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Benefits of a Global Mindset to the Administrative Backbone of an Intellectual Property Department

Abstract

The backbone of a well-functioning Intellectual Property department is made up of three major elements: the people, the systems and the processes that connect those people and systems. This paper looks at some of the experiences gained during the first 12 months of a transition from having administrative staff spread across many international locations, working predominantly locally, into a coherent team with a single global mindset. Initially the main goal was to iron out demand peaks and balance workloads. Peaks occur, for example, when some people in one location are overloaded and others with less to do cannot easily help their colleagues due to natural variation in the way the work is being carried out. The main challenge was to develop revised workflows, processes and procedures as well as achieve universal buy-in for the way the administrative work was to be carried out. We found that the key to successful change towards a global mindset was being able to recognize that which is essential, which should be the same and happen globally, and that which is not essential, which can be different and happen locally. There was of necessity a need to continue to provide a consistent high-quality service throughout the change process. Going forward, it was imperative to ensure that standardized ways of working would become the new norm while continuing to be updated as required. As part of this, it was important to enhance the guidance available to the administrative team, including progressing career paths and personal development by means of coaching, motivation, and development.

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Author

Portrait image of Maja Schmitt
Maja Schmitt
Head of Global Administration, Dsm , Netherlands

Dr Maja Schmitt is a European and UK Patent Attorney and has been working for DSM companies for the last 20 years in the UK, The Netherlands (north and south) and China. By training she is a polymer chemist but has also worked in inks, paints, bioprocesses and more recently with proteins. This year she took on the role of Head of Global Administration for DSM Intellectual Property and spends her time with teams of Administrative Staff in The Netherlands, Switzerland, China and USA.

Company

Dsm

Royal DSM is a global science-based company active in health, nutrition and materials. By connecting its unique competences in life sciences and materials sciences DSM is driving economic prosperity, environmental progress and social advances to create sustainable value for all stakeholders simultaneously.

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