The Future of University-Business Cooperation

Abstract

A study into the Future of University-Business Cooperation with results from Europe and Australia.

Full text

FINAL REPORT
A project supported by the European
Union Centre for Global Affairs at the
University of Adelaide
August 2017

2
Future of University-Business Cooperation (UBC)
Report on Qualitative and Quantitative Insights - Project Phases 1 & 2
About this study
The importance of university-business cooperation (UBC)
for innovation and education is widely recognised and
growing in significance as economies face uncertainty,
increasingly competitive global markets and subdued
growth prospects. Worldwide, policymakers stress the
importance of a strong relationship between business
and higher education as a means for generating
economic activity, investing significant amounts of funds
to encourage UBC.
In Europe, increasing both innovation and employability
are key topics of Horizon 2020, the European
Commission’s planning framework, with collaboration
between higher education institutions (HEIs) and business a
central focus. As part of its efforts, the European
Commission has funded the State of European UBC study,
seeking to determine the status quo. However, there is a
need to look into the future and determine future priorities
for the interaction between research, policy and practice.
Similarly, through the National Science and Innovation
Agenda and Ideas Boom, Australia is embracing and
investing in cooperation between universities and
industry as a central engine for growth. While reviews
of the innovation ecosystem and related areas have
been initiated, a future perspective would offer
additional ideas into the development of this context.
Background
The topic of UBC has received significant interest not
only in management and policy circles but also across
academics seeking to advance innovation, higher
education and policy domains. Indeed, a systematic
review of the literature on UBC undertaken by the
authors indicates that a total of 581 academic research
papers were published on this topic over the last 10
years in academic journals alone. This prolific research
stream has benefited from frequent reviews of the
extant literature, including the development of research
agendas.
Yet, to date such research agendas are limited in that
they are derived from a retrospective analysis of results
or the review of extant literature. Hence, they look back
to determine where the future in the discipline should be.
Contrarily, the research reported here takes a forward-
thinking approach, aiming to facilitate the discussion of
experts about the future directions of UBC and, in turn,
shaping the direction of related research, practice and
policy. Indeed, while much of the academic literature to
date focuses on future research directions, the future
directions of practice and policy are commonly lacking.
The project was executed in two phases: (1) open-
ended survey executed in Europe and Australia, and (2)
quantitative study executed in Europe.
PHASE 1(Australia / Europe)
Approach
Seeking to develop a thorough understanding of the
future directions of UBC research, practice and policy,
a qualitative research approach was chosen as a
starting point for a multi-method study. Academic,
policy and practitioner experts attending relevant
workshops and conferences in the area of UBC in Europe
and Australia were invited by the authors to respond to
a brief paper survey. A snowball approach was also
utilised where suitable, asking respondents to invite
other UBC experts to respond.
A total of 33 Australian and 88 European respondents
began answering the survey, leading to 81 usable
answers for analysis. The final sample entails responses
from Australia (25%), the UK (17%), the Netherlands
(6%), Germany (6%) and Greece (6%), as well as
responses covering 12 other European and 4 non-
European countries. The majority of respondents are
practitioner experts (43%), followed by UBC
researchers (21%) and policymakers (9%); other
respondents did not indicate their area of work.
The survey comprised three open-ended questions,
namely:
 What are the most important topics that
practitioners / policymakers / researchers need to
address in the next five years to advance UBC?
 Why are these topics particularly important?
 Which approaches are needed for the topics to be
addressed?
Respondents were able to answer all questions or focus
on those questions they deemed most relevant to their
area of expertise. A thematic analysis of the data lead
to the identification of seven categories of priorities for
the future of UBC. A detailed outline of the priorities
comprised within these categories is provided below.
Summary of results
While policy priorities relate to the broader policy
framework, related measures and key performance
indicators (KPIs), as well as science, technology,
engineering and maths (STEM) related priorities,
practitioners focus more strongly on engagement
between stakeholders, the strategy and approach of
individual institutions, and the fostering of
entrepreneurship. Researchers studying UBC are tasked
with improving our understanding across all categories
except STEM. For further information, please refer to
‘Framework of Priorities for the Future of University-
Business Cooperation’ (page 6).

