Cluster-based innovation policies: a methodological approach applied to biotechnology research in Flanders.

In this paper, we apply a network methods approach to understand clustering in new technologies. Sociometric modelling techniques are used to map the technology relationships between academic as well as industry organisations in the field of transgene plants. We demonstrate how different clusters of innovative organisations can be detected and how these clusters can be related to the evolution of the new technology. Implications for technology policy are discussed.Biotechnology; Methods; Industry; Implications;

A heuristic approach based on Leiden rankings to identify outliers: evidence from Italian universities in the european landscape

We propose an innovative use of the Leiden Rankings (LR) in institutional management. Although LR only consider research output of major universities reported in Web of Science (WOS) and share the limitations of other existing rankings, we show that they can be used as a base of a heuristic approach to identify “outlying” institutions that perform significantly below or above expectations. Our approach is a non-rigorous intuitive method (“heuristic”) because is affected by all the biases due to the technical choices and incompleteness that affect the LR but offers the possibility to discover interesting findings to be systematically verified later. We propose to use LR as a departure base on which to apply statistical analysis and network mapping to identify “outlier” institutions to be analyzed in detail as case studies. Outliers can inform and guide science policies about alternative options. Analyzing the publications of the Politecnico di Bari in more detail, we observe that “small teams” led by young and promising scholars can push the performance of a university up to the top of the LR. As argued by Moed (Applied evaluative informetrics. Springer International Publishing, Berlin, 2017a), supporting “emerging teams”, can provide an alternative to research support policies, adopted to encourage virtuous behaviours and best practices in research. The results obtained by this heuristic approach need further verification and systematic analysis but may stimulate further studies and insights on the topics of university rankings policy, institutional management, dynamics of teams, good research practice and alternative funding methods

The metric tide: report of the independent review of the role of metrics in research assessment and management

This report presents the findings and recommendations of the Independent Review of the Role of Metrics in Research Assessment and Management. The review was chaired by Professor James Wilsdon, supported by an independent and multidisciplinary group of experts in scientometrics, research funding, research policy, publishing, university management and administration. This review has gone beyond earlier studies to take a deeper look at potential uses and limitations of research metrics and indicators. It has explored the use of metrics across different disciplines, and assessed their potential contribution to the development of research excellence and impact. It has analysed their role in processes of research assessment, including the next cycle of the Research Excellence Framework (REF). It has considered the changing ways in which universities are using quantitative indicators in their management systems, and the growing power of league tables and rankings. And it has considered the negative or unintended effects of metrics on various aspects of research culture. The report starts by tracing the history of metrics in research management and assessment, in the UK and internationally. It looks at the applicability of metrics within different research cultures, compares the peer review system with metric-based alternatives, and considers what balance might be struck between the two. It charts the development of research management systems within institutions, and examines the effects of the growing use of quantitative indicators on different aspects of research culture, including performance management, equality, diversity, interdisciplinarity, and the ‘gaming’ of assessment systems. The review looks at how different funders are using quantitative indicators, and considers their potential role in research and innovation policy. Finally, it examines the role that metrics played in REF2014, and outlines scenarios for their contribution to future exercises

Genericity versus expressivity - an exercise in semantic interoperable research information systems for Web Science

The web does not only enable new forms of science, it also creates new possibilities to study science and new digital scholarship. This paper brings together multiple perspectives: from individual researchers seeking the best options to display their activities and market their skills on the academic job market; to academic institutions, national funding agencies, and countries needing to monitor the science system and account for public money spending. We also address the research interests aimed at better understanding the self-organising and complex nature of the science system through researcher tracing, the identification of the emergence of new fields, and knowledge discovery using large-data mining and non-linear dynamics. In particular this paper draws attention to the need for standardisation and data interoperability in the area of research information as an indispensable pre-condition for any science modelling. We discuss which levels of complexity are needed to provide a globally, interoperable, and expressive data infrastructure for research information. With possible dynamic science model applications in mind, we introduce the need for a "middle-range" level of complexity for data representation and propose a conceptual model for research data based on a core international ontology with national and local extensions.Comment: Long version of a paper submitted to the WebScience 201

Knowledge sharing, knowledge transfer and SMEs: evolution, antecedents, outcomes and directions

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to systematically synthesize the extant literature of knowledge sharing (KS) and knowledge transfer (KT) in the small and medium enterprise (SME) context and to contribute with predictions of emerging themes. Design/methodology/approach: Applied is a systematic literature review using three bibliometric techniques: 1) Textual analysis for keywords and abstracts to identify the research hotspots; 2) Co-citation analysis of references to identify the evolution of KS and KT in SME; and 3) Bibliographic coupling analysis of documents to synthesize antecedents and outcomes. Findings: A conceptual map emerges from the review to reveal the antecedents of KS and KT at individual, group, and organizational levels. The analysis shows the strategic importance of KS and KT for the SME context. Specific findings include: 1) KS and KT are involved in enhancing SMEs strategic focus for human resources including, organizational learning, customer relations, creativity, higher profit and positive effects on operational processes and decision-making. 2) Innovation, trust, and performance are identified as central human factors linked to KS and KT in SMEs. 3) Human resource management research could contribute to KS and KT in the SME domain by exploring KS and KT based practices, linking the emergence of innovation and innovative behaviors to these practices, leading to a better understanding of strategies that enable the long-term storage and retrieval of tacit and explicit knowledge as organizational memory in the SME context. Originality/value: This paper is the one of the first to systematically review KS and KT in SMEs and propose a concept map. The research adds value to the growing literature of KS and KT and exposes the need for more specific activities to support SME managers, as well as HR managers, who need to facilitate KS and KT in SMEs

Measuring health science research and development in Africa: mapping the available data

Background: In recent years there have been calls to strengthen health sciences research capacity in African countries. This capacity can contribute to improvements in health, social welfare and poverty reduction through domestic application of research findings; it is increasingly seen as critical to pandemic preparedness and response. Developing research infrastructure and performance may reduce national economies’ reliance on primary commodity and agricultural production, as countries strive to develop knowledge-based economies to help drive macroeconomic growth. Yet efforts to date to understand health sciences research capacity are limited to output metrics of journal citations and publications, failing to reflect the complexity of the health sciences research landscape in many settings. Methods: We map and assess current capacity for health sciences research across all 54 countries of Africa by collecting a range of available data. This included structural indicators (research institutions and research funding), process indicators (clinical trial infrastructures, intellectual property rights and regulatory capacities) and output indicators (publications and citations). Results: While there are some countries which perform well across the range of indicators used, for most countries the results are varied—suggesting high relative performance in some indicators, but lower in others. Missing data for key measures of capacity or performance is also a key concern. Taken as a whole, existing data suggest a nuanced view of the current health sciences research landscape on the African continent. Conclusion: Mapping existing data may enable governments and international organizations to identify where gaps in health sciences research capacity lie, particularly in comparison to other countries in the region. It also highlights gaps where more data are needed. These data can help to inform investment priorities and future system needs