Synopsis: Education: Level of education: University: University:

*alucian Blaga University of Sibiu, Faculty of Economic sciences, 17 Dumbrä vii Avenue, Sibiu 550324, Romania

the Technology Transfer Office of the University of Malaga; the Technology Transfer Office of the University of Seville;

the Centre for Technological Investigation and Innovation (CITIUS) of the University of Seville; the General Secretariat for †Innovation†of the

regional Ministry of Economy, Innovation and Science (MEIS; the General Secretariat for †Telecommunications and Information Society†of the MEIS;

the General Secretariat for †University, Investigation and Technology†of the MEIS; the office FEDER (EU funds management) of the MEIS;

Jaime del Castillo, University of the Basque Country and INFYDE, Spain; Prof. Karen Chapple, University of California at Berkeley, USA;

Prof. Andrew Cumbers, University of Glasgow, UK; Prof. Jay Mitra, University of Essex, UK; Dr. Ricardo Pinto

Pinto-Consulting, Hamburg, Germany; Prof. David Wolfe, University of Toronto, Canada The review team was informed initially about the main features of Andalusia†s economy and

entrepreneurship support system by a diagnostic report prepared by Prof. Vicente Granados-Cabezas of the University of Malaga

CONTRIBUTORS TO THE CHAPTERS ï Introduction, by Jay Mitra ï Chapter I: Economic and Institutional Overview of Andalusia, by Vicente Granados

-Cabezas, Jaime del Castillo, and Marco Marchese ï Chapter II: Human capital and the labour market, by Karen Chapple and Sergio Montero

experienced a reduction in post-compulsory school and university attendance, the latter declining from 14.7%in 1997/8 to 12.2%in 2007/8.

The university system †10 public universities with a total of approximately 230 000 students â€

pressure for industry-university collaboration. In general terms, however, Spanish universities do not rank well in international quality rankings.

The only two listed among the top 500 universities are the University of Granada and the University of Seville,

while Malaga and all other local universities do not make it in any of the major world rankings.

One attempt to compensate for the weakness of Spanish universities is the Talentia program, which offers young college graduates financial support

for their graduate work at top international universities, on the condition that they return to the region

to work for at least four years. By 2009 the program had funded about 500 young Andalusians and

was considered largely successful in generating skilled workforce for local companies Attendance of vocational training is on the rise

number that attend public universities. The II Andalusia Plan for Vocational training, currently being prepared by the Ministry of Education, seeks to adapt vocational training to the new economy and new

Universities play a key role in the design and implementation of the regional innovation strategy

of spin-off companies from publicly financed research in the university. Universities occupy a key position in this strategy

and are, as a result, the chief beneficiary of funding under the Innovation and Modernisation Plan for Andalusia (PIMA.

Public universities have thus been the primary source of R&d spending in the region as well as the principal beneficiaries of the increase in public funds for

and especially of the research universities, is strongly reinforced by the priority afforded to them in the region†s strategic plans

There is some disconnection between university research and industry needs A strong coordination between the research priorities of universities and those of regional

strategic plans is indicated missing, as for instance by the relative absence of prioritizing of research in

biotechnology, ICTS or tourism in regional universities. This is the result of universities not having their own research strategies;

the latter are derived indeed often directly from the research groups which are the main organisational unit and recipient of R&d funding in universities

OTRIS are the main link between universities and firms, but they lack sufficient and adequate staff

Support for university research is provided through a range of institutions, including the industrial liaison offices (OTRIS.

The OTRIS are responsible for channelling external research demands to the appropriate research groups within their own institutions

support university students, faculty and researchers who want to create their own companies especially in the case of spin-offs derived from university research

However, the function of OTRIS is hampered by limited staff to keep sufficient contact with local

These offices are asked to serve the needs of their universities as a whole, while the requirements of individual departments can be very different.

relationships of universities with SMES in the region National legislation hinders university commercialisation and researcher mobility

The challenge of promoting the commercialization of intellectual property is made more difficult by the conditions established by the Spanish Patent Act.

made by university professors during their period of contract with the university, and which constitute

part of their university duties, belong to the university. Professors have the right to share in the benefits that flow to the university from the use of the intellectual property rights derived from their

inventions, but the precise share that they receive is governed by the statutes of the individual

universities. Regional universities are critical of this legal framework as it provides little guidance for

determining how benefits should be shared in the course of contractual work National regulations have imposed also restrictions on the mobility of university researchers

between the public sector and private spin-off companies. University staff are prevented from holding more than a 10 per cent interest in private companies,

from being a member of a board of directors, or taking a temporary leave from the university to form a private company.

The act governing universities was amended in 2001 to allow university researchers a five year leave of absence without

giving up their university position to participate in technology-based spinoffs. However, the universities are still critical of the current law as they feel that the guidelines for implementing the

regulations are insufficient to allow the integration of university researchers into technology-based spinoffs Andalusia needs to recognise the role of less R&d intensive forms of industry-university cooperation

R&d-related activities do not play a major role in most of the firms considered as †innovativeâ€

within the Andalusian economy. It is important for universities and regional coordinating bodies to recognize that R&d activities, especially the commercialization and exploitation of intellectual

property derived from university research are just a portion of the firm†s overall interactions with the

higher education system. In fact, an interest in this aspect only emerges when firms have an absorptive capacity that has been built up through a wide range of previous interactions with universities.

The policy implication is that there needs to be greater public support for less R&d-intensive forms of

interaction between the universities and private firms. This would require the universities providing greater support in the form of technical advice and problem solving.

It could also be facilitated by more focused forms of cooperative education programs ensuring that the students being trained in the

universities are familiar with the kinds of technical problems that local firms must overcome. It is

through these lower orders of industry-university interaction that the absorptive capacity of firms, a

prerequisite for R&d engagement and IPR exploitation, will be developed Some regional programmes are being successful in promoting technology-based start-ups

Programme supports spinoffs from Andalusian universities by providing them with loans of up to EUR 100 000.

New programmes hold the promise to strengthen industry-university collaboration The national government of Spain has launched recently a new programme called †Campus of

which wants to reinforce the collaboration of universities with the local surrounding environment †firms, technology parks, technology centres, foundations, etc. †with a

Two projects from Andalusia †one jointly presented by the University of Seville and the

University of Malaga and one from the University of Granada †have been restricted in the group of

University and the Health Sciences Technology Park. Both envisage attracting both talent (students researchers, skilled workers, etc.

While in technology parks there is a relatively high level of collaboration with universities and government research centres,

companies and universities should be encouraged and extended Cluster development strategies need to be refocused The regional focus on cluster is appropriate,

system, including technology parks, technology centres and universities, and ensured that their support is coherent,

expertise in local universities and thereby serve as the basis for more effective industry-university

ï Build (RETA and OTRI) an integrated database of faculty research and consulting skills to match the

ï Think of promoting corporate spin-offs as an alternative to university spinoffs with stronger industry and market knowledge

universities ï Focus work on firms with innovation potential, exploiting RETA€ s privileged relationships with local

innovative SMES and entrepreneurs and with technology parks and universities. Target these firms and entrepreneurs through both long-term R&d and short-term problem-solving activities in innovation

and retention of talented foreign students from local universities in technology parks INTRODUCTION Regional economic development is regarded increasingly as critical to the growth of national

Research organisations include universities and private and public research institutes. The role of universities in producing cutting edge research

and prospects of new technology development is now well recognised. The traditional notion of universities carrying out research activity first, with the

private sector then commercialising the outcomes of the research as part of a linear process of