3
Research – Future Priorities
Those areas deemed most critical to advance
academically from the interviews include the
development of partnership modes and models for
UBC, with methods for partner identification and
academic training noted alongside the need for
research into new business models for UBC.
Furthermore, the need to broaden our understanding
of the extensive UBC ecosystem is highlighted as an
important direction for future research. The
measurement of UBC activities was a further priority
named, including not only measuring the impact of
UBC but also providing evidence of such impact.
Common perceptions of future priorities emerged
across respondents from Europe and Australia.
Pinpointing some focus areas, European respondents
focused more strongly on examining motivations for
engaging in UBC, also focusing on UBC challenges, as
well as stakeholders’ roles and stereotypes.
Australian respondents, on the other hand, placed a
stronger emphasis on the development of partnering
models, as well as on investigating skill development,
communication models and KPIs for universities and
their staff.
Why are these topics particularly important?
Based on the broad variety of reasons noted by
respondents for why they identified certain research
priorities, the following are extracted as a summary:
Evidence: The need to have evidence, evidence-
based models and metrics.
Understanding: The need to demonstrate how and
why things work or do not work.
Professionalism: The need to professionalise the
research in, and management of, UBC.
Thought leadership: The need to be at the forefront
of rethinking and changing innovation and
engagement over time.
Measurement: The need to ensure suitable
measurement of the impact and success of UBC
initiatives.
POLICY FRAMEWORKS
 Exploring the role of government in the Triple Helix
 Understanding the broader ecosystem of UBC
 Exploring the effect of university funding model
changes
MEASURES AND KPIs
 Measuring the impact of UBC
 Understanding the impact of UBC on research
 Developing metrics for UBC that take into account
organisational differences
 Developing KPI systems for academics related to
UBC
 Exploring how businesses define success in UBC
 Investigating how businesses identify and evaluate
suitable researchers/teams
ENGAGEMENT
 Understanding the needs/roles of all stakeholders
in UBC
 Exploring stereotypes/assumptions relating to UBC
 Investigating the effect of different foci between
HEI and business
 Developing models of communication for UBC
 Exploring the management of relationships over
time
 Exploring how to encourage academic
engagement
 Understanding the attitude and skills of great UBC
practitioners
 Investigating co-learning processes
 Understanding cultural barriers
 Exploring risks/ways of minimising risks associated
with UBC
 Conducting cost-benefit analysis of different
intellectual property (IP) models
STRATEGY AND APPROACH
 Exploring HEI motivations for UBC
 Exploring business motivations for UBC
 Developing innovative business models for UBC
 Developing innovative business models for HEI
engagement with SMEs
 Understanding how academics are trained for UBC
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
 Exploring the role of entrepreneurship for students
 Exploring ways of cultivating academic spin-offs
CONTEXT-SPECIFIC ITEMS
 Investigating UBC across different industry
sectors/cultures

4
Policy – Future Priorities
The measurement of UBC and its impact features most
strongly in the emerging topics for policymakers. In
this respect, some respondents call for the creation of
KPIs for UBC, enabling benchmarking exercises
among organisations, regions or countries.
The design of effective financial and non-financial
incentives aiming to increase both academic and
business engagement in UBC emerged as another
developing topic, along with the creation and
improvement of UBC policy for the education domain.
Furthermore, respondents mention as a priority for
policymakers to practice evidence-based
policymaking and ensure buy-in at all levels of policy
in order to regulate UBC more efficiently and
encourage more people to engage.
Many of the future priorities for UBC policy emerged
consistently across both European and Australian
samples. However, measurement and general UBC
related education policy were noted more commonly
by European respondents, while Australian
respondents see a particular priority in incentivising
UBC and were the only ones to focus on STEM
challenges.
Why are these topics particularly important?
The reasoning behind the priorities identified by
respondents are varied. The following summary
offers some key insights:
Understanding: The need to see the “whole picture”
and understand the impact of UBC, including social
impact.
Progress: The need to achieve progress and thus to
proactively encourage stakeholders to work towards
impact through legislation.
Support: The need for policymakers to develop
relevant incentive systems and take on a facilitator
role to achieve change.
Foundation: The need to establish “ground rules”
based on which partnerships can develop and
address systematic challenges or barriers to UBC.
POLICY FRAMEWORKS
 Developing programmes facilitating staff mobility
between HEI and business
 Optimising the structure of the HEI sector to stimulate
UBC
 Practicing evidence-based policy making
 Developing a regulatory framework to support
partnering
 Supporting entrepreneurial initiatives
 Developing an ecosystem conducive to UBC
 Ensuring buy-in to UBC policies at all levels of
politics
 Developing incentive systems for HEI
 Developing incentive systems for business
 Ensuring that incentive systems facilitate
collaboration rather than individualism
 Providing seed money for start-ups
 Optimising university funding models to stimulate
UBC
 Promoting initiatives that stimulate UBC to relevant
stakeholders
 Facilitating a cultural change towards greater UBC
MEASURES AND KPIs
 Developing KPIs for UBC
 Developing measures for societal engagement
impact
 Measuring business' use of university research
findings
 Defining success of UBC
SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, ENGINEERING, MATHS
(STEM)
 Fostering STEM education extent/quality in high
schools
 Offering STEM options for arts graduates
 Facilitating female choice of STEM in higher
education

