Transcript Alliances & Technology Transfer

Innovation Management
Kevin O’Brien
Open Innovation & Technology
Transfer
Learning Objectives
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Recognise the importance of technology
transfer to innovation management
Be able to summarise the
technology/knowledge transfer process
Explain why a ‘receptive’ environment is
necessary for technology transfer
Understand the role of tacit knowledge
in technology transfer
Identify barriers to technology transfer
Introducing technology transfer
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Much written about the subject; became
extremely popular in the late 1980's.
Governments believed it could solve
problems of national budget deficits!
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Collaboration on technology development
encouraged.
Large companies established Technology
Transfer units.
Universities also established Industrial Liaison
units and Technology Transfer units.
The panacea for industry's problems did not
materialise.
Economics of technology transfer
The attraction of technology transfer was that
companies and industry could benefit from
technology that had already been paid for.
Existing R&D projects
and developed technology
Transfer to industry and
private enterprise
it has already been paid for!
Definition of technology transfer
‘Technology Transfer is the application of technology to
a new use or user. It is the process by which
technology developed for one purpose is employed
either in a different application or by a new user. The
activity principally involves the increased utilisation of
the existing science/technology base in new areas of
application as opposed to its expansion by means of
further research and development’
(Langrish et al., 1982).
DTI Knowledge Transfer Partnership
University
Student
Iracroft Ltd
£10,000,000 company
Its main customer is JCB
80% of its business is JCB
Firm
What to do?
Diversify?
What to make?
What new products
services to offer?
Science Parks
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A Science Park is a business
support and technology
transfer initiative that:
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Supports the development of
links to strengthen technology
transfer to help the growth of
business enterprise
Promotes initiatives of value
to the Science Park tenants
Facilitates the interchange of
concepts, ideas and
experiences
Provides a forum for
developing collaborative
initiatives
First established in 1970
(Cambridge)
Now approximately 100 parks
across the UK
(Source: UK Science Park Association)
Technology Brokering at IDEO
Solutions to
client’s
Design
problems
Existing technologies
(40 industries)
Original combinations
of existing knowledge
Open Innovation
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Co-operative R&D projects
reached a new peak in the 1990s
New emphasis on opening firm
boundaries to outside innovation
Inbound open innovation
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Leverage discoveries of others
Don’t rely exclusively on own R&D
Outbound open innovation
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Look for external organisations
better suited to commercialise a
given technology
(Chesbrough, 2003)
Open Innovation
The closed innovation model
The open innovation model
Boundary
of the firm
Boundary
of the firm
New
Market
The
Market
Research
Projects
Research
Development
Current
Market
Research
Projects
Research
Development
(Chesbrough, 2003)
Open Innovation
Philips’ High-technology campus in Eindhoven
•open innovation ‘ecosystem’
•40 companies & institutes
•50 nationalities, 7,000-8,000 people
•€ 500 million investment by Philips
Tangibility of Knowledge
Intangibility
Data
Information
Projects & activities of the
organisation
Knowledge
Know-how
Action
Relevance to the firm
(Adapted from Cooley, 1987)
Limitations of Models
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They fail to understand the recipient organisation's
needs
Technology viewed in terms of technical attributes
Underestimate the extent of interaction required
Assume an ability on the part of organisations to
communicate their problem in the form of a technical
requirement
Need greater emphasis here
Accessibility
Mobility
Too much emphasis here
Receptivity
Absorptive Capacity
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The ability to evaluate and utilise outside
knowledge is largely a function of the level of
prior related knowledge
Prior knowledge includes basic skills, shared
language, knowledge of recent scientific or
technological developments in the field
Prior related knowledge confers the ability to
recognise the value of new information,
assimilate it, and apply it to commercial ends
These abilities collectively constitute
‘absorptive capacity’
(Cohen & Levinthal, 1990)
Receptivity
Accessibility
Awareness
Mobility
Association
Receptivity
Assimilation
Application
(Trott & Cordey-Hayes, 1996)
Receptivity
Activity
Process
Awareness
Processes by which an organisation scans for and
discovers what information on technology is
available
Association
Processes by which an organisation recognises
the value of this technology (ideas) for the
organisation
Assimilation
Processes by which the organisation
communicates these ideas within the organisation
and creates genuine business opportunities
Application
Processes by which the organisation applies this
technology for competitive advantage
(Trott & Cordey-Hayes, 1996)
Organisational Learning
Acquisition of technology
from outside
Continual flow of
tacit and explicit
knowledge
Level of learning
Individual
Skills
Continual flow of
tacit and explicit
knowledge
Group
Routines
Continual flow of
tacit and explicit
knowledge
Organisation
Embedded in the organisation
as capabilities
References
Chesbrough, H.W. (2003) The era of open innovation, MIT Sloan
Management Review, 44(3), 35-41.
Chesbrough, H.W. (2003) Open Innovation – The New Imperative for
Creating and Profiting from Technology, Boston: HBSP.
Cohen, W.M. & Levinthal, D.A. (1990) Absorptive capacity: a new
perspective on learning and innovation, Administrative Science
Quarterly, 35, 128-152.
Cooley, M. (1987) Architect or bee? The Human Price of Technology,
London: Hogarth Press.
Langrish, J., Evans, W.G. & Jerans, F.R. (1982) Wealth from Knowledge,
London: Macmillan.
Trott, P. & Cordey-Hayes, M. (1996) Developing a ‘receptive’ environment
for inward technology transfer: a case study of the chemical industry,
R&D Management, 26(1), 83-92.