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The Connected University: Universities, Knowledge Exchange, and Local Economic Growth

This article explores the evolution of university engagement and the different modes of knowledge exchange, focusing on the role of universities in local economic growth. It discusses the limitations of the entrepreneurial university model and highlights the importance of a wide range of interactions and exchange. The article also provides survey data on research activities and commercialization efforts in UK universities.

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The Connected University: Universities, Knowledge Exchange, and Local Economic Growth

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  1. The Connected University: Universities, Knowledge Exchange and Local Economic Growth Michael Kitson University of Cambridge www.michaelkitson.org Meeting of the Directors General of Higher Education, Dublin 22nd-23rd April, 2013

  2. PREAMBLE

  3. THE EVOLUTION OF UNIVERSITY ENGAGEMENT

  4. Mode 1: the ‘laissez faire’ model Importance of chance, luck and serendipity Mode 2: technology transfer - the entrepreneurial university Focus on a narrow range of technology transfer mechanisms Mode 3: knowledge exchange - the connected university Focus on a wide range of interactions Exchange rather than transfer The evolution of university engagement in the UK

  5. Universities focussed on two missions – research and education Example: the ‘Cambridge Phenomenon’ initially developed when the University took little active interest in business engagement. In the past: University largely ignored IP issue Adopted a liberal attitude to what academics did Industrial liaison merely acted as ‘window’ on what the university did – little exchange or dialogue Mode 1: the laissez faire model

  6. Focus on Technology Transfer Mechanisms: Patents, Licenses, Spin-outs Mode 2: technology transfer - the entrepreneurial university

  7. Significant economic and social returns but financial and private returns were frequently over-estimated Metrics distorting behaviour (Goodhart’s Law: any observed statistical regularity will tend to collapse once pressure is placed upon it for control purposes) Model is incomplete Limitations of the entrepreneurial university

  8. Stanford Office of Technology Licensing • 65% of licensing earnings came from just 3 of the 8000 inventions which have passed through the doors of the OTL at Stanford • Google’s improved hypertext searching: $337 million • DNA cloning: $255 million • Functional antibodies: $229 million • Stanford struggled to put a value on Google and opted for 2% of equity, and immediately cashed out post-IPO (Source: Katherine Ku, Director of Stanford University’s Office of Technology Licensing )

  9. $150 million: royalties received by the University of Florida from sales of Gatorade developed by inventor Dr. Robert Cade

  10. Multiple knowledge exchange mechanisms Role of many disciplines (not just STEM) Interactions with public and third sectors as well as with business Public space functions (Universities do not move!) Relatively neglected, but distinctive Includes networking, social interaction, meetings, conferences etc Focus on ‘exchange’ not simply ‘transfer’ Mode 3: knowledge exchange - the connected university

  11. Universities act as economic attractors - encouraging new investment into the local economy Universities act as local economic anchors – stabilising the local economic making it more resiliant to shocks Universities act as transformers allowing local businesses to develop, upgrade and move into new markets Mode 3: knowledge exchange - the connected university

  12. Survey of 22,000 Academics Survey of 2,500 Businesses

  13. Basic or Applied ?

  14. Research Activities Quest for fundamental understanding? Considerations of use? NOYES NOYES Source: Adapted from D. Stokes (1997) Pasteur’s Quadrant Washington Brookings Institution

  15. Research Activities Considerations of use? Quest for fundamental understanding? NOYES NOYES Source: Adapted from D. Stokes (1997) Pasteur’s Quadrant Washington Brookings Institution

  16. Basic Research (% of respondents) Source: Cambridge Centre for Business Research Survey of Knowledge Exchange Activity by UK Academics (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6462. .

  17. Applied research (% of respondents) Source: Cambridge Centre for Business Research Survey of Knowledge Exchange Activity by UK Academics (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6462.

  18. User-inspired basic research (% of respondents) Source: Cambridge Centre for Business Research Survey of Knowledge Exchange Activity by UK Academics (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6462.

  19. TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER

  20. Commercialisation Activities • Patents (7% of academics) • Licenses (5% of academics) • Spin- outs (4% of academics)

  21. Taken out a patent in the last 3 years (% of respondents) Source: Cambridge Centre for Business Research Survey of Knowledge Exchange Activity by UK Academics (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6462.

  22. Licensed research outputs to a company in the last 3 years (% of respondents) Source: Cambridge Centre for Business Research Survey of Knowledge Exchange Activity by UK Academics (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6462.

  23. Formed a spin out company in the last 3 years (% of respondents) Source: Cambridge Centre for Business Research Survey of Knowledge Exchange Activity by UK Academics (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6462.

  24. People based activities Training, networks, conferences etc Problem-solving activities Contract research, joint publications, informal advice etc Community based activities Lectures for the community, exhibitions, school projects Other types of Interactions

  25. Academic Interactions with External Organisations People-based activities Standard-setting forums Sitting on advisory boards Giving invited lectures Participating in networks Enterprise education Attending conferences Student placements Employee training Curriculum development Commercialisation activities Community- based activities 5 Licensed research Lectures for the community Public exhibitions 7 Patenting Schools project 4 14 Spun-out company Community-based sports Formed/run consultancy Format adapted from Ulrichsen (2009) Source: Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Hughes, A. and Kitson, M. (2009), Knowledge Exchange between Academics and the Business, Public and Third Sectors, Centre for Business Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge.

  26. Academic Interactions with External Organisations People-based activities 87 65 38 Standard-setting forums 6 31 Sitting on advisory boards Giving invited lectures Participating in networks Enterprise education Attending conferences 33 67 33 28 Student placements Employee training Curriculum development 49 Commercialisation activities Problem-solving activities Community- based activities 38 35 Joint research 5 43 57 Hosting personnel Licensed research 27 Research consortia Lectures for the community Public exhibitions 7 Consultancy services 10 10 Informal advice Patenting 30 15 Prototyping and testing External secondment 37 Schools project 14 4 46 3 9 Contract research Spun-out company Community-based sports Formed/run consultancy Joint Publications Setting of physical facilities Format adapted from Ulrichsen (2009) Source: Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Hughes, A. and Kitson, M. (2009), Knowledge Exchange between Academics and the Business, Public and Third Sectors, Centre for Business Research, University of Cambridge, Cambridge.

  27. THE IMPORTANCE OF BUSINESS LINKS

  28. Partners • Private sector companies across a range of sectors (40% of academics) • Public sector - UK and abroad (53% of academics) • Third sector – including charities, non-profit organisations and social enterprises (44% of academics)

  29. Interactions with private sector companies (% of respondents) Source: Cambridge Centre for Business Research Survey of Knowledge Exchange Activity by UK Academics (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6462.

  30. Interactions with public sector organisations (% of respondents) Source: Cambridge Centre for Business Research Survey of Knowledge Exchange Activity by UK Academics (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6462.

  31. Interactions with the third sector organisations (% of respondents) Source: Cambridge Centre for Business Research Survey of Knowledge Exchange Activity by UK Academics (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6462.

  32. Importance of Technological Innovation

  33. Why businesses interact with universities? Source: Cambridge Centre For Business Research Survey Of Knowledge Exchange Activity By United Kingdom Businesses, 2005-2009 (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6464.

  34. Who do businesses interact with? Source: Cambridge Centre For Business Research Survey Of Knowledge Exchange Activity By United Kingdom Businesses, 2005-2009 (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6464.

  35. Constraints

  36. Constraints on interactions with external organisations (% of respondents – All and Engineering) Source: Cambridge Centre for Business Research Survey of Knowledge Exchange Activity by UK Academics (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6462

  37. Academic and business perceptions of constraints on interactions Source: Cambridge Centre For Business Research Survey Of Knowledge Exchange Activity By United Kingdom Businesses, 2005-2009 (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6464.

  38. Reasons for not interacting (% of non collaborating firms) Source: Cambridge Centre For Business Research Survey Of Knowledge Exchange Activity By United Kingdom Businesses, 2005-2009 (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6464.

  39. How are interactions with universities initiated? Source: Cambridge Centre For Business Research Survey Of Knowledge Exchange Activity By United Kingdom Businesses, 2005-2009 (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6464.

  40. Businesses (%) employing someone to liaise with universities Source: Cambridge Centre For Business Research Survey Of Knowledge Exchange Activity By United Kingdom Businesses, 2005-2009 (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6464.

  41. Businesses (%) interacting with universities Source:Cambridge Centre For Business Research Survey Of Knowledge Exchange Activity By United Kingdom Businesses, 2005-2009 (Hughes, A., Kitson, M., Abreu, M., Grinevich, V., Bullock, A. and Milner, I.) UK Data Archive Study Number 6464. .

  42. The connectivity of universities: a wider perspective • Research: the importance of applied research with an economic impact • Basic and Applied – a simplistic distinction • Impact is complex and uncertain: unknown unknowns

  43. The connectivity of universities: a wider perspective • The importance of technology transfer • Only part of the knowledge exchange picture ignores many people-based, problem-solving and community interactions

  44. The connectivity of universities: a wider perspective • Focus on university-business links • Ignores the many and varied interactions with the public and third sectors

  45. The connectivity of universities: a wider perspective • Businesses connect with academia for technical innovation • Businesses connect with academia for many reasons, many of which are NOT concerned with technical innovation

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