, it reduces duplication, lowers costs, and speeds up collaboration.¹⁴ In fast-moving industries like pharma and biotech, where each year of delay can mean billions lost in opportunity, having a "map" is no longer optional.

Ecosystems that invest in transparency today will be the ones delivering breakthroughs tomorrow.

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Sources:

• BCG (Boston Consulting Group): The claim that structured innovation clusters lead to faster growth is a central theme in BCG's work on innovation ecosystems, as highlighted in publications like "Building Innovation Ecosystems: Accelerating Tech Hub Growth."
• PwC: The reference to a high failure rate for innovation pilots is supported by PwC's 2022 Digital Factory Transformation Survey, which found that most companies are still in the early stages of digital transformation, with many pilot projects failing to scale across the entire production network.
• Klic2Go: Klic2Go is a real-world initiative in the Ruhr area of Germany that supports the concept of asset registries and digital catalogs for bioanalytics and bioprocessing.
• Cambridge and Boston: Both Cambridge, UK, and Boston, US, are recognized as leading life science innovation hubs that have a history of and ongoing efforts in ecosystem mapping and cluster analysis. The Cambridge Cluster is a public-facing example of such an initiative, and reports from the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center detail the mapped ecosystem in Boston.

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