A heterogeneous research partnership (HRP) is one in which industry, academia and government collaborate to conduct research, typically of national importance. Whilst most HRPs complete their planned duration and deliver their agreed tasks, it is not uncommon for participants to be left feeling somewhat dissatisfied, suggesting that the requirements which are being met are incomplete. There is an opportunity to improve the success of HRPs by establishing principles and practices for the application of systems engineering in their development. The thesis reviews literature drawn from a broad body of work covering three main areas: the context of HRPs themselves, systems engineering and related disciplines, and research methodology. The research adopts an interpretive approach, initially applying Soft Systems Methodology in a pilot case study and subsequently conducting a qualitative analysis of sixteen HRP case studies in order to develop and refine generic models which are relevant to HRPs. Drawing from the commentary of interviewees, published sources and other evidence, major themes across the case studies are integrated in order to develop ten principles and ten practices for the application of systems engineering to HRPs. The importance of consistency between the research context, systems approach and research methodology is emphasised, and the thesis highlights a significant philosophical challenge facing system of systems research as the discipline seeks to use a range of hard and soft systems approaches which are fundamentally rooted in different paradigms.

This thesis investigates the local innovation system of public research organisations in the Thai context, in which research centres and firms are co-located in a planned science park, with particular emphasis on the influence of co-location on interactions between research centres and local firms, and the research collaboration between the research centres and industrial firms. It aims to gain insight into the factors that influence the interaction of research centres and firms located in close proximity and the ways in which research centres and firms interrelate in relation to their research collaboration. This thesis draws upon three theoretical concepts: the concept of local innovation system, the concept of proximity, and the theories of inter-organisational relationships.The study suggests that co-location (i.e. physical proximity) to research centres does not normally lead to formal interaction between local firms and research centres in this context. Most of the interactions between them were found to be informal. Thus, the influence of physical proximity on the interactions and linkages of actors in this local innovation system is to some extent over-estimated. There is insufficient synergy to create an innovative surplus from co-location of firms and research centres in this context. The study also suggests that promoting social and technological proximity between research centres and local firms, by introducing institutional or organisational arrangements that would facilitate these two dimensions of proximity, encourages greater extent of formal interaction between them as well as facilitates benefits from spatial relation of these local actors. Despite the absence of formal interaction with local firms, research centres collaborate with firms located outside the science park. The study introduces a typology to understand how research centres work with firms and shows that most of the collaborative projects involved industrial application and utilisation of technological knowledge accumulated within the research centres, which applied to the firms' products or development processes. Many of these projects resulted from collective projects or partnering experience between the research centre and firm, and were likely to follow with subsequent collaborations. In addition, the study reveals that technological factors, i.e. technological relatedness between the knowledge base of firms and research centres and firm's technological capacity, influence the way in which research centres work with firms in collaborative projects. Organisational and institutional settings of research centres, as well as cultural factors are identified as barriers of research collaboration in this study.The thesis concludes by indicating that physical proximity alone cannot trigger interaction of actors, especially formal interaction such as research collaboration, bounded by spatial relation. Interaction between public research organisations and firms can take place without closeness in distance. Other dimensions of their relationship are important factors influencing their interaction. The research collaboration between research centres and firms is a complex process and requires supportive organisational and institutional arrangements and effective policy intervention.