Universities now engage in industrial innovation through a variety of channels, including learning by researching, learning by

universities and related institutions. Policies to attract the †creative class (Florida, 2002) is another

Granados, University of Malaga) to provide an initial analysis of the key facts about the Andalusia economic system and the

University R&d as a%of GDP (2007) 0. 3 0. 4 Secondary education as%of labour force (2008) 20.7 16.8

In particular, the share of university graduates has shrunk significantly by 3 percentage points, from 14.7%in 1998 to 11.7%in 2009, whereas vocational

At the university level there are 270 research groups that specialise in biomedicine, 170 in life sciences and 120 in agro

The regional government supports biotech-oriented activities at both the university and industry levels, with a view to nurturing the emergence of a strong and internationally competitive

additionally points out how universities and higher education institutions (HEIS) have traditionally been the main sources of R&d spending,

Private sector Public Administration Universities and HEIS Source: National Institute of Statistics (INE On the whole, the Andalusia R&d system has made strides in the last twenty years,

Industry-university relationships With its nine public universities, 17 000 teaching and research staff and 250 000 students, higher

education institutions (HEIS) take the lion†s share in the R&d system (Fig. 5). Universities account for 45%of R&d expenditure,

and 61%of researchers in the region are employed by the HEI system Hence, universities have the key role of trickling down the R&d benefits to the private sector in the

development strategy of the region A recent research project by the Institute for Advanced Social Studies (IESA) of the Spanish

regional university systems and local firms. As part of this project, a survey of over 700 Andalusian

did not engage in any type of collaboration with universities, while slightly above 40%entertained

Among these, the most common was the training of university personnel inside the firm (27.5),

Consultancies, joint research projects and university training programmes for employees were also relatively common, involving between 15%-25%of the surveyed enterprises

Between 5%-15%of the firms contracted R&d projects, use university facilities or exchanged staff

whilst only less than 5%licensed patents or undertook joint start-ups with university staff (Fernandez -Esquinas et al.

firms able to interact with universities Other investigations show that Andalusia firms are oriented largely towards process rather than

entrepreneurship programmes aimed at specific social groups (e g. women, youth, university graduates disadvantaged people, etc. emerging and strategic industries (e g. technology-based firms, creative industries

with the aim to boost collaboration between R&d-intensive companies and the university research groups.

provides resources and advice for the identification and generation of industry-university cooperation projects Projects backed by CTA are integrated into the PAIDI (see below

friendly, and in the case of firms in traditional sectors are willing to collaborate with universities for at

and innovation agenda and encourages universities to cooperate more intensively with the private sector. The objectives of stronger industry-university knowledge transfer and of more

research-based spinoffs are made explicit, especially in sectors considered strategic for the region. The overall budget for the implementation of PIMA is approximately EUR

-based industries and universities ï The Andalusian Plan for Research, Development and Innovation (PAIDI. Adopted in 2007

industry-university collaboration as one of the key elements for the development of the region.

universities, research centres, private R&d labs, etc.;iii) knowledge transfer institutions i e. technology centres; iv) coordinating and managing organisations (e g.

2008), Unfolding the Complexity of Interactions between Industry and University, CSIC-IESA paper, Madrid ESECA (2009), Informe Econã mico Financiero de Andalucã a, Granada

One path to competing in the global knowledge economy is through using local universities to

that Andalusia has emphasized the role of universities rather than local quality of life Role of human capital in entrepreneurship and innovation

Such interaction turns out to be far more important than collaboration with universities particularly for regions dominated by low-tech businesses.

than with universities (Chapple and Hutson, 2010. Where university relationships matter, it is more for their human resource development than for R&d (Ramos-Vielba, Fernã¡

ndez-Esquinas, and Espinosa-de-los-Monteros, 2009. This supports the idea that knowledge creation and application is a

global agents, including universities (but not only for R&d purposes), might be the key (Saxenian 1994

university-industry linkages, rather than the latter three Spain in the global context Spain and the rest of EU countries are immersed currently in a major higher education reform

between universities and the private sector. The Bologna process will introduce a new structure for university degrees in Spain, similar to that of the US and the UK, based on a three level system:

Grado 4 year undergraduate degree), Master (1 or 2 year graduate education) and Doctorado (3-4 year post

The idea is to adopt a system of easily comparable university degrees that would allow overcoming the current bureaucratic obstacles to the recognition of degrees and

movement of students, researchers, faculty and staff within European universities. The Bologna Process is linked to the broader Lisbon Strategy,

university education (Junta de Andalucã a, 2009. In a decade (1999-2009), Andalusian universities lost 46 852 students.

Still, there are returns to higher education: college graduates constitute 29%of the employed population in Andalusia,

During the recent economic crisis, Andalusian universities have seen enrolment increase by over two percent In addition, the changing demographic structure in the region has affected labour market

The immigrant population includes a substantial increase in the number of foreign university students coming to Andalusian universities for undergraduate studies (EU/Erasmus and Moroccan

students) and for graduate studies (from Latin america, EU and North africa. Despite the fact that Andalusian universities might be lagging behind in international rankings, the quality of life of

Andalusia seems to be attracting foreign students. In fact, the share of immigrants from the EU-15

Andalusian universities, coupled with the attraction of immigrant entrepreneurs, may constitute key opportunities for RETA and the region

the university and non-university levels. The Ministry expanded access to education by creating new public universities and vocational schools in each of the 8 provinces and increasing the number of

degrees and availability of seats. Since the mid 1990s, however, a new set of issues has transformed

universities (dependent on the regional government) and companies. In this context, the agency RETA is assigned the responsibility of serving as the network manager of the Andalusia system of

universities, university research and technology transfer in Andalusia 2 For the first time, university and non-university education were separated in the Andalusia government, with vocational training

and non-university education remaining in the Ministry of Education. The idea was to use universities

as innovation and economic development tools and facilitate a shift towards an economy based on knowledge

3 On March 22, 2010, the Regional Ministry of Economy merged with the Ministry of Innovation, Science and Enterprise

4 The newly created Ministry of Economy, Innovation and Science confirmed the commitment of the regional government to make technology transfer between the 10

Andalusia public universities and Andalusia companies the key regional economic development strategy. Accordingly, the regional government put Andalusia public universities at the centre of the

Andalusia system of innovation Finally, the Regional Ministry of Employment has a less visible role in the Andalusia system of

The university system There are currently 10 public universities in Andalusia with a total of approximately 230 000

students. The Universities of Seville and Granada dominate enrolment, with 57 000 and 56 000

students, respectively; the University of Malaga is a distant third, with 33 000 students, and the others

are substantially smaller 2 Decreto del Presidente 11/2004, de 24 de abril, sobre reestructuraciã n de Consejerã as, available at www. juntadeandalucia. es/boja

Interuniversity cooperation is fluid but sometimes sensitive because these regional universities are competitors: they are not specialised but rather generalist universities.

The availability of competitive EU and national research projects that favour interuniversity cooperation is improving

this issue by enabling collaboration among Andalusia universities and between Andalusian and other European universities.

All Andalusia public universities are part of the so-called Unified Andalusia University District (Distrito Universitario à nico Andaluz),

which is now dependent on the Regional Ministry of Economy, Innovation and Science. This has created greater pressure for industry

-university collaboration Traditionally, student mobility was very weak in Spain and geographic proximity rather than reputation was the criteria by

which students chose their university. However, the Bologna process and the new plans of the regional government to increase the specialization of universities is expected

to bring more competition for student recruiting and make Andalusia universities more specialized than generalist.

This is also trying to stop the †brain drain†of Andalusia students going to private university institutions and business schools in Madrid and Barcelona to get their graduate degrees

In general terms, Spanish universities do not rank well in international quality rankings, which are skewed reputedly towards larger and English-speaking universities.

