CIPO Patent Quality Conversation Patent Quality Overview and Upcoming CIPO Patent Quality Summit Marie Quinn, Program Manager – Quality, Patent Branch January 22, 2019

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Excellence is the unlimited ability to improve the quality

of what you have to offer.

- Rick Pitino

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Welcome to the first CIPO Patent Quality

Conversation!

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• Purpose • Quality at CIPO • CIPO Patent Quality

• Our Quality Management System (QMS)

• Quality Products • Quality Processes • Client Service Excellence

• Our upcoming CIPO Patent Quality Summit

AGENDA FOR TODAY’S

CONVERSATION

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The purpose of these conversations is to engage you, our stakeholders, and collaborate with you in an effort to continually improve the quality of our patent products, processes and services.

PURPOSE

PURPOSE

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An effective IP system—one that delivers quality and timely IP rights and improves certainty in the marketplace— is a foundational element of Canada's innovation and economic achievements. Quality is one of the 5 pillars in our Five-Year Business Strategy 2017-2022: Advance innovation Deliver quality and timely IP rights Build IP awareness and education Offer a modern service experience Foster an agile and high-performing

organization CIPO Five-Year Business Strategy 2017-2022

QUALITY AT CIPO

QUALITY AT CIPO

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• Provide IP rights and services that reflect client expectations, market needs and respect the public interest

• Be recognized as a quality-based

organization

• Modernize our practices, processes and tools

DELIVER QUALITY AND

TIMELY IP RIGHTS

QUALITY AT CIPO

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Patents are valuable business assets Innovators and businesses entering new

markets want to know that the value of their innovation is recognized and protected.

It is vital to creating certainty in the marketplace and enhancing the ability of a business to secure financing or attract investment.

Quality patents make protection of patented products and processes easier

WHY IS QUALITY

IMPORTANT TO YOU?

QUALITY AT CIPO

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Quality patents create certainty in the marketplace and stimulates innovation

The timely issuance of quality IP protection supports a well-functioning market and contributes to a business environment that cultivates new ideas, technologies, services and products.

CIPO wants you to have a high quality and timely product

We strive to meet the needs of our clients through an ongoing commitment to continuous process improvement, clear quality criteria and transparent service standards.

WHY IS QUALITY

IMPORTANT TO CIPO?

QUALITY AT CIPO

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PATENT BRANCH QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (PB QMS)

CIPO PATENT

QUALITY

PB QMS

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PATENT BRANCH

QMS PATENT BRANCH BY THE NUMBERS

PB QMS

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QUALITY TEAM

Quality Team • Core group of 10 including Program

Manager, Project Coordinators, ISO Coordinator, Mapping team

Quality Steering Committee (QSC) • Comprises senior executives including

the Director General of Patents, Examination Directors, Practice and International Program Managers

Quality Working Group • Comprises examiners and supervisors

from each Division

PATENT BRANCH

QMS

PB QMS

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CIPO Patent Branch is ISO 9001:2015 certified since March 2017

Key Quality Objectives

Quality Policy and Patent Examination Quality Standards

See our new Quality web page: https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/cipointernet-internetopic.nsf/eng/wr04378.html

Quality Timeliness Efficiency

PATENT BRANCH

QMS

PB QMS

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The Patent Branch is committed to ensuring a consistent client experience that delivers quality patent products and services in an efficient and timely manner, creating certainty in the marketplace and stimulating innovation.

The Quality Management System ensures: • That our quality objectives are met; • That national products and services adhere to the requirements

of the Patent Act and Rules; • That international products and services adhere

to the Patent Cooperation Treaty and Regulations; • A better understanding of clients' needs and expectations; and • Continual improvement of our processes to meet expectations

on quality, cost and timeliness.

Responsible management of the quality management system assures oversight, strategic direction and stewardship fostering a culture of excellence, inclusiveness, employee engagement and development.