5
Practice – Future Priorities
Respondents identified for the future of UBC practice,
a stronger focus on long-term relationships in UBC,
driven through a greater alignment of interests,
better mechanisms supporting UBC, improved
monitoring of activities, as well as better stakeholder
management and governance.
UBC is expected to grow particularly in economically
weaker regions, and outside of the technical faculties.
Developing a much better understanding of UBC,
embracing entrepreneurship and a focus on dual
study programmes as well as other student-centred
UBC types also feature heavily in the results.
While most topics emerged across the European and
Australian samples, the results indicate that European
respondents showed a particularly strong interest in
entrepreneurship, including start-ups and spin-offs,
the establishment and management of partnerships,
as well as a greater focus on small and medium
enterprise (SME) engagement.
Australian participants focused more strongly on the
future priorities of developing understanding across
relevant stakeholder groups, the promotion of UBC to
increase awareness, as well as IP and expectations
management.
Why are these topics particularly important?
The results show a great depth in the reasoning
behind the priorities identified by respondents. The
following points summarise some key insights:
Sustainability: The need to further UBC as a
foundation for the competitive advantage of
universities and business but also for the economic
growth of a region.
Human capital: The need to develop human capital
underpins everything, with UBC important to support
skill development, student employability and lifelong
learning.
Continuous improvement: The need to not only do
more but do it smarter and more effectively.
Awareness: The need to increase awareness of
engagement opportunities, benefits and general
visibility of UBC within the society.
Understanding: The need to better understand
different stakeholder perspectives and cultures.
Professionalism: The need to establish a
professional approach to UBC, including customised
and innovative collaboration models within and
across organisations.
ENGAGEMENT
 Developing strong relationships between HEIs
and business
 Ensuring successful stakeholder management
 Ensuring strong governance of UBC partnerships
 Managing stakeholder expectations
 Employing highly qualified technology transfer
office (TTO) staff
 Promoting career perspectives for TTO staff
 Promoting benefits of UBC for business and the
wider community
 Overcoming cultural differences
 Fostering HEI cooperation with SMEs
 Creating multi-organisational networks for UBC
 Optimising models for IP development/ownership
 Offering dual education programmes including
time at university and business
 Utilising UBC to enhance student employability
STRATEGY AND APPROACH
 Developing a comprehensive, coordinated
approach to engaging with business
 Fostering UBC beyond a mere technology focus
 Offering businesses a single or easy access point
to the HEI
 Optimising the business models for entities
enabling UBC
 Approaching UBC with flexibility and
transparency
 Promoting UBC proactively
 Implementing a research culture open to UBC
 Allowing greater flexibility in timeframes of
degree programmes and their components
 Enabling academics to take meaningful amount
of time for industry engagement
 Increasing the number of shared appointments
 Developing HEI recruitment strategy for BUK
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
 Fostering student entrepreneurship at the HEI
 Fostering academic entrepreneurship at the HEI
 Developing an entrepreneurial mindset in HEI
staff/students
 Creating incubators/accelerators connecting HEI-
business
CONTEXT-SPECIFIC ITEMS
 Understanding cultural differences related to
UBC across countries (e.g., in the EU)
 Fostering UBC in economically weak regions

6
Framework of Priorities for the Future of University-Business Cooperation
Summary of the priorities for UBC research, practise and policy
UBC research priorities relate to policy frameworks,
measures and KPIs, engagement, strategy and
approach, entrepreneurship and context-specific
items.
UBC practice priorities relate to engagement,
strategy and approach, entrepreneurship and
context-specific items.
UBC policy priorities relate to policy frameworks,
measures and KPIs as well as STEM-related UBC.
Measures and KPIs
Strategy and Approach
Entrepreneurship
Context-Specific Items
Science, Technology, Engineering, Maths
Policy Frameworks
Engagement
Research Practice Policy