The 2009 Academic ranking of World Universities, elaborated by the Institute of Higher education of Shanghai, China, places the

first Spanish centre, the University of Barcelona, in the 151-202 band. The first Andalusia institution

mentioned is the University of Granada, followed by the University of Seville (both in the 402-501

band). ) Another popular international ranking, The Times QS, placed Barcelona in the 171 st position

Granada in the 401-500 band and Seville in the 501-600 band. Neither ranking mentioned Malaga or

other Andalusia universities. While university rankings have been present in the U s. for a long time over the past decade they have become increasingly important in countries in Europe and around the

world, despite the critiques that they do not recognize university quality and dynamism An important and effective regional programme to upgrade local talent is Talentia, by which the

regional government offers young college graduates financial support for their graduate work at top international universities, on the condition that they return to the region to work for four years.

By 2009, the program had funded about five hundred young Andalusians (Laurent, Periã¡Ã ez and Petit de

Gabriel, 2010 At the same time, despite the lagging position of Spanish universities in quality rankings, they are

the favourite destination for Erasmus exchange students: 8 out of the top 10 exchange institutions in

with the University of Granada being number one, the University of Seville number 6 and the University of Malaga number 34

5 Graduate programs also attract an increasing number of foreign students to Andalusia universities: 20%are of foreign origin, with 8%coming from

Latin america, 4%from the EU, 3%from North america, and about 2%from North africa (Instituto Estadã stico de Andalucã a, 2010.

The universities of Granada, Seville and Malaga have become a magnet for attracting international students

a university from another member country each year ï Vocational training (Formaciã n Profesional or FP) serves young people as a professional

alternative to the Baccalaureate and university education. Managed by the Regional Ministry of Education, it includes skills training of one-two years for youth unable to graduate high

attend the public universities. The II Andalusia Plan for Vocational training, currently being prepared by the Ministry of Education, seeks to adapt vocational training to the new economy and new demand

Changes in the university system present another opportunity. Increasing specialization particularly in the flagship universities of Granada and Seville, should help attract even more foreign

exchange students for the region. RETA and other regional stakeholders might work to encourage potential entrepreneurs among them to stay in the region,

over university training to obtain skills that will improve entrepreneurship. The II Andalusia Plan for

the university offerings focus mostly on connecting high-tech workers and start-ups to entrepreneurship skills, a variety of other programs help traditional businesses and low-skilled workers

Public universities Universities support entrepreneurship in four ways:(1) providing workshops on starting a business for free or at very low rates;(

2) at seven of the ten universities, supporting the Bancaja Young Entrepreneur Chairs, with special seminars, networking with entrepreneurs, and training

opportunities;( (3) offering entrepreneurship fairs to connect different stakeholders; and (4) conducting research on promoting entrepreneurship in higher education (Laurent, Periã¡

) Each university has created also specific initiatives and courses to promote entrepreneurship For instance, the Economics department at the University of Malaga (UMA) started offering a course

on entrepreneurship in 2009. This is an elective course that all university students can take, although only 200 students took

On the other hand, the University of Seville, in collaboration with its OTRI (Technology Transfer Office), supports entrepreneurs involved in the creation of university spin-offs by paying part

of the fees of an MBA PROGRAM Business schools In Spain, the public university system has a better reputation than the private system,

except in the field of business education. Private business schools in Spain lead all the quality rankings in

and business administration departments in public universities are disconnected often from the local business community and, in response, business associations and chambers of commerce have created

the number of companies originated in the university. For instance, the OTRI of the University of

Granada offers a program called La Ruta Emprendedora (The Entrepreneurial Route) that supports visits to technology parks and related workshops organized by sector (ITC, Biotechnology and health

and universities) and women. ANDALUCIA EMPRENDE has more than 200 business incubators Centros de Apoyo al Desarrollo Empresarial,

and 2) a university program promoting entrepreneurship, held at all public universities in Andalusia. They also host gatherings called †Let†s

Speak about Enterprise†in different educational institutions in Andalusia, with 99 000 people taking part in 2007 and 2008

agreements with universities and technology centres to support their IT and technology activities Opportunities in entrepreneurship education

Many of the region†s public universities are already engaged in entrepreneurship education, from special workshops to support for MBA PROGRAMS

activities of the OTRIS, such as La Ruta Emprendedora at the University of Granada, as well as RETA€ s own digital cluster program with CITIC (see below.

training available at the universities. Focusing nearly exclusively on university R&d and technology transfer, regional actors seem to have missed the more modest but important contribution of vocational

training and education. While hiring Phd-level workers might be key for highly innovative companies

personnel without a university degree. Innovation †defined in a broad sense by OECD€ s Oslo Manual

past decade, with the Ministry of Science and Innovation taking responsibility for universities away from the Ministry of Education in 2004,

importance of non-university-related innovation, as well as the depth of the region†s economic problems, it is unfortunate that this separation of agencies may hinder strategic coordination, for

combined online and onsite training, in collaboration with the International University of Andalusia (UNIA), in 9

university savvy about technology and entrepreneurship, and the many disconnects in the system †there are opportunities for RETA to assume a new role in the region.

coordinate training programs across agencies, universities and schools and advocate for more sophisticated training programs. There is an opportunity to coordinate more university activity

regionally and link it better to regional needs. The preparation of the II Andalusian Plan for

networks, which span beyond the university system to include business associations and government There is also considerable existing energy, enthusiasm,

The university system is committed to support labour policy, technology, and entrepreneurship. While most effort of the regional government to promote entrepreneurship and

talent seem to be focused in improving sending Andalusian students to top universities abroad (as in

students that are attracted to Andalusian universities every year. The Universities of Granada and Sevilla alone received over 3 000 exchange students in 2007-08, placing Andalucia ahead even of

Barcelona in popularity. As research elsewhere has found, immigrants are disproportionately likely to become entrepreneurs.

and the University of Illinois. The partnership aims to capitalize on the East Bay†s regional strengths and assets, as well as foster and

As described above, the Andalusian public universities offer a few entrepreneurship training programs, and have plans for entrepreneurship chairs,

immigrant entrepreneurs, there may be potential to expand the offerings at the university level Developing an entrepreneurial university takes time,

and with limited resources, it may be best to focus on just one of the public universities.

Such targeting is did what Sweden to counter its relatively weak entrepreneurial culture, as it invested in technology-based entrepreneurship at the University of

Gothenburg and the nearby Chalmers University of Technology (Jacob, Lundqvist, and Hellmark 2003 Sweden†s emphasis on new technology-based firms is based on the understanding that they

contribute to economic growth not just by producing own products but also input to other firms allowing them to innovate in their processes or markets.

both the Chalmers School and the School of economics and Commercial law at the University of Gothenburg are highly selective

The universities offer office 12 More recently, Chalmers University of Technology and the University of Gothenburg have joined forces to

teach entrepreneurship at the higher education level in the region, with the support of the Swedish

Although there are significant attempts at regional coordination among the public universities in Andalusia, there is also much redundancy.

region that has struggled to launch entrepreneurship programs at the universities. RETA might play a role in targeting entrepreneurship training resources,

has been so successful in Gothenburg, at one of the biggest universities. However, launching the effort would be challenging without significant resources.