QUALITY POLICY

PB QMS

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PATENT BRANCH

QMS PDCA CYCLE

PB QMS

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To ensure patent quality, we measure the quality of our products, processes and services:

Products Processes Services

QA/QC Search records

Timeliness Inventories Internal and

External Audit

Surveys Feedback Complaints

PATENT BRANCH

QMS PATENT QUALITY METRICS

PB QMS

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QUALITY PRODUCTS

PATENT BRANCH

QMS

PB QMS

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Examination Work Products • National Products: Reports and Allowances Quality Control Reporting and continuous improvement,

such as: • Additional training, improvements to examiner

tools, update of QC questions, investigation into any inconsistencies

• International Products: ISR/WO and IPRP Quality Control and Quality Assurance Reporting and continuous improvement,

such as: • Additional training, implementation of

checklists, update of QC questions

ENSURING QUALITY PRODUCTS PATENT

BRANCH QMS

PB QMS

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Search Records Complete search records provided with

Examiner Reports • We share all of our search information

including databases used and search strings so you know what was searched, where it was searched and how it was searched

We collect search information so that we

can analyze the data and continually improve our search reports and search quality

ENSURING QUALITY PRODUCTS PATENT

BRANCH QMS

PB QMS

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QUALITY PROCESSES

CIPO PATENT

QUALITY

PB QMS

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Internal Audits Process improvements through identification of opportunities for improvement and correction of nonconformities

• Process audits Risk based internal audit approach –

auditing higher risk processes more often Certified internal auditors Improvements include: update to QC tools,

awareness training, updated process flows and software tools, improvement in international PCT mailings, etc.

More improvement projects planned and on-going!

ENSURING QUALITY PROCESSES PATENT

BRANCH QMS

PB QMS

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Quality Management System Audits Internal audit exchange with other

government department Certified internal auditors

External Audits

ISO 9001:2015 certified in March 2017 Successfully passed ISO Surveillance Audit

in April 2018 Next Surveillance Audit in March 2019

ENSURING QUALITY PROCESSES PATENT

BRANCH QMS

PB QMS

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Lean methodology Maximizing customer value while minimising waste

• Improving processes and making them more efficient Time to process incoming correspondence

reduced Section 8 process improvement Standardized applicant naming convention –

reduction in errors • Implementation of Problem Solving Boards –

engaging employees to help identify issues and solve problems

• CIPO Lean Centre of Excellence

ENSURING QUALITY PROCESSES PATENT

BRANCH QMS

PB QMS

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Process Mappings and Work Instructions

• All 185 examination and operations processes have been mapped and include work instructions

• Ensures consistency in processes • Examination Mapping Review Group (EMRG) • Operations Mapping Review Group (OMRG) • Maps are regularly reviewed and approved

by the review groups

ENSURING QUALITY PROCESSES PATENT

BRANCH QMS

PB QMS

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Training

• Initial and Ongoing training programs • In-person, WebEx and e-learning • Search Collaboration Workshops • Technical seminars • Industry Training visits

Communication

• Regular Examiner Bulletins and Operations Bulletins

• Regular meetings at every level

ENSURING QUALITY PROCESSES PATENT

BRANCH QMS

PB QMS

Industry Training Visits

• Examiners update their knowledge in the relevant art through direct interaction with inventors, scientists, engineers and other experts in the field

• The result is the improved quality and efficiency of the patent application examination process

PATENT BRANCH

QMS ENSURING QUALITY PROCESSES

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Vancouver Group • CIPO, IP Australia, United Kingdom IP Offices • Searching Working Group – improving

searching quality and consistency

Meeting of International Authorities & Quality Subgroup

• Strengthening our International Quality Management System Incorporating risk based thinking to prioritize

improvement efforts and reduce risk • Paired QMS reviews

Identification of best practices and knowledge sharing

DEVELOPING BEST PRACTICES THROUGH COLLABORATION

PATENT BRANCH

QMS

PB QMS

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Collaborations with other IP Offices • USPTO’s Office for Patent Quality –

sharing of best practices and quality related initiatives

ISO Network

• Meeting with other ISO certified departments to share information and develop best practices

DEVELOPING BEST PRACTICES THROUGH COLLABORATION

PATENT BRANCH

QMS

PB QMS

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CLIENT SERVICE EXCELLENCE

CIPO PATENT

QUALITY

PB QMS

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Patent Examination Interview Service Better communication between

examiners and clients Reduced turn-around times

Online Feedback Mechanism (OFM) Resolution of identified issues Analysis of feedback for continuous

improvement Lean project to improvement incoming

correspondence Review of outgoing correspondence

processes

Client Contact Database Analysis of inquiries made to CIPO’s

Client Service Centre

ENSURING CLIENT SERVICE EXCELLENCE

CLIENT SERVICE

EXCELLENCE

PB QMS

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Surveys

CIPO Client Satisfaction Survey • We heard you and now are working to

address your concerns • Key findings include:

