Breakthrough U.S. and Japan Private Sector Partnership Announced

New Joint Commission will foster science and technology partnerships based on principles of competitiveness, resilience, invention, innovation, sustainability, inclusivity, and shared democratic values

WASHINGTON, June 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Building off the success of the U.S.-Japan Competitiveness and Resilience Partnership (CoRe), launched last April, the Council on Competitiveness (Council) and the Japan Innovation Network (JIN) are today announcing a new initiative: The U.S.-Japan Commission on Innovation and Competitiveness.

The Commission is established to promote the objectives of the CoRe Partnership and to advance joint research and development and collaborative innovation initiatives, as well as new business models, across the two nations' advanced science and technology ecosystems. CoRe provides a framework for U.S. and Japanese collaboration, uniting the world's two largest democratic economies as they work toward generating greater prosperity in their own nations and around the world. President Biden and Prime Minister Kishida both confirmed their commitment to the CoRe partnership during their recent summit in Tokyo.

The U.S.-Japan Commission on Innovation and Competitiveness will elevate CoRe's goals across both nations by bringing together leaders from the private sector and key communities, including firms, research institutions, academia, and laboratories to accelerate understanding of each other, and to help identify and provide pathways for potential partnerships based on principles of competitiveness, resilience, invention, innovation, sustainability, and inclusivity. The Commission will anchor the nations' relationship in their shared democratic values.

Deborah Wince-Smith, President & CEO of the Council, and Hiro Nishiguchi, Chief Executive Officer of the JIN, submitted letters to President Biden and Prime Minister Kishida commending the Administrations' commitment to the CoRe Partnership based upon multiple discussions among the Cabinet Office of Japan, the Council and JIN, and expressing their intention "to engaging with [the] Administrations to fulfill this ambitious agenda that is so important to our nations' global competitiveness, and economic and national prosperity and security."

"The Council on Competitiveness, having long defined and shaped a private sector innovation agenda in the United States – from the local, to the regional, to the national levels – is honored to join with the Japan Innovation Network in launching this distinctive, joint commission. Our Council members, spanning a broad cross section of our economy, are poised to contribute our experience and capabilities, and we will exercise leadership in the private sector to advance the CoRe agenda," said Deborah L. Wince-Smith, President & CEO of the Council.

"Japan Innovation Network was established in 2013 based on a research project of the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) to transform Japan into an Innovation Nation. As such, JIN has been proactively promoting and bringing forth the concept of the Innovation Management System and achieving Sustainable Development Goals through innovation-based activities among Japanese organizations. We are honored to join with the Council on Competitiveness to design and operate this Commission to advance the private-sector driven innovation agendas in both nations through the implementation of systematic, cross-border, innovation management systems," said Hiro Nishiguchi, the CEO of JIN.

For more than three decades, the Council has championed a competitiveness agenda for the United States to attract investment and talent and spur the commercialization of new ideas. While the players may have changed since its founding in 1986, the mission remains as vital as ever—to enhance U.S. productivity and raise the standard of living for all Americans.

The members of the Council—CEOs, university presidents, labor leaders and national lab directors—represent a powerful, nonpartisan voice that sets aside politics and seeks results. By providing real-world perspective to policymakers, the Council's private sector network makes an impact on decision-making across a broad spectrum of issues—from the cutting- edge of science and technology, to the democratization of innovation, to the shift from energy weakness to strength that supports the growing renaissance in U.S. manufacturing. The Council firmly believes that with the right policies, the strengths and potential of the U.S. economy far outweigh the current challenges the nation faces on the path to higher growth and greater opportunity for all Americans.

JIN's mission is to transform Japan into an Innovation Nation where innovation arises from every organization. Working in tandem with countries across the world, JIN improves the success rate of our innovation activities by accelerating employee growth and organizational reform backed by our innovation management and project support. JIN represents Japan in the technical committee of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) for Innovation Management Systems (IMS) as the exclusive national institution. In this capacity, JIN takes an active part in developing international standards for innovation management, local opinion gathering, and international negotiations.

As the scheme owner of the ISO 56000 series in Japan, JIN has accumulated many successful cases in IMS Design and Implementation and Innovation Projects with executive, middle and junior managers by exploiting our international network and expertise in supporting the acceleration of innovation in large enterprises. JIN firmly believes that every organization needs an excellent management system to unleash the potential of all employees to go through this age of great uncertainty.

SOURCE Council on Competitiveness; Japan Innovation Network