Abstract
Abstract This paper discusses the institutional reorganization that has culminated in new designs for the management models of Public Research Institutes (PRIs), comparing the experiences of four PRIs in the agricultural sector to identify common elements and differences in processes, flows and policies. The focus is to improve research and innovation management, developing new approaches and tools.The four PRIs analyzed are the US Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS), the Research Branch of Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa), and Uruguay’s National Agricultural Research Institute (INIA). The study shows that management processes have become more sophisticated and above all oriented to the creation of products, processes and services that are more likely to be used. This movement indicates a new positioning by PRIs in the agricultural innovation systems of their countries, reorienting their relationships with other actors of particular importance to knowledge production.
Highlights
The organizational and management models adopted by research institutions have changed significantly in the past three decades.While the changes implemented in the 1980s and 1990s reflected a need for institutions to be more flexible and autonomous, the imperatives of the last decade have centered on the importance of equipping research institutions to appropriate and use the knowledge and the technologies created within innovation systems more effectively
The second section focuses on agricultural Public research institutions (PRIs) and presents case studies of four institutions: the US Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS), the Research Branch of Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa), and Uruguay’s National Agricultural Research Institute (INIA)
The analysis showed that all four PRIs have evolved in terms of consolidating and enhancing their management models to prioritize innovation
Summary
The organizational and management models adopted by research institutions have changed significantly in the past three decades.While the changes implemented in the 1980s and 1990s reflected a need for institutions to be more flexible and autonomous, the imperatives of the last decade have centered on the importance of equipping research institutions to appropriate and use the knowledge and the technologies created within innovation systems more effectively. To develop this discussion on the basis of real-world experience, we selected four PRIs in the Americas: the US Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS), the Research Branch of Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada (AAFC), the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa), and Uruguay’s National Agricultural Research Institute (INIA) These PRIs were chosen following a broad survey of the public-sector agricultural research system in the Americas conducted in order to identify organizations whose institutional models and instruments for the management of research and innovation included features that could be considered outstanding. It is worth noting that with the exception of ARS these PRIs all separate strategic from tactical instances.The strategic level is mainly concerned with prospecting, identifying demand and opportunities for research and innovation, and drawing up the institution’s strategic plans, while the tactical level translates research priorities into the programs and projects that will be executed and monitors scientific and technical activities Another point in common is the existence of units dedicated to technology transfer.This is discussed in item 3.3 below. TAs are defined on the basis of the research priorities established in the strategic plan
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