Why does industry get involved in university research projects? A multi-level governance perspective

As linear conceptualisations of the innovation process are replaced by iterative and mutli-directional interactions in the innovation process, co-creation and exploitation of knowledge through university-industry collaboration... [ view full abstract ]

As linear conceptualisations of the innovation process are replaced by iterative and mutli-directional interactions in the innovation process, co-creation and exploitation of knowledge through university-industry collaboration has become more prominent. This study considers the influence of formal governance mechanisms on industry involvement in university research projects. Input control is considered at the individual-level in terms of the Principal Investigator’s characteristics. At the organisational level, the activities that employees are rewarded for engaging in are considered. The third governance mechanism considered is output control, measured at the project level and operationalised as the project’s goals and objectives.

The research is conducted through a web based survey with responses from 1730 UK Engineering and Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC) funded research projects. The results emphasise the importance of input control through the PI’s industry work experience. Output control is also found to be important, with industry involvement being more likely in projects focusing on technology exploration and exploitation goals and objectives. From a theoretical perspective this finding is in line with the agency and control theory idea that input and output control will be particularly important in tasks where it is difficult to directly monitor the behaviour of the individuals involved.