7
EUROPEAN STUDY (Phase 2)
Approach
Following the first project phase, a quantitative research
approach was undertaken to empirically determine
perceptions relating to the future importance and
current advancement of priorities identified in phase 1.
Specifically, data was gathered via an online survey
targeted at academics, technology transfer
professionals and senior management of European
(HEIs) as well as business representatives.
Participants were asked to rate 80 priorities in UBC
research, policy and practice in terms of their (i)
importance for the future, and (ii) current advancement.
Specifically, respondents were requested to indicate the
degree to which each priority is advanced and
important for the future on a two 7-point scales from 1
= “not at all advanced” and “not at all important”, to 7
= “very advanced” and “very important”. Data analysis
employed descriptive statistics and ANOVA.
The survey instrument was designed based on the
priorities identified in phase 1, then translated into 25
languages and distributed to HEIs and businesses in 33
European countries, including the existing and candidate
members of the EU plus those in the European Economic
Area (EEA).
The survey lead to a final usable sample of 230
responses from HEI managers, 447 academics, 135
technology transfer professionals and 378 businesses.
While the sample comprises responses from across
Europe, thus providing a range of perspectives, the
survey will be rolled out on a global basis in the future,
further extending our ability to build a global
perspective of perceptions relating to UBC priorities.
Summary of results
Two central overarching insights can be drawn from the
data, with detailed results outlined next.
More UBC work needs to be done. Specifically, this
research demonstrates the perceptions of UBC
stakeholders that more needs to be done. Examining
both the current advancement and the perceived
importance, it becomes evident that for ALL priorities
ranked in this study, current advancement lags behind.
While consistent gaps of 2-3 points (on a 7-point scale)
between advancement and importance were shown for
practice- and policy-related priorities, gaps related to
UBC research priorities differed greatly, between 1
and 4.2 points (on a 7-point scale). Hence, while a
general need for improvement can be suggested for
practice and policy, with some indication of areas in
most need of development, very clear guidelines for
future research priorities are evident.
Perceptions align. While not reported in detail in this
report, further in-depth analysis of different respondent
groups show very strong similarities in perceptions
between the groups.
Taking HEI management and business, for example, the
average discrepancies in relation to the future
importance of various priorities are 0.16 points for
research, and 0.18 points for both practice and policy
(on a 7-point scale). Results are still similar when
examining perceptions relating to the current
advancement of priorities, primarily in the policy
context (0.18 points on average). Views are slightly less
aligned in regards to the current advancement in
relation to research priorities (average gap of 0.36
points) and practice priorities (average gap of 0.50
points; on a 7-point scale).

8
Understanding cultural
barriers
Exploring business motivations
for UBC
Investigating co-learning
processes
Exploring the role of
government in the Triple Helix
Understanding the impact of
UBC on research
Exploring ways of cultivating
academic spin-offs
Exploring how to encourage
academic engagement
Exploring how business define
success in UBC
Research – Future Priorities
The respondents’ perceptions of the future importance
and current advancement of all priorities are
presented in Appendix A, with a summary outlined
here.
The results provide a clear picture guiding the future
of research on UBC. For some priorities, respondents
report a large gap between the perceived
importance and current advancement (gap of 4.1 on
a 7-point scale), while others emerge as covered
significantly by extant research (gap of 1.0 on a 7-
point scale).
While research on cultural barriers, business
motivations and the role of government have seen
important advancements in recent years, future
research efforts should focus on clarifying the impact
UBC has on research, including research directions,
type, quality and management, while also further
clarifying the role of industry and cultural contexts.
FUTURE IMPORTANCE
Most important:
 Understanding the impact of UBC on research
 Exploring how to encourage academic
engagement
 Exploring how business define success in UBC
 Exploring ways of cultivating academic spin-offs
Least important:
 Exploring the role of government in the Triple
Helix
 Conducting cost-benefit analysis of IP models
 Exploring business motivations for UBC
CURRENT ADVANCEMENT
Most advanced:
 Understanding cultural barriers
 Exploring business motivations for UBC
 Investigating co-learning processes
Least advanced:
 Developing metrics for UBC that take into
account organisational differences
 Investigating UBC across different industry
sectors and cultural contexts
 Developing innovative business/partnership
models for HEI engagement with SME
GAPS
Largest gap between importance and advancement:
 Investigating UBC across different industry
sectors and cultural contexts
 Understanding the impact of UBC on research
 Developing innovative business/partnership
models for HEI engagement with SME
Smallest gap between importance and advancement
(meaning least adjustment required):
 Understanding cultural barriers
 Exploring the role of government in the Triple
Helix
 Exploring business motivations for UBC
Most important
Most advanced
4
4.7
3.9
3.6
3.4
6.7
6.6
6.6
6.6