First, Andalusia universities lack the competitive specializations of the many Gothenburg research institutions. Second, initiating the effort

university-based innovation programs For further information Chalmers School of Entrepreneurship, http://www. entrepreneur. chalmers. se/cse

/School of economics and Commercial law at Gothenburg University http://www. hgu. gu. se/item. aspx? id=17007

John Cook School of business at St louis University, http://globalizationexecutive. com /Austin Community college, http://www. austincc. edu/techcert/localization. php;

University-Chico, http://rce. csuchico. edu/localize References Aoyama, Y. and M. Castells. 2002. An Empirical Assessment of the Informational Society

Columbia University Press Carnoy, M. 1994. Faded Dreams: the Politics and Economics of Race in America.

Institute of Urban and Regional Development, University of California-Berkeley, Berkeley, CA Chapple, K. & Hutson, M. 2010.

University of California-Berkeley Coronado, D.,Acosta, M. and Fernã¡ndez, A. 2008. Attitudes to innovation in peripheral economic

with universities and large firms. Regional Studies 33,4: 379-389 de Neubourg, C.,Castonguay, J. & K. Roelen. 2005.

University system: The case of Chalmers University of Technology. Research Policy 32,9 1555-1568 Junta de Andalucã a. 2007.

Plan Andaluz de Investigaciã n, Desarrollo e Innovaciã n, available at www. juntadeandalucia. es/economiainnovacionyciencia//.

Temple University Press Martã nez i Coma, F. & Duval Hernã¡ndez, R. 2009. Hostility toward Immigration in Spain.

University Press Sevilir, M. 2006. Human Capital Investment, Entrepreneurship and New Firm Creation. Unpublished paper

Universities and public and private research organizations play a crucial role in regional economies that rely upon growth-oriented entrepreneurship and business innovation.

particular, research spin-offs and industry-university knowledge transfer (labour mobility, research collaborations, technology transfer agencies, university technology licensing programs, etc.

are key elements of this process, given the importance of basic and precompetitive research for innovation

in which universities and research organizations contribute to regional economic development These new models and the insights they afford for a catch up region,

both the Andalusia university system and RETA within that context. The role of RETA in supporting

the development of industry-university relationships is examined. Policy recommendations are based on the alternative perspectives on innovation and the knowledge transfer process, as well as the

university research have to build common ground that overlaps the context of the university laboratory with that of their own R&d laboratories, design shops, and manufacturing plants.

understanding how university-industry knowledge occurs. A key aspect of the process of knowledge transfer from universities and research institutes is through personal connections given that the

knowledge being transferred is †embodiedâ€. To deploy university-generated knowledge in a commercial setting, firms must capture both its tacit,

as well as its codified, component (Wolfe and Lucas, 2001. As one of the business leaders in Waterloo, Ontario is fond of saying, †the best

Knowledge transfers between universities and other economic actors are personalized highly, and as a result, often highly localized,

transfer provides a strong clue as to why universities are seen increasingly as an essential element in

The preceding discussion suggests that the task of transferring knowledge from universities to industries is more complex,

and the role of universities in economic development more varied, than the linear approach to the innovation process allows.

knowledge flows between universities and industry, including both first and second generation models outlined above, frequently treat knowledge itself as a universally available commodity, virtually as a

A careful examination of the existing research on university -industry knowledge transfer is essential for a more balanced perspective on this relationship.

Mowery et al. have argued recently, †Any assessment of the economic role of universities must recognize the numerous,

diverse channels through which university research influences industrial innovation and vice versa†(Mowery, Nelson, Sampat et al.

Research organizations, including universities, are not just generators of commercial knowledge or even highly qualified research scientists;

in addition to the conduct of basic research, universities provide both formal and informal technical support, as well as specialized expertise and facilities for ongoing, firm

documents the multiple ways in which universities contribute to the development and expansion of local industry:

for start-up companies that spin-off from universities to become the seeds of new business National Academy of Engineering, 2003, pp. 46†48;

university research becomes increasingly important to local firms not just for the transfer of knowledge generated through its own research activities,

From this perspective, universities can be seen as multifaceted economic actors who are embedded in regions,

The impact of the university can extend beyond the provision of basic research but, in order for this to occur, the knowledge assets of the university must

be aligned properly with the multifaceted needs of local firms. A large base of research and development is required but not sufficient.

The university must also address the business, workforce and community issues. The university must be aligned with regional interests and industry clusters

across a broad spectrum, not just in terms of technical knowledge (Paytas, Gradeck, and Andrew 2004,34 Throughout the week of the study visit to Andalusia, the expert team made much of the

University-industry linkages play an important role, but they tend to take the form of applied problem solving, rather than basic research

University-industry linkages are an essential part of the knowledge transfer for sectors that rely upon this type of

innovation are important for understanding how firms utilize the results of university-based research as well as the role played by highly qualified personnel trained through university-based research.

The existence of these different dimensions of the innovation process suggests there is considerable variation in how university research is applied taken up

and by different industrial sector. Those sectors associated with the steel industry, machine tools and advanced manufacturing tend to draw

University research is of value to innovative firms in terms of keeping them informed about where the knowledge frontier is moving in

In these industries, the direct results of university research and their potential for commercialization are much more relevant for the innovative activities of individual

The ability of firms to draw on both the tacit and codified components of university research

engage in the DUI mode of innovation †are through faculty consulting and student placements or

policy in Andalusia and the specific role assigned to the universities in promoting innovation. It pays

particular attention to the current state of the technology transfer process between the universities and

made to members of the OECD-LEED Study Mission between the role of the largest universities in

university sector. The university system is designated as playing a key role in this strategy. The PIMA

notes that there has been a significant investment in the system over the past ten years

resulted in the creation of five new universities and a 28 percent increase in the number of students

enrolled and a corresponding increase in the teaching staff of the universities. This increase in the size

and level of enrolment in the Andalusia university system is part of a broader change process focused

on adapting teaching in the universities to social and business needs and developing a first class

These goals are to be operational through the financing of joint university-business R+D+I projects, targeted particularly on strategic business sectors and through the funding of high

technology transfer by promoting the role of the Industrial Liaison Offices (OTRIS) in the universities

nearly half) is designated for the support of knowledge industry and universities (Junta de Andalucã a

Andalusia public universities (dependent on the regional government) and private companies. In March, 2010 the Ministry of Enterprise,

universities and private companies as the central element of the regional government†s economic development strategy in Andalusia.

The second category includes the ten public universities in the region, as well as public research organizations, research centres and the R&d departments of private companies

The key role of the public university system The public university system clearly occupies a key position at the centre of both the overall

institutional design of the knowledge and innovation support system in Andalusia, as well as being the chief beneficiary of funding under the PIMA.

Public universities have thus been the primary source of R&d spending in the region as well as the principal beneficiaries of the increase in public funds for

and especially the research universities, is strongly reinforced by the priority afforded to them in the region†s strategic plans discussed above.

fostering greater collaboration between the universities and industry (Sanz-Menendez and Crus-Castro 2005, 24†25

The Andalusia university system consists of ten public universities, of which one, the Universidad Internacional de Andalucã a (UNIA) is devoted primarily to teaching

The regional system of universities is governed by statutes and regulations of the central 13. The PAIDI identifies a long list of priority research areas for the region,

management of the university system. A key focus of the region†s strategy has been to position

university researchers to compete as effectively as possible for national and EU sources of research

universities as the principal basis for research funding, which in turn has had a strong impact on the

organizational structure of the universities. The establishment of an official register of university research teams has made de facto the research team the key organizational unit responsible for the

conduct of scientific research within the universities. This internal structuring has been formalized in the University Law of 2003 and regional regulations governing the university system, which now

designate research teams as a core element in the internal structure of the universities (Ramos-Vielba

and Fernandez-Esquinas, 2009. The nine research universities have drawn up their own research strategies in response to the PAIDI;

however, the recent self evaluation report prepared for the OECD review of higher education in the region notes that the relation between the universities†research

priorities and those designated in the region†s strategic plans lacks a strong degree of coordination, as

The self evaluation report concludes that †this shows that the universities do not have their

Support for university research is provided through a range of institutions, including the OTRIS the university foundations and the presence of the universities in the technology parks.

