Barriers To Collaboration Research Articles

Designing Long-Lasting Products: Barriers for Design Consultancies

AbstractPast research shows there are significant barriers for creating long lasting products. In this paper we examine, the distinct collaborative barriers design consultancies face when striving to design long-lasting products for client firms. Data is collected through case studies (four months of observations and interviews) from three projects. Through the study we find indications, that the value chain intricacies, provide distinct interfirm barriers for creating long lasting products. These barriers include vision clashes, misalignment in the aspired manufacturing quality and price position.

Establishing successful university–industry collaborations: barriers and enablers deconstructed

University–Industry Collaboration networks are increasingly significant to national economies. Previous studies have identified barriers and enablers of University–Industry Collaborations, however our understanding of the evolution of such collaborations is still limited thereby restricting our ability to nurture their development. This study explores the establishment of a successful University–Industry Collaboration and considers a range of perceived barriers and enablers through four emergent evolutionary phases: embryonic, initiation, engagement and established. The study adopted a qualitative research approach using a single site case study, focusing on the pharmaceutical industry, with 10 multinational firms and 8 academic institutions involved in a pharmaceutical collaboration. The results demonstrate that specific University–Industry Collaboration barriers and enablers emerge at different points in time, for example, strong lack of trust; strong fear of knowledge leakage, reluctance to share in the embryonic phase evolve to achieving integrity based trust and an intellectual property agreement in the engagement phase. These barriers were overcome using a range of phase appropriate mechanisms, for example, prior experience of the partners was critical in the embryonic phase, while cohesiveness and knowledge complementarity were vital in the engagement phase. The study emphasizes the significance of public funding and its distribution among members in order to support industry evolution and competitiveness. The University–Industry Collaboration continues to attract new participants and additional network-specific investments and has become a global centre of excellence for pharmaceutical research and development.

Effective Clinical Pathway Improves Interprofessional Collaboration and Reduces Antibiotics Prophylaxis Use in Orthopedic Surgery in Hospitals in Indonesia.

Clinical pathways can improve the quality of health services. The effectiveness and impact of implementing clinical pathways are controversial. The preparation of clinical pathways not only enacts therapeutic guidelines but requires mutual agreement in accordance with the roles, duties, and contributions of each profession in the team. This study aimed to investigate the perception of interprofessional collaboration practices and the impact of clinical pathway implementation on collaborative and Defined Daily Dose (DDD) prophylactic antibiotics per 100 bed-days in orthopedic surgery. The Collaborative Practice Assessment Tool (CPAT) questionnaire was used as a tool to measure healthcare’ perceptions of collaborative practice. The clinical pathway (CP) in this study was adapted from existing CPs published by the Indonesian Orthopaedic Association (Perhimpunan Dokter Spesialis Orthopaedi dan Traumatologi Indonesia, PABOI) and was commended by local domestic surgeons and orthopedic bodies. We then compared post-implementation results with pre-implementation clinical pathway data using ANCOVA to explore our categorical data and its influence towards CPAT response. ANOVA was then employed for aggregated DDD per 100 bed-days to compare pre and post intervention. The results showed that the relationships among members were associated with the working length. Six to ten years of working had a significantly better relationship among members than those who have worked one to five years. Interestingly, pharmacists’ leadership score was significantly lower than other professions. The clinical pathway implementation reduced barriers in team collaboration, improved team coordination and organization, and reduced third-generation cephalosporin use for prophylaxis in surgery (pre: 59 DDD per 100 bed-days; post: 28 DDD per 100 bed-days). This shows that the clinical pathway could benefit antibiotic stewardship in improving antibiotic prescription, therefore reducing the incidence of resistant bacteria.

Occupational Therapy within the Response to Intervention Team: Focus Group Identifies Opportunities and Barriers

ABSTRACT Evidence indicates that universal screening can support academic participation. Response to Intervention (RtI) is a model that has been designed to identify student needs and support them within the academic setting. A focus group was held with 20 school-based occupational therapy practitioners to explore the existing role of occupational therapy within different tiers of intervention and identify barriers and further opportunities for collaborating on interdisciplinary teams. Four themes emerged identifying 1) Developmental, academic, and health-related needs, 2) Key periods for universal screening, 3) Communication and systematic barriers in interdisciplinary collaboration, and 4) Lack of identified roles for occupational therapy practitioners within RtI teams. Findings of the focus group indicate a need for advocacy using data to establish the occupational therapy role across all RtI levels. Through advocacy efforts, role release, and interdisciplinary knowledge sharing opportunities can support students during academic participation.