9
Facilitating female choice of
STEM in higher education
Fostering STEM education
extent/quality in high schools
Supporting entrepreneurial
initiatives
Developing an ecosystem
conducive to UBC
Policy – Future Priorities
The respondents’ perceptions of the future importance
and current advancement of all priorities are
presented in Appendix A, with a summary outlined
here.
Central to the future of policy development around
UBC, as perceived by the respondents of this study,
are incentive systems and funding models. In
particular, such systems need to be designed to
facilitate collaboration rather than individualism, as
well as focus on both incentivising the HEI and the
business to collaboratively approach UBC. Priorities
related to STEM in education, while deemed
important, emerged as relatively well developed
already.
FUTURE IMPORTANCE
Most important:
 Increased STEM education extent/quality in high
schools
 Support for entrepreneurial initiatives
 Incentive systems stimulating UBC for business
Least important:
 STEM options for arts graduates
CURRENT ADVANCEMENT
Most advanced:
 Higher female choice of STEM in higher education
 Increased STEM education extent/quality in high
schools
 Support for entrepreneurial initiatives
Least advanced:
 STEM options for arts graduates
 Incentive systems that facilitate collaboration
rather than individualism
 Optimised university funding models to further
stimulate UBC
 Incentive systems stimulating UBC for HEI
GAPS
Largest gap between importance and advancement
 Incentive systems that facilitate collaboration
rather than individualism
 Optimised university funding models to further
stimulate UBC
 Programmes facilitating staff mobility between
HEI and business
 Incentive systems stimulating UBC for HEI
 Incentive systems stimulating UBC for business
Smallest gap between importance and advancement
 Higher female choice of STEM in higher education
 Regulatory framework to support partnering
 STEM options for arts graduates
Fostering STEM education
extent/quality in high schools
Supporting entrepreneurial
initiatives
Developing incentive systems
stimulating UBC for business
Optimizing university funding
models to further stimulate UBC
Most important
Most advanced
4
3.3
3.3
3.2
3.0
6.0
5.9
5.9
5.8

10
Practice – Future Priorities
The respondents’ perceptions of the future importance and current advancement of all priorities for UBC practice
are presented in Appendix A, with a summary outlined here.
The overarching priority of developing strong HEI-business relationships emerges as both the most important and
most advanced priority, suggesting a need to focus more strongly on the priorities enabling these relationships to
happen. In particular, the need to enable academics to take a meaningful amount of time for industry engagement
is visible, given the significant gap between its future importance and current advancement as perceived by
respondents. Such creation of an enabling environment aligns with the need for a UBC-friendly research culture.
FUTURE IMPORTANCE
Most important:
 Strong relationships between HEIs and business
 Strong research culture open to UBC
 HEI cooperation with SMEs
 Flexibility and transparency in UBC
Least important:
 Shared appointments
 Greater flexibility in timeframes of degrees
 Multi-organisational networks for UBC
 Business models for entities enabling UBC
CURRENT ADVANCEMENT
Most advanced:
 Strong relationships between HEIs and business
 Student-related priorities such as enhancing
student employability through UBC and
entrepreneurship
 Incubators and accelerators as connectors
Least advanced:
 Enabling academics to take a meaningful amount
of time for industry engagement
 Shared appointments
 UBC in economically weak regions
 HEI recruitment strategy
GAPS
Largest gap between importance and advancement
 Enabling academics to take a meaningful amount
of time for industry engagement
 Entrepreneurial mindset in HEI staff and students
 HEI cooperation with SMEs
 Strong research culture open to UBC
Smallest gap between importance and advancement
 Creating multi-organisational networks for UBC
 Incubators and accelerators as connectors
 Greater flexibility in timeframes of degrees
 Overcoming cultural difference
Developing strong relationships
between HEIs and business
Utilising UBC to enhance
student employability
Creating
incubators/accelerators
connecting HEI and business
Fostering student
entrepreneurship at the HEI
Developing strong relationships
between HEIs and business
Implementing a research
culture open to UBC
Fostering HEI cooperation
with SMEs
Approaching UBC with
flexibility and transparency
Most important
Most advanced
4
3.7
3.7
3.6
3.6
6.1
6.0
6.0
6.0

