Aiming for impact: Differential effect of motivational drivers on effort and performance in knowledge valorisation

Societal engagement of scientists critically depends on their intrinsic motivation. Nevertheless, it remains unclear how motivational drivers influence effort and performance in engaging with four distinct stakeholder domains: academic, civil society, state-governmental, and economic. This article tests motivational drivers in a survey among 706 Dutch Life Scientists to study direct and indirect effects on effort and performance and finds that drivers differentially influence effort and performance in the four domains. Analysis supported the identification of a fourth category of drivers: ‘moral’—next to the well-recognised gold, ribbon, and puzzle drivers—and demonstrated their importance for performance in the civil society and state-governmental domains, two domains that have been underserved in previous studies. Pecuniary drivers influenced engagement with academic, as well as economic domains. In line with these findings, spreading responsibilities for engagement with different domains in line with the interests and motivations of individual scientists is recommended.

Promoting the creation of Innovation Ecosystems: the case of the University of Porto

Universities are increasingly acting as promoters of innovation, economic growth and regional development, a trend that has attracted the attention of both policy makers and researchers. The objective of this paper is to contribute to a deeper understanding of the role of higher education institutions as dynamic promoters of growth and development. The University of Porto is used as a case study to explore how universities can act as innovation ecosystems leaders and integrators. The main contributions of the paper are threefold. First, the case puts in evidence a key success factor: the talent to transform the knowledge produced by universities into valuable solutions for companies and other organisations. Second, links between universities and industry must assume a long-term and relational nature rather than an intermittent and transactional character. Finally, the success of university-based ecosystems depends on the integration of a diversity of actors, resources and competences. This means that a sustainable strategy of innovation and knowledge valorisation requires an approach that fosters both internal and external networking.

Promoting the creation of Innovation Ecosystems: the case of the University of Porto

Universities are increasingly acting as promoters of innovation, economic growth and regional development, a trend that has attracted the attention of both policy makers and researchers. The objective of this paper is to contribute to a deeper understanding of the role of higher education institutions as dynamic promoters of growth and development. The University of Porto is used as a case study to explore how universities can act as innovation ecosystems leaders and integrators. The main contributions of the paper are threefold. First, the case puts in evidence a key success factor: the talent to transform the knowledge produced by universities into valuable solutions for companies and other organisations. Second, links between universities and industry must assume a long-term and relational nature rather than an intermittent and transactional character. Finally, the success of university-based ecosystems depends on the integration of a diversity of actors, resources and competences. This means that a sustainable strategy of innovation and knowledge valorisation requires an approach that fosters both internal and external networking.

Knowledge valorisation

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the reasons of the success of the Netherlands in knowledge valorisation: what are the actors that participate in knowledge valorisation process and what are their functions; what is the route of knowledge in valorisation; what “surplus value” does knowledge gain in the valorisation process. Design/methodology/approach – Documentary and content analysis of the documents that regulate the knowledge valorisation on the level of the national policy and on the level of universities. Findings – The success of the Netherlands in the knowledge valorisation can be explained by the creation of the process in which its main actors – state and universities collaborate and clearly understand and perform their functions and involve into the collaboration, the representatives of the industry. The state managed to create on the level of the country beneficial environment for knowledge valorisation that includes legal basis and establishment of organizations which provide funding for knowledge valorisation. Universities in their turn also have created beneficial and stimulating conditions for knowledge valorisation – science parks and valorisation centres provide support to the academics in the knowledge valorisation process. The process of valorisation at the university is built on cooperative relationship between researchers and management of the universities. Cooperation between researchers and management structures of the university which consult and support them in the process of valorisation is beneficial for both sides. Surplus value in the knowledge valorisation process can be financial and societal, but in some way they coincide because valorisation accelerates scientific progress, supports the economic development of the region and the Netherlands. Research limitations/implications – In research were explored documents that regulate knowledge valorisation on the level of state and on the level of university (strategic plans of the Dutch universities). This paper provides a basis for the substantial development of the general framework for the development of the policy at the area of knowledge valorisation and initiatives by higher education institutions. Practical implications – The experience of the Netherlands in policymaking in area of knowledge valorisation and initiatives of the Dutch universities can be used as the basis for the development and implementation of the national policies of knowledge valorisation. Social implications – The experience of the development of the valorisation initiatives of the Dutch universities can be used as the basis for the development and implementation of the valorisation initiatives of the higher education institutions. Originality/value – The study takes a documentary analysis to understand and explain the essence of the term “valorisation”, its types – societal and financial, the input of the main actors into knowledge valorisation process and to determine what surplus value and benefits are created during this process.

The Virtual Museum of the Tiber Valley Project

<p>The aim of the Virtual Museum of the Tiber Valley project is the creation of an integrated digital system for the knowledge, valorisation and communication of the cultural landscape, archaeological and naturalistic sites along the Tiber Valley, in the Sabina area between Monte Soratte and the ancient city of Lucus Feroniae (Capena). Virtual reality applications, multimedia contents, together with a web site, are under construction and they will be accessed inside the museums of the territory and in a central museum in Rome. The different stages of work will cover the building of a geo-spatial archaeological database, the reconstruction of the ancient potential landscape and the creation of virtual models of the major archaeological sites. This paper will focus on the methodologies used and on present and future results.</p>