The nine public research universities also develop their own strategies to meet regional demands, especially the needs

of the SMES through their association with other research organizations such as the Higher National Research Council (CSIC) or public and private research centres.

Each of the nine universities excepting UNIA, has an OTRI; these are in turn part of the National OTRI-Net

university students, faculty and researchers who want to create their own companies, especially in the case of spin-offs derived from university research.

They also support the university community in registering new patents. Apart from their function of promoting technology transfer, public-private

cooperation and creation of spin-offs, they are increasingly paying attention to promoting entrepreneurial activity among students as a way to increase the number of companies originated in the

university However, they are hampered in their performance of this role by the lack of sufficient and

and release time for university research to participate in start-up firms. One of the main difficulties experienced by the OTRIS in Andalusia is need that they to serve

the needs of their universities as a whole, while the needs of individual departments might be quite

As one of the university officials noted for the case of researchers and entrepreneurs in our

site visit to the University of Seville, †one of the problems is the size of the University of Seville

made by university professors during their period of contract with the university, and which constitute

part of their university duties, belong to the university. Professors have the right to share in the benefits that flow to the university from the use of the intellectual property rights derived from their

inventions, but the precise share that they receive is governed by the statutes of the individual

universities. In general, the universities are critical of the current state of the legal framework governing intellectual property rights as it provides them with little guidance for determining how

benefits should be shared in the course of contractual work National regulations have imposed also traditionally restrictions on the mobility of university

researchers between the public sector and private spin-off companies, as it limits them from holding more than a 10 percent interest in private companies,

taking a temporary leave of absence from the university to form a private company. The act governing

universities was amended in 2001 to allow university researchers a five year leave of absence without giving up their university position to participate in technology-based spin-offs (Empresas de Base

Tecnolã gica-EBT. However, the universities are still critical of the current law as they feel that the

guidelines for implementing the regulations are insufficient to allow the integration of university researchers into the EBTS.

The regional government has established also two separate programmes to promote the creation of EBTS. The Atlantis Programme, managed by the IDEA Agency is geared

Andalusia universities by providing them with loans of up to EUR 100 000 through the public venture

The universities undertake to mentor the start-ups right from their inception while IDEA provides the assessment needed to fund

potential for success. The combined efforts of the universities and the regional government are clearly

A final factor inhibiting the transfer of research results from the universities to the private sector

Many of the region†s universities place a higher priority on the performance of basic research as well as judge scholarly success based on the international recognition

economic development (an academic phenomenon which is limited not to Andalusia universities. One consequence of this cultural attitude is that the universities have been reluctant to direct research

efforts in strategic directions related to areas of industrial strength in the regional economy acquiescing to pressure from their researchers to afford all areas of research endeavour equal treatment

visits of the study team with the representatives of two of the leading universities in the region

Technology transfer at the University of Malaga Malaga is the third largest university of Andalusia after Granada and Seville.

It has 2 300 professors on staff and 40 000 students. The university has 270 active research groups,

which is the third largest number in the region. The university has been working on technology transfer for quite a

while, although the regional government has made this a high priority in the last five years, which has

made more funding available to university. One problem that the university faces is that it has started

up too many companies, but the government does not have sufficient funding available to support all

Roughly 30 percent of the university funding is tied to the number of patents, spin -offs, and number of companies that the university provides technical assistance to.

These performance indicators for research and technology transfer are valuable in helping universities obtain government

funding. The University of Malaga is part of the network of technology transfer offices in Andalusia

Red OTRI) whose purpose is to help the individual universities collaborate more effectively. They have a parallel system in effect between the network of technology transfer offices and RETA.

The connection with RETA is primarily through the University of Malaga, while the relationship between

other universities is maintained through the network of technology transfer offices The University of Malaga†s underlying strategy is to generate technology push by moving

research out of the university into the private sector. They have generated 150 patents, but they also try

to support a number of new spin-off companies every year. They choose 11 projects per year, and then

provide support to the best three economically. They provide the spin-off companies with a place to

The university also has two persons in the research office working with the various research groups trying to determine what

objective of this focus is to demonstrate to new research groups within the university the feasibility of

the university because licensing a patent is easier to do and a license generates faster returns to the

university than the lengthy process involved in establishing a technology-based business. Thus, the university focuses on promoting patents as a way to support external start-ups through technology

licensing The university also organizes various seminars and meetings between private companies and its research groups.

They try to organize thematic meetings to help the match between academics and entrepreneurs. In addition, they have posted online the themes and interests of their research groups

this activity is to convince the private companies that increased contact with the universities is

available within in the university The university enjoys a good working relationship with RETA and it draws upon this relationship

to build its contacts with private companies. The relationship is based on the extensive knowledge that

send companies to the University for Assistance. RETA often has detailed knowledge of the individual

needs or requirements of particular companies which they provide to the university. The university, in

turn, tries to identify the appropriate research groups that have the specific skills that can help solve

university and the companies and 80 percent of the contacts generated by RETA have resulted in

One of the main fields in which the university invests more intensively is information and

indicators at the national level in this research area and the ICT research groups within the university

Indeed, the University of Malaga ia ranked 8 th in the national rankings for ICT departments

the perspective of the university, the Andalusia regional government is doing a good job of providing

university institutes that participate directly with private companies. With respect to technology transfer organizations within the regional innovation system,

the university representatives felt there has been a multiplication of them in recent years, with the result that there are often parallel

The university scientists find this support framework very confusing because they are asked to participate in a lot of

when it is collaborating with the universities, but less so when it is not. This gives rise to the sentiment

With respect to the question of how the university views the †demand pull†approach to technology transfer, the representatives did not seem to place a great deal of emphasis on coordinating

universities in some respect have much more research and technology capabilities than the local companies need, in other words they are adapted not well to actually meet the innovation needs of the

This suggests the need to rethink the way in which existing university capabilities can be deployed more effectively to meet the needs of local companies

Technology transfer at the University of Seville The second meeting was at the University of Seville with representatives of Citius and the OTRI

Since 2004, the University has had a Vice-Chancellor†s Office for Technological Transfer separate from the Office of Research.

This office is responsible for overseeing the University†s OTRI, as well as providing support services to facilitate work experience for its students in enterprises and the

offer assistance in the use of advanced equipment for the various research groups in the university plus

Citius, the technology and innovation centre at the university is a 5 000 square metre building

Endesa (the power company) has an agreement with the university under which it rents space, but also

has to spend a certain amount of money every year in research with the university which creates synergies between Endesa and the research groups.

allows the companies use of the space in the university. Three companies that were mentioned were

give companies a special price for using the research equipment in the university. The research centre

research projects and the application process and one for entrepreneurship in the University of Seville.

and firms was EUR 28 million for the University of Seville, which accounts for approximately half of

the total contract funding for the universities in Andalusia. They have undertaken also all the management of projects related to Framework Funding from the EU. The third division in the Office

Funding for the OTRI comes half from the University of Seville, 40 percent from the regional government,

of the University of Seville One problem that was identified by the university representatives is that they lack a cadre of

technically trained people who can provide technical support to research teams and firms. The university is endowed well with professors and administrators,

but they also perceive the need for a category of people who do not do research,

national regulations governing university employment which had been raised previously. Professors cannot leave the university and go to work for a start up company with any assurance that they will be

able to return from that employment to their university position A related problem that was identified concerns the issue of intellectual property rights (IPR.

