A well-functioning regional innovation system involves a lot of communication and interaction among the actors. However, sometimes the communication and interaction create tensions impeding regional development. In order to explore the reasons behind this, this study looks at the relationships between key stakeholders in the Twente Region in the Netherlands. The region has an established reputation for innovation and entrepreneurship, a high inter-connectedness between the actors, and a strong knowledge infrastructure. The research focuses on the University of Twente as a key actor contributing to regional growth in close cooperation with various stakeholders. This is an introductory interview-based case study that identifies four areas of tension between the university and its regional stakeholders. Our inquiry sheds light on the misalignment of stakeholders' interests and expectations that lessens the actors' capacity for policy formulation and strategic agenda setting, as well as hinders its successful translation into action. Then, the absence of clear intermediaries significantly increases the perceived distance between the University of Twente and the Twente region and impedes the university's collaboration with companies outside the science and business park. Next, the tension of discontinuity highlights the complexities of human resources and personalised networks-their diversity, multidimensionality, and overlaps make it harder to synchronise action and enhance reciprocal benefits. The knowledge asymmetry between the parties further complicates their communication and weakens commitment. In the end, the paper offers a few ideas for action for academic leaders and regional policymakers.
Rhoda was a RUNIN research fellow at the University of Lincoln and has a PhD on the 'Microfoundations of Academics Networks: Initiation, Evolution and Context'. She also holds a BSc. in Biochemistry from the University of Ghana and an MSc. in Innovation and Entrepreneurship from the University of Oslo. She has industrial experience working as a supply chain quality specialist in Nestle Ghana. She is a visiting researcher at the University of Lincoln's International Business School and currently works as a business development manager at a startup company, Wattero AS in the Oslo area.
Widening discussion of the role of universities in regional development has shifted the strategic attention of European higher education institutions towards their regional impact and the production of knowledge in cooperation with regional partners, thereby 'stretching' core university missions and the boundaries of academic work. This stretch created tensions between the norms and practices of the academy and the surrounding community. The study explores how academics in a Swedish regionally engaged university process these tensions through 'boundary work' against the background of their professional trajectories and roles. Drawing on 26 narrative interviews, it identifies four scenarios: researchers with standard academic training combine scientific rigour with local relevance without significantly altering their core identities; researchers with a more diversified professional background pursue 'excellence with impact' prioritising collaborative knowledge production over career progression; academics with standard training invested in non-research tasks divide their time between the university and the region without subordinating relevance to excellence; and academics with mixed backgrounds and role portfolios fuse the boundaries, giving preference to the 'real world' over the campus and exhibiting a greater variety of identity choices.
How can the Twente Board align universities, businesses, government and society for innovation and regional development? Contents
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