• Quality and consistency during the examination process;

• Ease and efficiency of the application process; • Going the extra mile to ensure clients receive

what they need; and • Overall timeliness in receiving registration or

grant of an application

ENSURING CLIENT SERVICE EXCELLENCE

CLIENT SERVICE

EXCELLENCE

PB QMS

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National Patent Products Survey • Examiner Reports – see link at the bottom of

every report • Your chance to tell us what you think of our

products! • Interview Service implemented in part to address

comments received Interview Service Pilot Survey

• Based on positive data analysis and survey results, Interview Service was implemented in June of 2017

CLIENT SERVICE

EXCELLENCE

PB QMS

ENSURING CLIENT SERVICE EXCELLENCE

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Engaging our Stakeholders

• CIPO Patent Quality Summit – Coming February 26, 2019!

• Panel discussions • Workshops

• Defining Patent Quality – What does Patent Quality mean to you?

• Patent Quality Metrics & Dashboards - Provide input!

• CIPO Patent Quality Conversations Next Conversation

• Learn what happened at our Patent Quality Summit in February and about Next Steps

ENSURING CLIENT SERVICE EXCELLENCE

CLIENT SERVICE

EXCELLENCE

PB QMS

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CIPO PATENT QUALITY SUMMIT February 26, 2019

Fostering Innovation by advancing patent quality

CIPO PATENT

QUALITY

CIPO PATENT QUALITY SUMMIT

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The CIPO Patent Quality Summit aims to foster innovation through enhancing patent quality by: Engaging participants on quality related

topics through panel discussions Collecting participant feedback on how

they define patent quality and what they would like to see in terms of metrics and reporting

Encouraging networking and sharing of perspectives regarding patent quality

CIPO PATENT

QUALITY SUMMIT

CIPO PATENT QUALITY SUMMIT

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Canada Science and Technology Museum 1867 St Laurent Blvd, Ottawa, Ontario

February 26, 2019

SUMMIT - VENUE CIPO

PATENT QUALITY SUMMIT

CIPO PATENT QUALITY SUMMIT

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SUMMIT - AGENDA

Morning Keynote Address

Panel Discussions Search and Patent

Quality • AI, Databases, Search

tools, client and examiner searching, comprehensive searching, etc.

Obstacles to Patent Quality • Quality vs timeliness

vs cost, etc.

Afternoon CIPO Patent Quality Presentation

Workshops Defining Patent

Quality

Monitoring Patent Quality through Dashboards

CIPO PATENT

QUALITY SUMMIT

CIPO PATENT QUALITY SUMMIT

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• Ian Wetherbee – Engineering Lead for Google Patents

• Berry deBruijn – Researcher, National Research Council

• Alexandra Daoud – Patent Agent and Partner at Norton Rose Fulbright

• Greg Vidovich – Associate Commissioner for Patent Quality, USPTO

• Jenna Wilson – Patent Agent, Partner at Wilson Lue, and Chair of the Patent Practice Committee

• Catherine Eckenswiller – Legal Counsel, VBI Vaccines Inc.

SUMMIT - GUEST PANELISTS CIPO

PATENT QUALITY SUMMIT

CIPO PATENT QUALITY SUMMIT

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CIPO PATENT QUALITY SUMMIT

Panel 3: Listening to our Clients

Do you have any questions you want answered?

Email us at: ic.qualitedb-pbquality.ic@canada.ca

FEEDBACK / QUESTIONS

Ottawa Convention Centre, Ottawa, Ontario (Source: Brand Canada)

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FEEDBACK / QUESTIONS Let us know what you think! Send us your questions through the WebEx chat box.

Ottawa Convention Centre, Ottawa, Ontario (Source: Brand Canada)

CIPO PATENT

QUALITY

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To suggest topics for an upcoming Patent Quality Conversation, please email us at: ic.qualitedb-pbquality.ic@canada.ca

QUALITY CONVERSATION TOPICS FEEDBACK / QUESTIONS

Ottawa Convention Centre, Ottawa, Ontario (Source: Brand Canada)

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FEEDBACK / QUESTIONS

Thank you