11
Authors
Associate Professor Carolin Plewa
Associate Prof. Plewa is the Deputy Director, Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Commercialisation Centre
(ECIC), Associate Professor in Marketing and a member of IPAS at the University of Adelaide. She
specialises in the interaction and value co-creation across a myriad of organisations and individuals, with a
particular emphasis on university-business collaboration, as well as service and social contexts. Her
research in the context of university-business engagement, in particular, led to her appointment to the South
Australian Science Council in 2015. Carolin has been awarded multiple competitive grants and has
published her research internationally in journals such as the Journal of Service Research, European Journal
of Marketing, Psychology & Marketing, Marketing Theory, R&D Management, Education & Training and
others.
Professor Dr. Todd Davey
Prof. Todd Davey is a Professor at the Munich Business School. Formerly a Senior Manager with Deloitte
Australia’s Technology Commercialisation Group and Director of Strategy for one of Australia’s fastest
growing start-ups, Todd ‘switched sides’ to work within academia. The author of the book Entrepreneurship
at Universities, he has been a visiting researcher and lecturer for entrepreneurship and innovation at
different universities. He is part of the development group for the Commission’s HEInnovate tool, Director at
the University-Industry Innovation Network (UIIN), and the Creator of TechAdvance™, a tool for evaluating
new technologies.
Ms Balzhan Orazbayeva
Affiliated with the Science-to-Business Marketing Research Centre (S2BMRC) at Münster University of Applied
Sciences (MUAS) in Germany, Ms Orazbayeva researches university-business collaboration and knowledge
transfer processes. She is a researcher in the consulting project for the European Commission, implementing
the largest European study in the area of university-business collaboration. Ms Orazbayeva also coordinates
industry projects executed by students as part of International Marketing and Strategic Marketing modules
at MUAS. Ms Orazbayeva is a doctoral candidate and her PhD focuses on higher education in the context
of university-business collaboration.
Dr. Victoria Galan-Muros
Dr. Galan-Muros is an academic and senior consultant in the topics of university-business cooperation, higher
education management, and innovation. As academic and researcher, Victoria has been involved in 11
universities in 9 countries, co-authored 30+ scientific publications, and given 40+ speeches as keynote
speaker on her topic areas in 20+ countries. As a consultant, Victoria is currently an Associate at Technopolis
Group, a leading research-based consulting company, has co-authored over 20 consulting reports, facilitated
workshops in 16 countries and participated in 12 government funded projects. Additionally, Dr Galan-Muros
is a Director at University-Industry Innovation Network (UIIN), and the Editor in Chief of the University-Industry
Innovation Magazine (UIIM). In 2010-11, Dr. Davey and Dr. Galan-Muros together led the largest European
UBC study for the European Commission and currently its repetition (2016-17)
carolin.plewa@
adelaide.edu.au
todd.davey@munich-
business-school.de
orazbayeva@
fh-muenster.de
galanmuros@uiin.org

12
Appendix
Research – Future Priorities
3.4
2.6
3.9
2.7
2.9
4.7
2.5
2.1
2.9
3.0
3.1
2.6
2.6
2.7
3.0
3.6
2.7
2.2
2.4
2.6
2.9
3.0
2.7
2.7
3.0
2.6
4.9
5.0
5.4
5.6
5.6
5.7
5.7
5.9
5.9
5.9
5.9
6.0
6.1
6.1
6.3
6.3
6.3
6.3
6.4
6.4
6.4
6.4
6.6
6.6
6.6
6.7
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Exploring the role of government in the Triple Helix (HEI, business, government)
Conducting cost-benefit analysis of different IP models
Exploring business motivations for UBC
Investigating how business identify and evaluate suitable researchers / teams
Exploring risks and ways of minimising risks associated with UBC
Understanding cultural barriers
Developing KPI systems for academics related to UBC
Developing metrics for UBC that take into account organisational differences
Understanding the broader ecosystem of UBC
Exploring extant stereotypes and assumptions relating to UBC
Exploring the role of entrepreneurship for students
Investigating the effect of different foci between HEI and business
Exploring the management of relationships over time
Measuring the impact of UBC
Understanding the attitude and skills of great UBC practitioners
Investigating co-learning processes
Understanding the needs and roles of all stakeholders in UBC
Investigating UBC across different industry sectors and cultural contexts
Developing innovative business / partnership models for HEI engagement with SMEs
Understanding how academics are trained for UBC
Developing models of communication for UBC
Developing innovative business / partnership models for UBC
Exploring ways of cultivating academic spin-offs
Exploring how business define success in UBC
Exploring how to encourage academic engagement
Understanding the impact of UBC on research
Importance Advancement
Scale: 1 = “not at all advanced” / “not at all important” - 7 = “very advanced” / “very important”

