IP Management – A Practical Guide

So, now that we have some awareness of the importance of having an IP management strategy what practical steps can we take to implement a workable strategy?

Step 1: Ensure that every employee from the CEO, CFO, Board of Directors to the shop floor is aware of the importance of IP and has this encapsulated in their employment contract.
Step 2: Ensure that there is an individual, department, or Patent Attorney firm charged with the responsibility of preparing and maintaining IP audits and reporting them to the Board.
Step 3: Put in place a company wide education programme so that the importance of IP is understood. Such a programme should include accounting, legal, sales, marketing & advertising departments, distributors, R&D departments and any outside consultants. A company wide IP day may sound a little bizarre but is a great way to promote brands and technologies and create a culture that allows for more lucrative ways to exploit IP.
Step 4: A book value should be placed on all company IP and this value should be reported.
Step 5: Expiration and Renewal dates of all IP’s should be managed and independent watching and reporting services considered.
Step 6: Expiry dates for important Patents likely to have a negative impact on core product sales should be clearly enunciated and contingency plans made.
Step 7: Company Brands and their proper use should be protected energetically
Step 8: Royalty payments and both license-in and license-out investigations should be undertaken to ensure that proper royalties are paid and received. Surprising as it may sound a large number of firms pay for licenses for technologies that have not been renewed or have lapsed.
Step 9: Undertake a full audit of all of your IP, place a value on it and a grading as to its importance. This can generate good revenue streams from IP that is not in use.
Step 10: Seek independent advice from your Patent attorney firm and from your IP search Agent in the management and enforcement of IP. Such advice should provide comment on whether or not to obtain foreign patents or trademarks and the availability of these before expanding product lines and brands, or entering into any joint ventures or technology transfers.

Readers may also wish to review a paper entitled "Are we playing the World Game?" by John Kenny - a specialist on the Global Governance of IP.

Next – Valuing IP