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Introduction: Previous literature indicates that standard economic analysis is often not well suited for the evaluation of research investments, necessitating the use of other methods. This work uses a mixed methods approach to investigate the economic value relationship between academia and industry, towards a holistic understanding of how research benefits arise and can be measured to provide greater insight into the drivers of the system, its sustainability, and economic competitiveness. Methods: Each of the pillars of the National Innovation System (NIS) model, adapted to assess the economic value relationship between academia and industry, were evaluated. The first research element (government) focused on the macroeconomic and regulatory context by evaluating the federal SBIR/STTR programs through an in-depth case study. The second element focused on the education and training system (academia) by assessing how technology transfer offices at universities measure research value. The final element of the study (industry) focused on communication infrastructures by investigating the digital tools used by medical technology firms to accelerate innovation beyond organizational boundaries. The academia and industry research elements each consisted of document review and semi-structured interviews. Results: While the federal SBIR/STTR programs were found to be a significant catalyst for the academic-industry economic value relationship, especially at the most crucial proof-of-concept stage, policy discrepancies between stakeholders might affect the desired program outcomes. Consensus measures and metrics were identified for both academia and industry, which inform the product and factor market conditions that drive academic-industry innovation capacity. In many cases, challenges behind these measures were also raised, highlighting the need for sensitivity to institutional mission, culture and other conditions when applying these measures. Valuation differences were also found to exist between public and private universities in entrepreneurial engagement and economic development. Conclusions: The measurement categories across both academia and industry describe adequate, dependable resources as the overarching product market theme and a talented and interconnected workforce as the overarching factor market theme. Taken together, they lead to more effective knowledge generation and diffusion, as well as a more informed NIS model with specific and practical utility for the economic value relationship between academia and industry. / Steven Ceulemans

This study is derived from the claim that multidisciplinary groups are more innovative than homogeneous groups; a claim that has flooded the business industry and has become criteria for accreditation in higher education. However, the impact of disciplinary diversity in work groups is a growing area of research; therefore, it is yet to be thoroughly understood. The purpose of this study is to answer the question: are multidisciplinary teams more innovative than homogenous teams. To accomplish this university students from differing majors were sorted into multidisciplinary and homogeneous groups while participating in a two-day innovation course. The course taught the students about divergent thinking, and invited them to work as teams to develop an innovative product, system or service. Each group's final product was independently judged by three experts using the Creative Solutions Diagnosis Scale (CSDS) measuring the innovativeness (functional creativity) of student work. The homogeneous groups outscored the multidisciplinary groups in every category. Group dynamics have been assessed as also playing a vital role in the successfulness of a diverse group. The Teamwork Quality Questionnaire (TWQ) was used to measure the quality of team interactions, student sentiments, and student attitude. These self-evaluations were used to assess if the group dynamics played a significant role in the functional creativity of the end product by checking for correlation with the results of the CSDS. The findings were inconclusive, meaning they did not correlate. Despite the findings not aligning with past research, they should be considered important. At a minimum, they describe a context and environment where multidisciplinary groups do not function at the same level as homogenous groups. Accordingly, there is a need to further investigate group formations and function in regards to innovation and creativity production. We recommend for future research performing a similar study on a larger scale to discover if the findings from this study would vary when tested under similar or varying contexts. It would also be important to analyze how the make up of the group is affecting the students understanding and learning.

This thesis investigates whether the tendency for Advanced Business Services to concentrate in Sydney and Melbourne implies a similar spatial bias in the propensity for innovation across the Australian economy. The various models of business innovation are reviewed. The traditional Schumpeterian view is characterized by a strategic leap in customer offer, based on some new break-through technology. Alternatively, innovation may proceed in incremental or organic fashion. Other conceptual frameworks for analyzing innovation conceive of it as a network process, which is becoming more prevalent as corporate value chains 'unbundle' with improved communication technologies, reduced barriers to capital transfers and new techniques for managing transaction risk. Regardless of which model of innovation is applied, Advanced Business Services have a critical role in sparking and facilitating innovation. This is gathering potency as the 'thinking part' of the value chain becomes increasingly separable from the 'making' and 'distribution' aspects of production. While Advanced Business Services are vital to successful innovation in the modern economy, they continue to operate within primitive commercial models where social networks and trust based relationships are paramount in successful client service. The innovation catalyst function of Advanced Business Services may be prone to a significant distance deterioration effect, because of the difficulty of maintaining the requisite social relationships over an extended geography. This, in turn, suggests an emergent core and periphery geography in innovation. The thesis examines this hypothesis through both demand and supply side analyses. The latter involves a random sample survey of approximately 100 Advanced Business Service firms in Melbourne. This confirms the tendency of these firms to favour local clients. The demand side analysis includes case studies of Advanced Business Service use and innovation outcomes amongst six metropolitan Melbourne based firms and six similar firms based some two hours drive away in Bendigo. In line with the hypothesis, the metropolitan cases show much stronger engagement with knowledge intensive advisory services than their counterparts in regional Victoria. The demand side analysis also includes a quantitative component, which is exploratory in nature owing to data limitations. It considers how innovation outcomes in manufacturing change with increasing distance from key Advanced Business Service centres. Innovation outcomes are proxied by variations in manufacturing worker wages. These results are also consistent with the hypothesis of distance deterioration in the innovation role of Advanced Business Services.

