Thursday 29 June 2006
Overcoming the Industry - Research Sector Divide
Through its unique market-driven TechFast program, the Australian Institute for Commercialisation (AIC) has achieved great success in working with technologically receptive Australian small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs) to identify, assess and transfer know-how and intellectual property (IP) from Australian research organisations (ROs). The goal of TechFast is the same as that of the AIC - to create high value jobs, exports, and economic growth for Australia by facilitating better outcomes from Australian research.
Unfortunately, such outcomes do not occur as naturally or as frequently as an outside observer might expect. In fact, there are numerous obstacles and difficulties that are common in trying to achieve commercialisation outcomes from the Australian research sector, whether it is through the formation of new spin-off companies or through knowledge transfer to existing companies.
This paper is not so much to reiterate well-recognised barriers but to highlight barriers that are less commonly recognised or have been overlooked elsewhere, and to recommend ways in which they can be overcome. The first part of the paper identifies these barriers as well as some operational learning’s from the TechFast pilot, while the second part outlines AIC recommendations on how they can be mitigated.
Overcoming the research sector divide.
