Multiple Perspectives on the Challenges for Knowledge Transfer between Higher Education Institutions and Industry

YesKnowledge transfer (KT) has been identified as an essential element of innovation, driving competitive advantage in increasingly knowledge-driven economies and as a result recent UK Government reports have sought to increase awareness of the importance of KT within higher education institutions (HEIs). There is therefore a need for relevant empirical research that examines, from multiple perspectives, how KT policy is translated into practice within HEI contexts. This paper responds to this need by presenting an in-depth qualitative case study based on over 50 semi-structured interviews with university-based academic and non-academic participants and representatives of small firms involved in InfoLab21, a high profile `centre of excellence¿ for research, development and commercialisation of ICT in Northwest England, UK. The study considers what the key practices of KT are and what promotes and/or hinders their development. Four overarching themes are identified: i) motivation and reward mechanisms; ii) process management and evaluation; iii) clustering and brokerage; and iv) trust and bridge building. Each theme is considered from multiple perspectives and areas for further research are suggested

ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks: a literature review

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementation is a complex and vibrant process, one that involves a combination of technological and organizational interactions. Often an ERP implementation project is the single largest IT project that an organization has ever launched and requires a mutual fit of system and organization. Also the concept of an ERP implementation supporting business processes across many different departments is not a generic, rigid and uniform concept and depends on variety of factors. As a result, the issues addressing the ERP implementation process have been one of the major concerns in industry. Therefore ERP implementation receives attention from practitioners and scholars and both, business as well as academic literature is abundant and not always very conclusive or coherent. However, research on ERP systems so far has been mainly focused on diffusion, use and impact issues. Less attention has been given to the methods used during the configuration and the implementation of ERP systems, even though they are commonly used in practice, they still remain largely unexplored and undocumented in Information Systems research. So, the academic relevance of this research is the contribution to the existing body of scientific knowledge. An annotated brief literature review is done in order to evaluate the current state of the existing academic literature. The purpose is to present a systematic overview of relevant ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks as a desire for achieving a better taxonomy of ERP implementation methodologies. This paper is useful to researchers who are interested in ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks. Results will serve as an input for a classification of the existing ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks. Also, this paper aims also at the professional ERP community involved in the process of ERP implementation by promoting a better understanding of ERP implementation methodologies and frameworks, its variety and history

Action learning as an enabler for successful technology transfer with construction SMEs

There is an increasing demand for construction companies to adopt and use new technologies. At the same time universities are increasingly being called upon to assist with ‘technology transfer’ through positive engagement with industry. However, there is little literature investigating technology transfer from the perspective of small construction companies which make up the overwhelming majority of firms in the sector. This paper contributes to this developing area by providing a literature review of technology transfer and proposing a holistic system required for success. Building upon this review it assesses the potential use of action learning as a means of providing this holistic solution and, in so doing, promoting technology transfer and improving the links between higher education institutions (HEIs) and the construction industry. The assessment is made through a literature review of action learning in construction and an analysis of results from the national Construction Knowledge Exchange (CKE) initiative which uses an action learning methodology to assist HEIs in supporting local construction small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The initial results show that this innovative approach, has been successful in creating synergies between academic and business worlds, helping HEIs to communicate more effectively with businesses and vice versa. However, the results indicate that innovations which small construction companies tend to more successfully adopt are those which can contribute to the business in a quick, tangible fashion, and which can be dovetailed into existing rganisational capabilities. This is found to be in marked contrast to the relevant literature which depict large companies operating in more complex networks, drawing upon them for new tacit and explicit technologies which support more long term, formal technology strategies, and which often complement some form of specialised internal research and development capability. The implication for policy is that any technology transfer initiatives need to appreciate and actively manage the different motivations and capabilities of small and large construction companies to absorb and use new technology

Odnos između integracije informacijskih sustava, inovacija i praksi utemeljenih na predanosti potrošača za dijeljenje znanja i stvaranja snažnih marki