Team science: the power of Us

In a world described as a global village where borders matter very little, many researchers seek scientific collaboration for different reasons, such as securing more funding, expertise and/or specialized equipment, new ideas, etc. Scientific collaboration (also known as team science) has many forms and can occur between researchers not necessarily at the same stage in their career. Collaboration can be internal within the same establishment or external, national or international,interdisciplinary or uni-disciplinary, of equal or different shares, each with its own sets of advantages and threats. However, when managed properly, team science increases opportunities and maximizes research impact. Yet, it comes with some challenges, including culture and language barriers, availability of funds to implement the collaboration, researchers’ grasp of the collaboration dynamics, etc. Finding the right collaborators with mutual or complementing interests is key for the success of the collaboration. So are good communication skills, trust and a clear understanding by all parties of the terms of the collaboration to minimize conflict. A successful collaboration is synergistic while being respectful of and building on each member’s potential. It is also a dynamic relationship with positive results that can reach far into the future beyond the actual duration of the collaboration.Keywords: scientific collaboration, Research impact, cultural and language barriers, Funding,Communication, Standards.

Food Security Challenges and Options in the Caribbean: Insights from a Scoping Review

The Caribbean region remains susceptible to an increasing frequency of natural disasters, rising international debt, out-migration, rapid urbanization, and high imports to meet basic needs. Food and nutrition insecurity persists in these small island states, with around 67.5% of the population living in moderate or severe food insecurity. Policy adjustments required to address the targets subsumed by the second sustainable development goal (SDG2 or Zero Hunger) are still at an infant stage. This research offers rigorous and up-to-date analyzes of the current status of Caribbean food policies and practices through a scoping review and expert interviews to answer the question, “What constraints and enablers impact the ability of small island states to achieve the Zero Hunger goal?”. A scoping review is performed following the relevant population, concept, and context (PCC) methodology by the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI). Five major challenges and barriers are identified through the scoping review: (i) island geography, (ii) governance deficiencies, and (iii) institutional constraints, compounded by (iv) collaboration barriers, and (v) externally imposed impediments (including environmental and financial shocks). To address these challenges, synergistic linkages and restrictive connections have been recognized for SDG2 localization. It was concluded that three dimensions of food security (utilization, agency, and sustainability) are mainly overlooked, necessitating special attention and action. By identifying bridging institutions and engaging various actors in supporting shared rulemaking, power, conflict management, and knowledge-sharing among local, national, and regional policy actors, a polycentric governance system is recommended as a suitable mechanism to help islands move towards food security.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s44177-021-00008-8.

Development of a Multi-Agent System to Tackle Communication Fragmentation and Information Exchange in the Construction Industry

Complexity and uncertainty are inherent attributes of large-scale construction projects, prompting fragmentation and generating challenges in communication. The segmentation of project disciplines, loss of information and lack of knowledge sharing, induced by increased fragmentation, significantly contribute to project inefficiencies and cost overruns. Within the past decade, numerous novel technologies have been integrated into project frameworks to facilitate the industry's digital advancement. Multi-agent systems (MAS) have gained prominence due to their widespread practicality in supply chain management and manufacturing engineering. With its capabilities in generating distributed knowledge networks, MAS is deemed a viable technological solution to address fragmentation-related collaboration barriers. This research aims to explore the feasibility of MAS for the development of project communication networks. The paper investigates the potential benefits and drawbacks of MAS implementation through the construction of a prototype system. The study confirms the advantage of MAS over conventional practices in mitigating the loss or stagnation of knowledge.

Overcoming Collaboration Barriers in Urban Renewal Through Stakeholders: A Two-Mode Social Network Analysis

Overcoming Collaboration Barriers in Urban Renewal Through Stakeholders: A Two-Mode Social Network Analysis

Foundation dentists supporting vaccination programmes in England.

Background In 2020/21, as part of the COVID-19 pandemic response and for the first time in England, newly qualified foundation dentists (FDs) were trained to participate in flu and COVID-19 vaccination programmes to offer additional workforce capacity. The largest of these efforts was in Yorkshire and the Humber where 106 FDs were trained and ready to mobilise. The aim of this service evaluation was to appraise the use of FDs in delivering vaccinations.Methods Mixed methods using an online questionnaire to FDs and in-depth remote interviews conducted with host organisations, Public Health England, Health Education England and others.Results The questionnaire response rate was 89% (n = 94), with 54 FDs having participated in vaccinations at a rate of 50-100 vaccines per day. All were confident with flu vaccine administration and most (n = 44/54) with COVID-19 vaccination. Eleven stakeholder interviews were conducted. Main barriers included the siloed delivery of dental care from other health services, resulting in collaborative barriers and a lack of understanding about the profession's skillsets. Facilitators included host organisations' capacity to hold multiple honorary contracts and provide competency sign-off.Conclusion Utilising the dental workforce to deliver vaccinations was feasible at a time of crisis and when trainees' access to dental patients was limited.