The university has found that companies want to retain all the rights to intellectual property when they sign

a contract with a university research team, and the university researchers are usually keen to sign the

agreement no matter what the conditions are. As a consequence, this means that the university will end

up losing the benefit of years of research. From the administrators†perspective, this implies the need

for a more balanced approach to sharing the benefits that will potentially flow from the IPR derived

from university research. However, control over IPR is often found to be one of the most difficult

issues to negotiate in joint university-industry research initiatives and there is no universally agreed solution to this problem.

Furthermore, the university representatives suggested the need to redesign career incentives, because a career reward system based primarily on publications does not provide

internal incentive system within university departments tend to be shaped strongly by the leadership of those departments.

With respect to the question of technology transfer to SMES the university representatives suggested that the OTRI is prepared not well to provide technical assistance to firms.

The real problem they face is with respect to the size of university which has 4 000 researchers and approximately 70 000 students.

university, or at least in each of the applied science departments. The small size of the OTRI creates

additional problems for the university in working with SMES because the relatively small team of

small firms that may need university support to introduce incremental improvements in their products or processes.

difficult for universities to work with small firms and, as a consequence, they focus their efforts on

problem is that they establish initial contacts between firms and the university, but they do not do

position between the small coterie of firms that have been identified as innovative and the universities to assist the firms in finding the researchers with the appropriate knowledge and skills, thereby

University-Industry Linkages: A More Variegated Perspective While the emphasis in both the regional government†s strategic plans and in the universities†own

relations between university researchers and private firms, especially SMES in the region. The studies suggest that the primary focus on intellectual property mechanisms is misplaced,

data gathered by the university technology transfer offices. The findings of this research are highly

The researchers surveyed a total of 765 research teams at Andalusia universities in 2008 based on

The majority of these research teams (89 percent) were based at universities reflecting the predominant role they play in the regional R+D+I system.

personnel provided by the researchers for firms and internships of university researchers in private firms, as well as the exchange of scientific personnel between research teams and firms.

directly related to the exploitation of intellectual property rights resulting from university research occurred in many fewer instances,

types of relationships with industry that are developed in most university systems. †The excessive focus on intellectual property rights provides a disincentive for the many university researchers who

participate in the multiple other forms of university-industry collaboration. They also note that policy

-makers who rely on the formal data collected by university technology transfer offices are privy to at

best the †tip of the iceberg†in terms of the true dimensions of university-industry collaboration that

exist (Ramos-Vielba et al. 2009, p. 17 In a related study, the same group of CSIC researchers surveyed 737 Andalusia innovative

The firms were asked about the nature of their university-industry connections. The researchers discovered that 57 percent of the firms in the sample did not engage in

any type of collaboration with universities. The firms in this group tended to be smaller, independently owned and more locally oriented.

collaborated with universities, the most frequent type of collaboration involved informal relationship followed by the training of university personnel inside the firm.

Among the other firms, 15 to 25 percent engaged in some form of consultancy relationship with university staff, 5 to 15 per cent of the

firms had contract research projects with the universities and less than 5 per cent of the firms had

participated in the creation of spin-off or start-up firms, the sale or transfer of patents or joint ventures

significant for any discussion of RETA€ s role in enhancing connections between the universities and

universities and companies and how †contacts that occur in different kinds of events are the breeding

between universities and companies are limited not to R&d transfer, but they depend on the needs and

characteristics of the companies in the part of the regional economy where the universities are located This supports the idea that knowledge creation and application †and therefore innovation †are

important for universities and regional coordinating bodies to recognize that R&d activities especially the commercialization and exploitation of intellectual property derived from university

research are just a portion of the firm†s overall interactions with the higher education system and that

through a wide range of previous interactions with universities The policy implications of this research suggest the need for greater support on the part of the

higher education system for a less R&d-intensive form of interaction between the universities and the

This would require the universities to provide greater support for these firms in the form of technical advice and problem solving in a wide range of

the universities are familiar with the kinds of technical problems that these firms must overcome. It is

Table 2. Interactions with universities of Andalusian innovative firms Percentage of'yes'answer to each type of interaction

Consultancy work 21.8 Patent exploitation 4. 6 Joint ventures with Universities 3. 7 Commissioning of R&d

projects to Universities 14.0 Training of Uni. Postgraduates and internships at firms 27.5 Participation in spin-offs/start-ups 3. 9

Universities 15.2 Other types of collaborative activities 1. 9 Source: Fernandez-Esquinas et al. 2009 To reiterate, the key challenge is how to tighten the linkages in the system between the individual

universities and innovative firms. Andalusia needs to move beyond the narrow number of R&d performing firms to bring in a broader range of the currently innovative firms and the greater number

of innovation serves to broaden the conception of the different roles that the universities and research

science and technology parks, technological centres and public universities and worked through a network 85 innovation agents situated in the parks, technology centres, main industrial estates, and

R+D+I system, the universities displayed a generally positive attitude towards the contribution of

which is not surprising given that its primary mandate is to help university research groups attract EU funding for their institutions.

Some of the universities were more critical of the contribution that RETA makes to promoting linkages between researchers and SMES in the region

the OTRIS in order to establish connections between university researchers and private firms limits RETA€ s effectiveness in the eyes of the research community (Laurent, et al. 2010, 34†35.

coordinating agency and the universities, it suggests there is considerable room for RETA to revaluate the way in which it currently manages its relationship with the region†s research organizations

organizations, particularly the universities, and local businesses within the region. However, as was observed several times during our site visits to the universities, this system operates imperfectly at

best. The challenge that RETA faces is that only a very small portion (less than 5 per cent) of the

second tier innovative firms that it services are in a position to engage with the universities in

and commercialize the outputs of university research. Its role would be more manageable if it were limited to working with the 300 more

at the two universities, that current role seems to be limited at best, especially in comparison to their

organization in the region, such as CTA, the Employers association and even the universities, and provide complementary services that meet the needs of the tier of innovative SMES it is mandated to

Doing so would allow it to be viewed as a valued partner by the public universities through the

The detailed surveys of both university research teams and innovative firms conducted by the team at IESA-CSIC reveal that there are already a substantial number of university researchers who

engage in a wide range of informal contacts with regional firms in a variety of activities,

We know from the broader literature that consultancy with university faculty often serves a variety of purposes from the firm†s perspective.

which private firms test the compatibility of university faculty in terms of potentially engaging with them in contract or collaborative research.

to the next level of involvement with the university researcher or research team in terms of engaging in

the universities revealed that the universities themselves are much happier when RETA works with them to bring individual firms to the research office

or OTRI to find suitable faculty collaborators RETA and the RED-OTRI need to work together to develop a mechanism for linking firms in need of

technical assistance with university faculty with the requisite technical or business skills to provide that assistance.

database of faculty research and consulting skills at the nine research universities in the region.