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to focus on establishing a relationship between the level of consumer commitment through knowledge sharing and what sustains innovation in SMEs through the integration of information systems to build power brands. Design/Methodology/Approach – Several procedures were used to empirically determine the study: a) the Harman one-factor test; b) the common latent factor approach; c) the confirmatory factor-analytic approach to the Harman one-factor test. Findings and implications – The finding highlights the importance of a differentiated approach to developing and managing customer loyalty by appropriately managing and integrating information technology for knowledge sharing with consumers and employees, thus managing innovation for the purpose of power brand deployment and earning profits. Limitations – The review of the related literature is selective rather than comprehensive, and the selection of sample firms is judgmental, making the sample rather skewed demographically. The paper, due to the breadth and complexity of the subject, serves to highlight key issues and bring together ideas. Some topics deserve further explanation. However, this was beyond the scope of this paper. Originality – The main contribution of this paper is that it uniquely identifies an approach to understanding how consumer commitment is sustained through innovation and information system integration. Understanding this approach should lead to effective customer loyalty management and greater awareness of the managing of power brands and the manner in which to foster user loyalty using social media.Svrha – Svrha je rada usredotočiti se na uspostavljanje odnosa između razina potrošačeve predanosti u dijeljenju znanja i onoga što održava inovacije u srednjim i malim poduzećima kroz integraciju informacijskih sustava za izgradnju snažnih marki. Metodološki pristup – U empirijskom istraživanju korišteno je nekoliko postupaka, a to su: a) Harman’s single factor test, b) CLF - Common Latent Factor pristup, c) Konfirmatorna faktorska analiza prema testu Harman’s single factor. Rezultati i implikacije – Nalaz naglašava važnost diferenciranog pristupa u razvoju i upravljanju lojalnošću potrošača, kroz pravilno upravljanje i integriranje informacijske tehnologije za dijeljenje znanja s potrošačima i zaposlenicima, a na taj se način upravlja inovacijama za implementaciju snažne marke i stvaranje profita. Ograničenja – Pregled literature je selektivan, tj. ne obuhvaća sve, dok je odabrani uzorak poduzeća temeljen na procjeni koja je demografski iskrivljena. Zbog dubine i kompleksnosti teme, rad služi da bi istaknuo ključne probleme i približio ideje. Neke teme zaslužuju daljnja objašnjenja. Međutim, to je bilo izvan opsega ovog rada. Doprinos – Glavni je doprinos rada u jedinstvenom identificiranju pristupa za razumijevanje održive potrošačeve predanosti kroz inovacije i integraciju informacijskih sustava. Razumijevanje ovog pristupa trebalo bi voditi prema učinkovitom upravljanju potrošačevom lojalnošću i većoj svjesnosti u upravljanju snažnim markama te poticanju lojalnosti korisnika putem društvenih mreža

Information Systems Strategies for Small and Medium Size Enterprise Sustainability

Small and medium size business owners who do not use information systems effectively degrade business models, reduce customer value, and diminish the prospects for business stability, profitability, and growth. Grounded in the resource based view framework, the purpose of this qualitative multiple-case study was to explore the information systems strategies small business owners used to sustain their business beyond 5 years. A purposeful sample of 5 owners of 5 different small and medium sized businesses in the state of Texas participated in the study. Data were collected via semistructured, face-to-face interviews, company documents, and member checking. Data were analyzed using Yin\u27s 5-step analysis process and resulted in 3 emergent themes: online collaboration and process improvement strategy, a firm\u27s resources strategy, and an emerging technologies strategy. The key recommendation was to implement or improve information systems strategies. The implications for positive social change include the potential for owners of small and medium sized businesses to use the findings to contribute to job creation, economic growth, and the promotion of sustainable communities

Teleworking practice in small and medium-sized firms: Management style and worker autonomy

In an empirical study of teleworking practices amongst small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in West London, organisational factors such as management attitudes, worker autonomy and employment flexibility were found to be more critical than technological provision in facilitating successful implementation. Consequently, we argue that telework in most SMEs appears as a marginal activity performed mainly by managers and specialist mobile workers

Atitudes dos gestores face à criatividade e às práticas de inovação nas indústrias criativas

This article aims to demonstrate that the relationship between entrepreneurs' attitudes to creativity and business innovation practices is stronger in the case of creative industries. A sample of 454 managers of micro and medium-sized companies (94 belonging to creative industries) was surveyed using an inventory of innovative business practices and the scale of attitudes towards creativity. The results, derived from a linear regression model (two factors for the scale of attitudes - Leadership and Autonomy - and for the inventory of business practices - Performance and Strategy), confirmed the proposition by revealing the influence of the creative attitudes of managers regarding the company's innovative practices, fundamentally on Strategy, especially in the creative industries segment. The innovative manager appeared as a disciplined individual driven to collaborating with the employees. Although this research requires further evidence, the results suggest interesting characterisations of the managers who develop their activity in the cluster of creative industries.Este artigo tem como objetivo demonstrar que a relação entre as atitudes do empresário face à criatividade e as práticas de inovação é mais forte no caso das indústrias criativas. Foram inquiridos 454 gestores de micro, pequenas e médias empresas (94 pertencentes às indústrias criativas), utilizando um inventário de práticas empresariais e uma escala de atitudes face à criatividade. Os resultados, obtidos utilizando um modelo de regressão linear (dois fatores para a escala de atitudes –Liderança e Autonomia - e dois para o inventário de práticas empresariais – Desempenho e Estratégia) confirmaram a hipótese, ao revelar a influência das atitudes do empresário face à criatividade sobre as práticas inovadoras da empresa, nomeadamente na Estratégia e no segmento das indústrias criativas. O gestor inovador surge como um indivíduo disciplinado, orientado para colaborar com os empregados. Apesar desta investigação necessitar de maior aprofundamento, os resultados sugerem uma caracterização interessante dos gestores que desenvolvem a sua atividade no cluster das indústrias criativasinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio