Núñez-Sánchez, R., et al. (2012). "Performance of knowledge interactions between public research centres and industrial firms in Spain: a project-level analysis." The Journal of Technology Transfer 37(3): 330-354.

Research notes:

Format: Peer-reviewed journal article

Type: Research – non experimental

Experience level of reader: Fundamental

Annotation: Many studies quantify relationship between public research centers and businesses. One way to quantify the impact of such partnerships is to count patents, licenses, publications and business gains. This paper reviews previous studies on industry/university partnerships and notes they have conflicting conclusions; some claim the relationships are beneficial, others not. Social capital is another valuable type of outcome, and so other studies quantify the multidimensional relationships and more finely characterize the actors by size, sector, age, commitment to R&D, etc. By studying which relationships best facilitate scientific and technical impact; researchers can retroactively determine factors contributing to successful knowledge sharing partnerships.

Setting(s) to which the reported activities/findings are relevant: Business, SMEs, University

Knowledge user(s) to whom the piece of literature may be relevant: Researchers, Intermediaries, Managers.

Knowledge user level addressed by the literature: Basic

This article uses the Commercial Devices and Services version of the NtK Model

Outcomes of R&D partnerships are complicated and often produce indirect, hard to measure effects.
Project data analysis
Occurrences within model: NtK Steps 2.1, 9.3

Four main project characteristics influence an alliance:

• Commitment - willingness to invest money, time, or other resources into the collaboration
• Intellectual property management – managing ownership of new ideas and control over their dissemination
• Coordination –communicated interdependence between parties
• Communication processes – exchange of ideas and information among individuals and organizations

Occurrences within model: NtK Steps 4.1, 4.6, Tip 4.6