The IESA-CSIC surveys might even provide the preliminary basis for constructing such a database if the

to identify the faculty members on the various research teams at the individual universities with skill

out on a university by university basis beginning with one or two, where both organizations feel there

universities in the region. While this may take some time to fully implement, it is expected that early

successes at one or two universities in the region would have a positive demonstration effect that

and social networks among private firms and university researchers that are viewed as a central component of third generation innovation models

university system by introducing some form of cooperative educational program at the universities The Study Mission heard that there currently exist a number of different programs in the region to

the universities, as well as in the surveys conducted by the IESA-CSIC research teams. While the

University of Waterloo in Ontario, there is solid research evidence which indicates that that the coop

from their work terms into the university classroom. This example is discussed in further detail in one

universities would require some additional public support, but it could make use of RETA€ s contacts

with the group of innovative firms in the region as the basis for finding job placements for university

introducing and expanding university coop programs is the high cost incurred by the university administrations in locating work placements for their students.

usually accomplished through the provision of several dedicated university personnel to the task of finding these placements in the firms.

enterprises back into the teaching activities of the university faculty. There is also some evidence from

technical knowledge out of universities to provide assistance to firms (Bramwell and Wolfe, 2008 Consider the creation of a †virtual technology parkâ€

university spin-offs and entrepreneurial start-up firms, or to physically locate the parks on a university

campus, as is the case with the new PTA-University of Malaga Campus. However, the impact of the

current crisis in the region and the eventual reduction of ERDF funds may constrain the resources

strengthening the connections with one or two of the key universities and building a denser set of

both the database of expert skills in the universities and the creation of a focused cooperative

education program with some of the universities and innovative companies as a means to strengthen

the social networks between firms and universities. The objective of this third recommendation would be the creation of a †virtual technology park†for some of the innovative firms dispersed throughout the

limited geographic scale, with one or two universities and one or two parks, would allow RETA to

†scale up†the model by extending it to other parks and universities in the region.

create a demand for emulating the approach in other firms and universities across the region

by a network of about 260 Industrial Technology Advisors (ITAS), who are housed in universities community colleges and other technology transfer organizations across the country.

some have taught at universities and community colleges, and many of them have worked for IRAP for a considerable period of time.

The Cooperative Education Program at the University of Waterloo Description of the Approach The second learning model provides more details about the University of Waterloo†s cooperative

education program and particularly, the crucial role that it plays in the local innovation system.

The University of Waterloo currently has the largest cooperative education program in the world, with over 11 000 students (60 percent of the

and are available in all faculties and departments, and in over 100 different programs. The Centre for the Advancement of Coop Education (Watcace) was established

The founding document for the new university in the 1950s, referred to as the Waterloo

The reflexive relationship between the university and local industry allows the curriculum to keep up with the ever-changing technological frontiers of industry while industry support of the program

of the first universities in Canada to enable students to actively explore and make use of innovations in

that the university performs a critical intermediary function in facilitating the transfer of knowledge between students and local and non-local industry through the Cooperative Education Program

of the University of Waterloo in the regional economy. First and foremost, it acts as a steady source of

graduates well trained within the university, they also come with practical experience gained through co-op placements, both in local firms and in firms all over North america.

a recent speech at the university during his Microsoft 2005 Tour, Bill gates referred to Waterloo as †a

university in the world. †Beyond these highly visible and tangible benefits of the Co-op Program is its contribution to

between local firms and the teaching faculty at the university. At the same time, student-driven technology transfer is critical specifically to the commercialization process.

and co-opt entrepreneurial faculty to develop a company...They play a big role in spin-offs and technology transfer. †This awareness of the crucial link between

North american universities have not implemented it to the same degree, is the high cost of finding

The university invests a considerable amount of its own resources in financing and managing the program.

costs have been built into the universities budget virtually since its inception. It also now benefits from

has proved invaluable in both creating extremely tight linkages between the university and the dense

public universities interested in expanding either work-related training programs or introducing a full coop education initiative in finding the work placements for students

University Research Parks, undertook an extensive review of the characteristics and trends in research parks over the last 50 years.

collaborative networks and lever the intellectual resources of universities more effectively than today The second scenario puts forward a model where research occurs in †clouds†that virtually link

firms and universities through co-location in a traditional technology park through a more distributed

Association of University Research Parks. Columbus, OH: Battelle Memorial Institute Bercovitz, Janet and Maryann Feldman, 2008. †Academic Entrepreneurs:

and David A. Wolfe. 2008. †Universities and Regional Economic Development: The Entrepreneurial University of Waterloo. †Research Policy 37

September): ) 1175†87 Fernandez de Lucio, Ignacio, Fancisco Mas-Verdu, and Enrigque Tortosa. 2010. †Regional

Industry and University. †IESA-CSIC Paper. Cordoba Geiger, Roger L. 2004. Knowledge and Money:

Research Universities and the Paradox of the Marketplace. Stanford: Stanford university Press Gertler, Meric S, . and Tara Vinodrai. 2005. †Anchors of Creativity:

Universities Create Competitive and Cohesive Communities? †In Taking Public Universities Seriously. eds Frank Iacobucci and Carolyn Tuohy.

Toronto: University of Toronto Press Gomez, Antonio-Martin Porras. 2007. †Internationalization and Innovation Policies in

Andalusia: Which Prospects in the Mediterranean. †Fondacion Tres Culturas del Mediterraneo Granados-Cabezas, Vicente. 2010.

University of Michigan Press Landabaso, Mikel, Antoni Kuklinski, and Carlos Roman, eds. 2007. Europe-Reflections on

Biznesu†National-Louis University Laurent, Julia, Inmaculada Perianez Forte, and Eulalia W. Petit de Gabriel. 2010.

General Secretariat for Universities, Research and Technology, Regional Ministry for Innovation, Science and Enterprise, Junta de

University-Industry Technology Transfer Before and After the Bayh-Dole Act. Stanford, CA: Stanford Business Books

Mcgill-Queen†s University Press for the School of Policy Studies, Queen†s University Niosi, Jorge. 2008.

IRPP Choices 14 (4 october) Connecting the Dots Between University Research and Industrial Innovation. IRPP Choices.

Montreal: Institute for Research on Public Policy OECD, Science Technology Industry. 1999. University Research in Transition.

Paris Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Paytas, Jerry, Robert Gradeck, and Lena Andrews. 2004.

Universities and the Development of Industry Clusters. Pittsburgh and Washington, D c.:Center for Economic Development, Carnegie mellon University and Economic Development

Administration, U s. Department of commerce Ramos-Vielba, Irene, and Manuel Fernandez-Esquinas. 2009. †Beneath the Tip of the Iceberg

The Multiple Forms of University-Industry Collaborative Linkages. †IESA-CSIC Paper. Cordoba Sanz-Menendez, Luis,

. and Matthew M. Lucas. 2001. †Investing Knowledge in Universities Rethinking the Firm†s Role in Knowledge Transfer. †In Knowledge management in

been a reduction in university attendance: from 14.7 percent in 1997-8 to 12.2 percent in 2007-8

absence of entrepreneurship in universities and in primary and secondary education, technology transfer, and the role of the universities

ï Key obstacles for start-ups: social and cultural issues, lack of financial support, and limited enterprising capacity

ï€ Specialization of the 10 Andalusia public universities to transform them into driving forces enriching businesses in the region

ï€ Send 500 youth to the best universities in the world ï€ Train and counsel 5 000 SMES to add innovation to products and services

As far as university spin-offs are concerned, based on the results of the study visit, Andalusia emerges the leading Spanish region in quantitative terms

number of university spin-offs generated. However, in qualitative terms (such as growth employment, turnover, etc. the approach could be improved.

reduction in university attendance, declining from 14.7 percent in 1997/8 to 12.2 percent in 2007/8

The region also recognises the role of universities in this respect; the Andalusia Innovation and Modernisation Plan (PIMA) and the Research, Development and Innovation Plan of Andalusia

PAIDI) include a set of actions designed to encourage entrepreneurship in universities. The above is a

universities. This should not be restricted to a technologically-oriented view of innovation and entrepreneurship. The high and rising levels of general and youth unemployment necessitate the

re) training programmes could be established using existing institutions, such as university faculties research centres, training centres, etc.