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CoordenaÃÃo de AperfeiÃoamento de Pessoal de NÃvel Superior / O atual debate sobre a funÃÃo social da universidade tem evoluÃdo em torno do seu papel empreendedor, entendido como uma atuaÃÃo mais direta e participativa, voltada ao desenvolvimento social e econÃmico por meio do incentivo à interaÃÃo com o setor industrial e da produÃÃo e comercializaÃÃo de tecnologias. Neste sentido, a cooperaÃÃo entre universidade e indÃstria para pesquisa e inovaÃÃo assume papel fundamental, e à o objeto de estudo desta pesquisa. A despeito da extensa literatura nacional e internacional dedicada ao tema, nÃo foram identificados estudos que se destinassem a mapear a percepÃÃo dos gestores acadÃmicos de pesquisa acerca do fenÃmeno, o que se mostra oportuno pelo nÃvel estratÃgico em que eles atuam e pela relevÃncia das decisÃes que tomam. Destarte, o objetivo geral do trabalho foi verificar a relaÃÃo entre os fatores antecedentes da cooperaÃÃo universidade-indÃstria e a propensÃo da universidade a cooperar, a partir da perspectiva dos gestores acadÃmicos de pesquisa. Primeiramente foram desenvolvidas escalas de mensuraÃÃo para cada determinante identificado na revisÃo de literatura. Em seguida, foi realizada uma survey com uma amostra de 125 gestores acadÃmicos de pesquisa, de 109 universidades e institutos federais brasileiros, em que apenas duas unidades da federaÃÃo nÃo estiveram representadas. Por meio de anÃlises fatoriais exploratÃria e confirmatÃria, as escalas foram validadas, viabilizando o teste de um modelo estrutural explicativo da propensÃo à cooperaÃÃo com uso de modelagem de equaÃÃes estruturais. Os resultados confirmaram (i) a influÃncia positiva dos benefÃcios da cooperaÃÃo â incorporaÃÃo de novas informaÃÃes aos processos de ensino e pesquisa, obtenÃÃo de recursos financeiros adicionais e aumento do prestÃgio dos pesquisadores e suas instituiÃÃes â sobre a propensÃo da universidade à cooperaÃÃo com a indÃstria; (ii) a influÃncia positiva da solidez da parceria, medida em funÃÃo do comprometimento dos pesquisadores, da confianÃa no parceiro industrial e de adequados processos de comunicaÃÃo; e (iii) a influÃncia negativa das diferenÃas culturais e institucionais entre universidade e indÃstria sobre esta propensÃo. NÃo foi validada a influÃncia positiva (iv) da reputaÃÃo em pesquisa e transferÃncia de tecnologia e (v) da captaÃÃo de recursos para pesquisa aplicada sobre a propensÃo à cooperaÃÃo. Adicionalmente, atravÃs de uma anÃlise de regressÃo linear mÃltipla, verificou-se que (vi) o acompanhamento do desempenho das parcerias pelos gestores acadÃmicos, (vii) a confianÃa no parceiro da indÃstria, e (viii) o prestÃgio do pesquisador sÃo variÃveis explicativas da propensÃo da universidade à cooperaÃÃo com a indÃstria. Considerando a distribuiÃÃo geogrÃfica da pesquisa acadÃmica brasileira, o estudo traz à tona um abrangente panorama da percepÃÃo dos gestores de pesquisa das principais instituiÃÃes de ensino superior do Brasil acerca das parcerias com a indÃstria, o que lhe conferiu carÃter inovador e permitiu a proposiÃÃo de uma agenda de pesquisas no campo / The current debate on the social function of the university has evolved around its entrepreneurial role, seen as a more direct and participative action, focused on social and economic development by encouraging the interaction with the industrial sector and the production and commercialization of technologies. In this regard, cooperation between universities and industry for research and innovation assumes a fundamental role, and it is the study object of this research. Despite the extensive national and international literature devoted to the topic, studies intended to map the perception of the academic research managers about the phenomenon had not been identified, which seems opportune given the strategic level at which they work and the relevance of the decisions they make. Hence, the general purpose of the study was to investigate the relationship between the university-industry cooperation antecedents and the university propensity to cooperate, from the academic research managersâ perspective. Firstly, measurement scales have been developed for each determinant identified in the literature review. Then, a survey was conducted by addressing a sample with 125 academic research managers, from 109 Brazilian universities and federal institutes, in which only two Brazilian states were not represented. Through exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, the scales were validated, enabling to test an explanatory structural model for the propensity to cooperation, by using structural equation modeling. The results confirmed (i) the positive influence of the cooperation benefits â like incorporating new information to the teaching and research processes, obtaining additional funds and increasing the prestige of the researchers and their institutions â on the university propensity to cooperation with industry; (ii) the positive influence of the partnership solidity, measured by the commitment of researchers, trust in the industrial partner, and appropriate communication processes; and (iii) the negative influence of the cultural and institutional differences between university and industry on such propensity. The positive influences (iv) of reputation in research and technology transfer on the propensity to cooperation has not been validated, as well as (v) that of the fundraising for applied research. In addition, through a multiple linear regression analysis, it was found that (vi) the partnerships performance monitoring by academic managers, (vii) the trust in industry partner, and (viii) the prestige of researcher are explanatory variables for the university propensity to cooperation with industry. Considering the geographic distribution of the Brazilian academic research, the study brings up a comprehensive overview of the perception of research managers from the main higher education institutions in Brazil about the partnerships with industry, which conferred to it innovative character and allowed to propose a research agenda in the field.

This research study focused on measuring the impact of structures that support community-university research partnerships. The broad research question asked: How can we determine the impact of community-university research partnership support structures such as the Office of Community Based Research at the University of Victoria, within the university and within local, regional, national and international communities? Methods of inquiry included: participatory research, institutional ethnography and case study. These are among an increasing number of research approaches consistent with what is called engaged scholarship. Congruent with the methods of inquiry, methods of investigation included: in-context immersion, participant-observer-listener, use of available documents and information, use of an impact assessment framework prototype designed pre-data collection, key informant interviews, field notes, research journaling and the writing process. Data contributing to this study were drawn from key informant interviews. Interview participants were situated within local, regional, national and international communities. Methods of analysis included: a two-pronged approach to organising data, deductive and inductive approaches, the lens of praxis, and the prototype as an analytical framework. Assessment as praxis is proposed as broad analytic framework. Theory was constructed through data analysis. This study’s data and analysis point to impact assessment as a cycle of inquiry and eight elements that inform impact on and through community life and impact on and through the university. The proposed Impact Assessment and Measurement Framework (IAMF) includes eight elements: coupling intention with impact, spheres of impact, categories of impact, conditions of impact, points of impact, impact-focused documentation, multiple perspectives of impact, and impact assessment and measurement statements. Contributions of this study include: recognition of staff who support community-university research partnerships through their varied work spaces, research councils as a type of support structure, impact assessment as a cycle of inquiry, explicating impact through elements of impact assessment, and a literature consolidation of impact assessment in the context of support structures. Future research may include revision and refinement of the IAMF across different types of community-university research partnership support structures. / Graduate