To date, the existing literature is very limited in its provision of links between knowledge management or intellectual capital with innovation. Existing studies have derived their innovation processes from large companies’ perspectives and have not considered the needs of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Different types of innovation will require different resources and, therefore, will need to be managed differently. Little research has been aimed at identifying innovation processes from a knowledge-based perspective. Although a fascinating array of innovation research has been carried out in the context of R and D issues and economic factors, the knowledge/innovation gaps and the gaps of innovation perspectives between larger/smaller firms should be filled in to map a more comprehensive picture of the proposition. This research is aimed at bridging these gaps through the leveraging sources of innovation, both the internal and external supporting processes of innovation and the construction of the innovation supply chain. The study suggests that, due to the integrated innovation models and propositions, future researchers will be able to undertake an empirical study for more high-tech SMEs in a selected high-tech industry to obtain a generalised result for specific high-tech industries. Also, the integrated innovation models and propositions can be used to undertake case studies or empirical studies for the other SMEs. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This study was aimed at achieving an understanding of the role of knowledge and commitment in the process of innovation. To do that, the study confronted several intractable problems of innovation research that have created barriers to knowledge accumulation. Theoretical models were developed based on organizational knowledge and commitments and aimed at overcoming the shortcomings of the traditional research models. Theoretical models of organizational change were investigated through multiple case studies of innovation projects that compared organizations of different types and size, and change processes of both technological and administrative character. A conclusion from this research is that innovation research should learn to live with the dialectic that innovation is unrelated to knowledge or outcomes. This would help to focus research attention on the means by which knowledge is transformed into action, the central problem of the management of innovation. / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

This study explores the concept and practical implementation of continuous innovation in logistics services, particularly Distribution Centres. Continuous innovation is a concept that requires a methodical, programmed, incremental and/or radical approach to business improvement involving employees at all levels in the organisational structure. Theories and models of innovation were analysed in the literature, at the outset of this research. As found by previous authors, specific characteristics of service forms did not allow direct application of traditional models of innovation. Most of these traditional models were constructed from the manufacturing perspective. As a result, a new innovation model was designed for this study. It can be used as a guide for understanding the components necessary in service forms to embark on continuous innovation. This model describes the process of service innovation and incorporates theories from literature, and some variables from the CIMA model. The study is exploratory in nature, using empirical data. The study identified, evaluated, compared and contrasted the factors in ten Distribution Centres in Australia and in Singapore that affected the use of continuous innovation in their operations and processes. The focus of the study investigated the drivers, capabilities, behaviours, contingencies, individual competencies and performance measures of innovation in Distribution Centres with logistics services. Overall, this study has made significant contributions in terms of the theoretical investigation adding to the body of literature. This study was exploratory, using case studies as a first hand approach in gaining an understanding of Distribution Centres. There are areas that would merit further investigation and future research. It suggested that additional work should be carried out to expand on this research and refine the model to meet the needs of a wider range of organisations in various service industries. In addition, there are recommendations flowing from this study concerning the practical management of logistics operations. They are addressed mainly to senior management who typically take lead in the implementation of innovative programmes within the organisation. Firms should address continuous innovation as a planned and integrated approach, taking into account many interacting factors that are essential for successful innovation. The challenge facing Distribution Centres is to develop efficient and flexible processes and systems, by continuously innovating to sustain a leading edge in the logistics industry / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