and university systems into the discussion, leading to integrated regional policy and support. The business sector should form part of the Working group, in defining policies, monitoring and

universities and municipalities also implement their own business incubator programmes over and above those supported by the region.

for those with a good business idea from the university or the region ï Incubator stage:

The region†s spin-off support is currently almost entirely focused on universities, as illustrated in

vocational educational establishment, universities, etc. The Entrepreneurship Action Plan for Wales offers concepts which are suitable for replication by a large region such as Andalusia, subject to the

Wolfe, D. 2010) University †Industry Collaboration, this publication CHAPTER V: SME DEVELOPMENT IN ANDALUSIA

was a relatively high level of collaboration with universities and government research centres (30 percent) the level of collaboration with other SMES was much lower (19 percent), with a much higher

networks, through previous university or career experience. Existing policy agendas seeking to internationationalise these activities by developing links with foreign companies and universities

should be encouraged and extended How to identify ways of supporting the internationalisation of the SME sector

key firms on a planned basis to create close university-industry linkages to support innovation

where universities and public agencies are the main institutions through which the regional government is attempting to foster innovation

/Dr Roberta Sonnino, School of City and Regional Planning, Cardiff University, Glamorgan Building King EDWARD VII Avenue, Cardiff, Wales, CF10 3w.

Group of Agricultural and Environmental Economics, University of Pisa, Via del Borghetto, 80-56124 Pisa, Italy.

firms and 26 percent spin-offs from public research organisations such as universities Rationale for the intervention

from three of Scotland†s universities, led to the sector being prioritised as a strategic cluster.

internationally renowned universities working in the field of medical, life and biological sciences. The Universities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, Dundee,

and to a lesser extent Aberdeen have a long history and track record of research in these fields.

Additionally to the supply of ideas and concepts from university research, the Scottish universities have produced generations of well-trained graduates to service the life sciences labour market:

Scotland produces a proportionately larger number of graduates from its universities than other parts of the UK.

lessons for Andalusia which is similarly well provided with universities, although may lack the longer tradition of commercialisation of research and development of spin-off companies.

for Public Policy for Regions, University of Glasgow Brunori, G. 2005 Rural Strategy in Tuscany.

Employment Observatory, Working Paper, University of Aalborg Maskell, P. 1997 Learning in the village economy of Denmark.

Analysis. University of Edinburgh: Innogen Working Paper No. 16 Romero, I. and Javier Santos, F. 2007 Firm size and regional linkages:

Analysis. University of Edinburgh: Innogen Working Paper No. 16 Scottish government 2009 Life sciences Key Sector Report, Scottish government, Edinburgh

university, stronger entrepreneurship, etc As a result, these themes have assumed top importance in the policy agenda of the regional

stresses the importance of business enterprise R&d (BERD) investments, industry-university technology transfer, and intermediate organisations such as technology centres and technology parks â€

ii) knowledge-generation organisations (e g. universities; iii) knowledge-transfer organisations (e g. technology centres; iv) system-management organisations (e g.

The number of Andalusia†s people aged between 25 and 34 with university and post-compulsory

%Despite this improvement, Andalusia universities have lost nearly 50 000 students over the 1999-2009 decade.

as both do not require strong university competencies. However, in the knowledge -based economy there are greater returns from higher education.

based on the promotion of R&d and industry-university technology transfer, the regional government is missing the possible contribution of vocational education to innovation through a more qualified and

universities, technology centres, agencies such as ANDALUCIA EMPRENDEAND RETA), but this is largely ad hoc training dealing with specific aspects such as marketing, business internationalisation

The natural setting for similar programmes would be the university but amongst the ten public universities of Andalusia only the University of Malaga has recently

established an elective entrepreneurship course that has, inter alia, poor attendance. The low take-up rate of this course may also flag that Andalusia†s entrepreneurial culture remains feeble, although the

The three key aspects with regard to the role of universities in the regional entrepreneurship and SME development system can be synthesised as follows:

i) Andalusia†s public universities are the largest beneficiaries of R&d funding, and have influenced significantly regional development

strategies, with some unintended consequences on the alignment between university research priorities and the region†s strategic priorities;

approach where university research commercialisation is pursued mainly through patenting and technology licensing; other forms of technology transfer are overlooked consequently;

room for strengthening linkages between university faculty and smaller firms, a niche in which RETA

Spanish average of 45.5%,public universities have been the primary source of R&d spending in the

This has entailed a privileged position for regional research universities, which have been able to influence significantly the strategic orientations of the regional government as regards R&d

enough coordination between the research strategies of public universities and the strategic goals of regional economic and innovation plans, bringing the example of the lack of Andalusia universities

prioritising research on biotechnologies, ICT or tourism, in spite of these being considered key sectors by the regional government.

The university research agenda seems rather driven by the interests of the research groups, which is the main academic unit of reference for R&d funding applications

The commercialisation of university research is pursued primarily by the Andalusia government through the regional network of Technology Transfer Offices (OTRI),

facilitating the relationships between local firms and regional universities. The OTRI network prioritises patenting, technology licensing,

commercialisation, and some important results have indeed been achieved, with the University of Seville producing 24 patents over the last year.

First of all, the University of Seville clearly takes the lion†s share in industry-university technology transfer, with half of private research contracts allocated to it (i e.

and Granada, the other regional universities have a very minor role in this activity. Secondly universities and their OTRI offices need to look beyond a mere intellectual property approach

Different studies, both from the US and Spanish contexts, suggest that the primary focus on intellectual property mechanisms is misplaced,

Through less R&d-intensive forms of industry-university collaboration, the regional technology transfer offices will be able to reach out to a wider number of both faculty members and enterprises

collaboration with university (e g. through consulting In this respect, RETA could play an important role by building up together with OTRI a faculty

skills database that could be matched with the existing dataset of †innovative needs†of Andalusia

but explore the wider spectrum of industry-university collaborative options available Entrepreneurship and start-ups Andalusia innovation and modernisation strategies (i e.

Finally, while university spinoffs have received much attention, less has been given to corporate spinoffs. At the time of the peer review visit there did not seem to be many activities ongoing in this

and could indeed be matched with another database collecting the skills of university faculty members so as to ease knowledge transfer between HEIS and firms, including of small size.

university technology transfer offices (OTRI) appears most suited to taking up this challenge together with RETA

Universities are being geared up to be conduits for knowledge and innovation in the new economy but as the OECD study reports, inappropriate class syllabi and the lack of awareness of

Students still tend to go outside of the Andalusian public university system for advanced business-related training,

and the experience of the University of Malaga†s entrepreneurship programme show how entrepreneurship courses in the region tend to go

Pursuing a twofold strategy in industry-university collaboration Universities face the usual conundrum of, one the one hand, enhancing their own research

capabilities to move up global university rankings which do not take institutional contributions to local economic development into consideration and, on the other hand, the need to make such a contribution

improving university capacity for research. The enhanced capabilities for university research can lead to regional universities being able to attract talent, both students and faculty, from elsewhere.

Such an objective should be realised as best as possible as it will help develop and draw in to the region a

greater pool of human capital. But an exclusive focus on such a strategy could be at odds with the

Universities may not be able to resolve these difficulties themselves and this is where careful planning of the work of

ï Build (RETA and OTRI) an integrated database of faculty research and consulting skills to match the

ï Think of promoting corporate spin-offs as an alternative to university spinoffs with stronger industry and market knowledge

and retention of talented foreign students from local universities in technology parks ï Ensure that best-practice policy principles are applied in local technology parks,

strengthening the relationships of the latter with local universities

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