Collaboration

Strategic alliances are high on the government’s and funders’ agendas. Significant industrial engagement is often critical to get investment for strategic university projects. Universities and industry have been collaborating for over a century; indeed many of our universities were originally established to address pre-competitive business and industrial questions. Over the last decade there have been a number of reviews calling for more and better university-industry collaboration. But what makes for a good strategic partnership?

At PraxisUnico, we work to advocate the views of our members, to make sure they are represented on issues which affect them. But how do we come up with these responses?

The first point of contact is often our Policy Officer, Tamsin Mann. Tamsin works to keep abreast of the latest developments and ensure we are well-placed and well-informed to respond. Tamsin will often be the first to hear about consultations through her contacts, or either she or another member of PraxisUnico will be contacted directly by e.g. BIS, HEFCE or another review body for our input.

Assuming no prior knowledge, the reader is taken through the university landscape, mechanisms for engagement and funding models. This provides a good grounding in the various methods and their respective advantages offered to businesses open to engaging with universities.

The book shares valuable insights and experiences of working with universities that, if taken on board, can potentially smooth the way for businesses to operate with universities based on a greater understanding of the institutional set-ups and stakeholders, avoiding false assumptions before they arise.

The positive impact of innovation on commercial success has long been recognised. Maintaining close ties with the research base helps businesses stay ahead of curve by exploiting the latest technological advances and getting scientific developments to the end user more quickly.