每一個企業都是希望憑藉著其核心能力追求持續性的成長與獲利。不幸的是，在快速變動的商業競爭領域，新進的挑戰者進行市場顛覆已是一常態。 本論文研究採用個案研究法，主要是探討中小型的網路通信企業，在經歷網路泡沫以後，如何檢視自身的競爭優勢，將破壞式創新、科技產品行銷等學理引用於新產品的開發設計與行銷上。本論文研究以「組織」、「新產品開發與策略」、「行銷通路的策略與管理」三項變數進行個案公司經理人訪談、資料收集與研究，期望瞭解個案公司的實務作為，與破壞式創新、核心競爭力、科技產品行銷理論、產業聚落等學理的結合性。 從個案中，我們可以得知如下： 一、 因應高科技產業的不確定性，企業對於外在環境變化的資訊收集（創新理論中的變化跡象），是企業進行策略分析的一項基本工作。 當企業了解外在環境不斷地動態性變遷時，凝聚企業組織內部的共識對於執行策略目標有助益。明確的目標及賞罰分明的組織，對於執行策略時，會有比較高的成功機會。 二、 由顧客價值鏈的變化，所擬定的新產品策略與開發，與克里斯汀生創新理論相符合。 三、 顧客的情境模擬有助於新產品概念的形成，並讓顧客、夥伴及行銷單位充分參與其中，是減少事後修正及補足的不二法門。 / Each enterprise is relying on its core competence to pursue continuative growth and profits. Unfortunately, in the rapid changes of commercial competition domain, new challengers carry on the market subversion already is a norm. This research is a case study to mainly discuss the small and medium broadband company, after experiencing the Internet bubble, how to inspect its own competitive advantage, apply Disruptive Innovation, High-Tech Product Marketing and other theoretical references in new product development, design and marketing. This research aspect is "New product development and strategy". By interviewing with company’s managers and gathering and studying company’s data, we expect to find correlations between firms’ practices and theoretical references as like Disruptive Innovation, Core Competence, High-Tech Product Marketing, Industry Cluster…and so on. From the case, we can learn the following: 1. In accordance to the high tech industry's uncertainty, the enterprise regarding the external environmental variation's information (changing sign) collection and identification are important for the enterprise strategy analysis. When the external changes are confirmed, in responses to the external environment's change, strengthening and condensing the enterprise internal consensus is the fundamental work. Meanwhile, if there are the explicit goal and an impartial rewards and punishments rules in the organization, carrying out the strategy will have the quite high possibilities of success. 2. Drawing up product strategy and development by the customer value chain's change is complied with Christensen, Clayton M.'s innovation theory. 3. The customer's application scenario is useful to a product concept. At product developing stage, sales, marketing team and customer's joining are much efficient for reducing cost and product post-adjustment.

This field study investigates the dissemination of an innovation through a descriptive analysis of the Structured Experiences for Use in the Classroom Project. Part I serves as an introduction to the field study and provides information about the role of the author in the Project, data collection methods and terminology used in the study. Part II provides a description of the operation of the Project and an analysis of the network of users of the innovation as well as some case studies of the users. Part III considers the operation of the Structured Experiences for Use in the Classroom Project in the light of the theory of the dissemination of innovations. This part also includes some conclusions about the theory and practice of the dissemination of innovations and raises implications for future practice and policy making. The Project team on the Structured Experiences for Use in the Classroom Project established a network of users of the innovation in order to further disseminate structured experiences and receive feedback on their use. The difficulties and the advantages of this approach are documented in the case studies in Part II. The conclusions from this field study raise questions and seek to indicate some directions in the areas of; the funding of projects, the styles of dissemination, the use of networks and the adoption of innovations.

This paper draws on evidence from Victoria to examine why more innovation takes place in some areas than in others. In so doing, it explores the relationship between innovation and networks. / Despite a large number of recent government policy statements on innovation, there has been very little attention paid to the spatial dimensions of innovation. / The literature on innovation increasingly points to the important role played by local and regional networks in driving innovation. Innovation is the result of the production, use and diffusion of knowledge, and this demands collaboration involving networks of individuals, organisations and institutions. / To test the theory of a connection between networks and innovation across regional Victoria, patent data is used as a proxy measure for innovation. This data is then cross-referenced with various social and economic data sets. / The analysis reveals that innovation in Victoria is substantially concentrated in ‘hot spots’ such as inner Melbourne. In some parts of Victoria very little innovation takes place at all. / This research has found that all things being equal, more innovation will take place in those areas in which there is a greater density of informal networks. However, not all types of networks are positive, and they are more important in provincial areas than in big cities. Innovation clearly has a spatial aspect, and innovation policy needs to give particular attention to the requirements of provincial areas.