Lean IP-Management—Savings Costs for IP Management Based on a Paradigm Change in Assessing Inventions

Abstract

Conventional lean production aims at organizing and structuring a firm in a way that waste is minimized and available resources are used most efficiently while keeping overall productivity. By adopting lean strategies, firms can produce more efficiently, economically, and ecologically for their customers, thereby increasing their own profitability and competitiveness. The “lean” concept has become well-established in the domains of production and management. However, these lean strategies have never found their way to the management of intellectual property rights, like patents. This article argues that firms stand to realize significant efficiency gains by adopting lean principles when managing their intellectual property. Lean IP Management not only has the potential to reduce inefficiency in the form of wasted economic and human capital; it can also facilitate a more coherent business strategy by leveraging IP rights only where they stand to have the greatest impact.