IN THE SPOTLIGHT
cost optimisation as a result of our worldwide network. Competitiveness is greatly improved and the IP firm can serve its clients optimally again in the administrative IP segment.
• In addition, each IPAN partner can participate in the IPAN profits through a holding.
“ DEVELOPING A BUSINESS IDEA NOT ONLY ON PAPER, BUT HAVING THE COURAGE TO PUT IT INTO PRACTICE AND TO ACCEPT THE FINANCIAL AND PERSONAL RISK CONNECTED WITH THIS, IS NOT ALWAYS REWARDED. SO THAT SUCCESS WAS EVEN POSSIBLE, WE HAD TO ADAPT INNOVATIVELY AND FLEXIBLY TO THE VARIOUS REQUIREMENTS AND STRATEGIES OF OFFICES AROUND THE WORLD AND THEIR CLIENTS.”
WIPR: How did you get partner firms and clients to buy into the IPAN idea?
A.B.: My network was and still is my most valuable capital, which I always look aſter carefully. Te motto is: always be honest, only promise what you can really keep. Ten, your network will be grateful to you. People will take you seriously and trust you. And if you have been particularly good, they will even trust their business and their money to you.
WIPR: How did you proceed to begin with? WIPR: And what underpins your success?
A.B.: Te three most important entrepreneurial virtues: effort, effort and effort. Ten, target- oriented acquisition plays a large role. But above all, you need good people, who firmly believe in what they are doing and commit themselves to it with all their power and motivation—which, for a young company, is anything but simple to find. Good employees are not just sitting on the road and waiting for you. Tey are in great companies, in top positions and, which makes things even worse, are also earning a lot of money. You need a lot of convincing work to win such employees over for a new company. Te whole team is responsible for the company’s success. Alongside top staff in a motivating corporate culture, we place importance on well thought-out processes and set new standards for ourselves every day.
WIPR: What kind of standards are they?
A.B.: Our standards aim to provide the best possible guarantee of security in the administration of protective rights by state- of-the-art IT in combination with maximum service quality delivered by experienced and motivated personnel, available to the world’s important markets, at a price adapted to the size and requirements of an IP-portfolio. Te supreme objective for partner companies and industrial clients is always ensuring a clear added value from co-operation with IPAN: monetarily
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in the form of savings and also by removing the pressure on internal resources.
WIPR: So you see it as a win-win for clients?
A.B.: In my opinion, the frequently quoted win-win situation doesn't even exist. I haven’t got a clue who invented this expression. Aſter all, money doesn’t disappear, it is just redistributed again and again. In the end, someone always loses, that has been proven in business administration and, before you ask, in our case, it’s our competitors. Alongside IPAN, there are only four IP companies to be taken seriously all over the world; in recent years, they have lost some renowned customers and thus market share. We were not exactly innocent in that regard.
WIPR: Can you briefly describe what the IPAN business model offers customers?
A.B.: A Chinese proverb says: “You must convince your business partner with only three arguments, you don’t get more time.” Co-operation with IPAN always offers the greatest possible added value, for the industry and also for the offices.
• For industry, IPAN significantly reduces IP costs, increases internal effectiveness and reduces the overall risk of actions.
• More and more IP firms decide to become IPAN partners because they can react to their clients' requirements considerably more quickly and with
A.B.: For the first two years, I almost exclusively concentrated on the foundation of IPAN, the set-up of the worldwide network of partner offices. In this time, I attended a lot of IP conferences all over the world, had innumerable appointments in order to win over offices in all important IP countries as speedily as possible. Parallel to this, administration, IT and IP administering soſtware were developed and produced together with renowned companies and the first IPAN partners. In early 2008, critical coverage in almost 100 countries had been achieved with IP partner firms and we began to sell our services. We reached break-even the same year and were able to invest—then things really started.
While the financial and real economy were going downhill and slipped into recession, IPAN’s order books rose to record levels. As a result of the worldwide crisis, IP departments in industry had to adapt to the pressure of costs. Budget reductions meant careful management of the financial means; in addition, staff were axed. Nevertheless, the company continued with the IP strategy, which by now was proven to work. It optimised the internal processes of the IP departments, as all the administrative services were handled via one point of contact, in one language, one format and one currency. Te order volume of many European industrial groups entrusting the management of their protective rights to IPAN, which was combined in this way, meant that savings of up to 40 percent were achieved in some cases for customers.
Today, IPAN administers more than 300,000 protective rights and expects to achieve a turnover of €30 million.
World Intellectual Property Review May/June 2010
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