Purpose
Universities concerned with third mission activities are engines that increase regional competitiveness since their primary role in the knowledge-based economy is to stimulate innovation by transferring new knowledge and technologies to industry and society. The purpose of this paper is to show how IC can be mobilized by university technology transfer offices (TTOs) due to the correlation between efficient university technology transfer and intellectual capital (IC), thus contributing to the third stage of IC research.
Design/methodology/approach
The application of the Maturity Model developed by Secundo et al. (2016) is expanded by collecting data from 18 universities in the European countries to illustrate how IC can be used as a strategy and solution to the barriers faced by TTOs.
Findings
TTOs with increased access to and utilization of IC tend to have higher maturity levels. This new application of the Maturity Model, proves that IC can be utilized to manage and improve the efficiency of TTOs.
Research limitations/implications
An indication of the level of access that TTOs have to university IC is given leading to recommendations to improve university technology transfer. Future research should include a wider sample of universities to increase the validation of the Maturity Model and to prove it as a suitable and strategic approach for IC management at TTOs.
Practical implications
Knowing which IC components are essential for the efficiency of TTOs, and which IC needs greater utilization, will provide insights into policy and practical interventions to improve their efficiency, resulting in increasing universities’ competitiveness.
Originality/value
A new approach and perspective on utilizing IC to improve university technology transfer to contribute to the third stage of IC research calling for more practice-oriented research.
This paper provides key results from an exploratory research study aimed at understanding the current landscape in small-and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in South Africa with regard to their appetite for, and use of, open innovation. The survey, which was conducted within a contained group of SMEs that belong to business network groups on LinkedIn, explored the current use and perception of open innovation. It was found that collaboration is the approach most preferred by the SMEs surveyed, with customers and suppliers as their preferred innovation partners.Based on the findings of the survey, this paper proposes 25 design requirements, grouped into five functional categories, for an open innovation approach. The design requirements have been developed as a primer to a more complete open innovation approach for SMEs.
OPSOMMINGHierdie artikel bied die sleutel resultate van verkennende navorsing gerig op die begrip van die huidige landskap in Suid-Afrika ten opsigte van middelslag en klein besighede se aptyt vir en die gebruik van oop innovasie. Die opname is gedoen onder maatskappye wat deel uitmaak van 'n sake-netwerke groep op LinkedIn, en ondersoek die huidige gebruik van oop innovasie, asook die beplande gebruik van oop innovasie. Samewerking is die benadering meestal verkies deur middelslag en klein besighede, met kliënte en verskaffers as die voorkeur innovasie vennote.Die artikel stel verder ontwerpvereistes voor vir 'n oop innovasie benadering gebaseer op die bevindinge van die opname. Die ontwerpvereistes word ontwikkel ter voorbereiding vir 'n meer volledige oop innovasie benadering vir middelslag en klein besighede. Vyf en twintig vereistes word in totaal groepeer in vyf funksionele kategorieë.
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