Open Innovation Community for University–Industry Knowledge Transfer: A Colombian Case

Adela M Vélez-Rolón,Manuel Méndez-Pinzón,Oscar L Acevedo

doi:10.3390/joitmc6040181

Abstract

Academia–enterprise collaboration is understood as a determinant that improves innovation and competitiveness. The mechanisms by which this collaboration occurs have awakened increasing interest among academics, as well as in the business sector. This research aims to identify how open innovation communities can mediate the academia-enterprise relationship, as well as the factors that are more affected by this mediation. Based on the literature, the article addresses the definition of open innovation communities (OICs), university–enterprise cooperation, knowledge transfer (KT), as well as an understanding of OICs as a mechanism for academia–enterprise transfer. An analysis of twelve OICs, conformed by professors, students, graduates, and experts from a Colombian higher education institution is performed. For the data analysis, a factor analysis involving structural equation modeling is carried out. Our results highlight the most important characteristics to take into account in the study of knowledge transfer when OICs are involved, and they also indicate the level of connection between these factors.

Highlights

During the long history of higher education institutions, their value to society has suffered several changes
Regarding the indicators that best explain each factor of the proposed open innovation communities (OICs) model, knowledge management (KM) is perceived as a mechanism that is necessary to create innovations, to mobilize knowledge creation initiatives, and to improve and develop disciplinary competences in the application of projects within companies, which concur with the findings of different authors [15,78,79], who related the production of knowledge and innovation to networking
The factors analyzed are focused on understanding those that explain knowledge management and its relationship with innovation, the factors that mediate the process of knowledge transfer understood from understanding the knowledge to be transferred and the conditions that allow it, especially the channels, stock, and disposal of sources, the characteristics of the OICs against the development of their success factors, and the characteristics of the participants and organizations

Summary

Introduction

During the long history of higher education institutions, their value to society has suffered several changes. In the 20th and 21st Centuries, research in higher education takes new prominence as factors like globalization and the boom of new technologies give rise to so-called knowledge societies, where knowledge is seen as an asset for economic development [2]. In this context, educational institutions have had to reform their educational models, getting closer to the needs of society and the productive sector. The educational sector has been required to capitalize on the needs of the productive sector to generate greater added value and new applicable knowledge [3]. Higher education institutions must take into account their own mission and purpose, for they can have a transformative power on the productive sector to reevaluate its practices, values, and general role in modern societies [4,5]

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Results

Discussion

Conclusion