13
Policy – Future Priorities
2.6
2.8
2.9
2.8
3.0
2.8
3.3
2.8
2.9
2.9
2.9
2.8
2.9
2.6
2.7
3.0
2.8
2.7
2.8
3.2
3.3
5.1
5.5
5.5
5.5
5.5
5.5
5.5
5.6
5.7
5.7
5.7
5.7
5.8
5.8
5.8
5.8
5.8
5.8
5.9
5.9
6.0
1234567
Offering STEM options for arts graduates
Ensuring buy-in to UBC policies at all levels of politics
Developing KPIs for UBC
Practicing evidence-based policy making
Developing a regulatory framework to support partnering
Developing measures for societal engagement and impact
Facilitating female choice of STEM in higher education
Optimising the structure of the HEI sector to stimulate UBC
Facilitating a cultural change towards more UBC
Providing seed money for start-ups
Promoting initiatives that stimulate UBC to relevant stakeholders
Defining success of UBC
Measuring business' use of university research findings
Ensuring that incentive systems facilitate collaboration rather than individualism
Developing incentive systems stimulating UBC for HEI
Developing an ecosystem conducive to UBC
Developing programs facilitating staff mobility between HEI and business
Optimizing university funding models to further stimulate UBC
Developing incentive systems stimulating UBC for business
Supporting entrepreneurial initiatives
Fostering STEM education extent / quality in high schools
Importance Advancement
Scale: 1 = “not at all advanced” / “not at all important” - 7 = “very advanced” / “very important”

14
Practice – Future Priorities
3.0
3.1
3.2
3.3
3.2
3.0
3.3
3.4
3.2
3.1
3.1
3.0
3.3
3.4
3.1
3.6
3.5
3.2
3.6
3.4
3.3
3.0
3.5
3.2
3.7
3.4
3.5
3.4
3.4
3.7
5.2
5.2
5.3
5.4
5.4
5.5
5.5
5.5
5.5
5.6
5.6
5.6
5.6
5.6
5.7
5.7
5.7
5.8
5.8
5.8
5.8
5.8
5.8
5.9
5.9
5.9
6.0
6.0
6.0
6.1
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Increasing the number of shared appointments
Allowing greater flexibility in timeframes of degree programs and their components
Creating multi-organisational networks for UBC
Optimizing the business models for entities enabling UBC (such as TTOs)
Understanding cultural differences related to UBC across countries (e.g. in EU)
Developing HEI recruitment strategy for UBC
Offering business a single or easy access point to the HEI
Overcoming cultural differences
Offering dual education programs including time at university and business
Managing stakeholder expectations
Promoting career perspectives for TTO staff
Fostering UBC in economically weak regions
Ensuring strong governance of UBC partnerships
Optimizing model for IP development / ownership
Fostering staff entrepreneurship at the HEI
Creating incubators and accelerators connecting HEI and business
Employing highly qualified TTO staff
Fostering UBC beyond a mere technology focus
Fostering student entrepreneurship at the HEI
Ensuring successful stakeholder management
Promoting benefits of UBC for business and the wider community
Enabling academics to take meaningful amount of time for industry engagement
Promoting UBC proactively
Developing an entrepreneurial mindset in HEI staff and students
Utilising UBC to enhance student employability
Developing a comprehensive, coordinated approach to engaging with business
Approaching UBC with flexibility and transparency
Fostering HEI cooperation with SMEs
Implementing a research culture open to UBC
Developing strong relationships between HEIs and business
Importance Advancement
Scale: 1 = “not at all advanced” / “not at all important” - 7 = “very advanced” / “very important”