The Barrier in Collaborative Lingkages Among University-Industry-Policy Entities on Enviromental Matters in Sarawak

The relationship and collaboration process between university-industry-policy entities have been the subject of increased interest especially when dealing with environmental matters. Collaboration approach is an effort that unites different entities together in a shared objective. However, there are few challenges or barriers which make it difficult to develop collaboration relationships between entities. Although the linkages are often mentioned about the collaborative linkages among university-industry-policy entities, none has information on the barriers of collaborative linkages especially on environmental matters in Sarawak. Thus, there is a need to identify the barriers and success factors in order to develop successful collaboration. This study addressed the gap through a mixed method of qualitative and quantitative approach where the data were collected from 199 respondents based on a face-to-face interview using structured questionnaires in Sarawak. The study explores the status of collaboration in Sarawak and its barriers. Findings indicated that the collaboration status in Sarawak is still in an infant stage resulting from barriers of collaboration which are lack of funding, private knowledge, lack of commitment, difficult to implement collaboration, weak/lack policies, poor awareness, top management view/support, acceptance of collaboration, bureaucracy and differences in company culture.

Collaboration in the local DHC-chain: A bottom-up integrated framework fostering broad-based solutions

The sustainable energy transition asks for new and innovative solutions in the way society, government, energy market and clients (end users) approach energy distribution and consumption. The energy transition provides great opportunity to develop innovative solutions where in the dense built environment district heating and cooling are being strongly advocated.Traditionally, the energy systems in urban districts have been regulated by a top-down approach. With the rise of local and distributed sustainable sources for urban heating and cooling, the complexity of the heat/cold chain is increasing. Therefore, an organic and bottom-up approach is being requested, where the public authorities have a facilitating and/or directive role. There is a need for a new and open framework for collaboration between stakeholders. A framework that provides insight into the integral consideration of heating and cooling solutions on district level in terms of: organisation, technology and economy (OTE). This research therefore focuses on developing this integral framework towards widely supported heating and cooling solutions among district stakeholders.Through in-depth interviews, workshops and focus groups discussions, relevant stakeholders in local district heating/cooling of varying backgrounds and expertise have been consulted. This has led to two pillars in a framework. Firstly the definition of Key Success Factors and Key Performance Indicators to evaluate technical solutions in light of the respective context. Secondly, an iterative decision making process among district stakeholders where technical scenarios, respective financial business cases and market organisation​ are being negotiated. Fundamental proposition of the framework is the recurrent interaction between OTE factors throughout the entire decision making process. In order to constantly assure broad-based support, the underlying nature of possible barriers for collaboration are identified in a stakeholder matrix, informing a stakeholder strategy. It reveals an open insight of the interests, concerns, and barriers among all stakeholders, where solutions can be developed effectively.

Combining social network analysis and agent-based model for enabling nature-based solution implementation: The case of Medina del Campo (Spain)

Several barriers still hamper the effective implementation of Nature-Based Solutions (NBS). Among the others, this work focuses on collaboration barriers. NBS implementation claims for effective collaboration among different decision-agents. However, ambiguity in problem framings, which is ineradicable in multi-agents’ decision environments, could create collaboration barriers. This work aims to demonstrate that collaboration barriers to NBS implementation can be overcome by enhancing the network of interactions among the decision-agents. An innovative method based on the integration between Social Network Analysis and hybrid Agent-Based Model/System Dynamic Model was adopted to this aim. The analysis results were used for designing networking interventions, i.e. efforts using social network characteristics that could enhance interactions mechanisms among decision-agents. The developed method was implemented in the Medina del Campo (Spain) case study. This area is characterised by one of the most critical groundwater bodies of the Duero River Basin. This work aims at supporting the implementation of suitable NBS to stop the degradation of the groundwater status and associated ecosystem services. The activities carried out within the framework of the NAIAD project showed that, by enhancing the interaction mechanisms, ambiguity in problem frames can still yield collective actions for NBS implementation.

EVALUATION OF IMPROVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE COLLABORATION OF DESIGN AND SIMULATION - AN INDUSTRIAL MULTI-METHOD STUDY

AbstractAs mechanical simulations play an increasingly role in engineering projects, an appropriate integration of simulations into design-oriented product development processes is essential for efficient collaboration. To identify and overcome barriers between design and simulation departments, the BRIDGES approach was elaborated for barrier reduction in design engineering and simulation. This paper shows the industrial evaluation of the approach using a multi-method study of an online survey and focus group workshops. The experts' assessments were statistically analysed to build a connection matrix of barriers and recommendations. 59 participants from multiple industries with practical experience in the field contributed to the online survey, while 24 experts could be acquired for the focus group workshops. As a result of the workshops, both the data-based and the workshop-based part of the BRIDGES approach were assessed as beneficial to raise the efficiency of collaboration and practically applicable. This provides an empirically secured connection of barriers and suitable recommendations, allowing companies to identify and overcome collaboration barriers between design and simulation.

Evaluating Supply Chain Collaboration Barriers in Small- and Medium-Sized Enterprises

The disruption has a significant impact on supply chain collaboration (SCC) which is an important task to improve performance for many enterprises. This is especially critical for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). We developed a decision-modeling framework for analyzing SCC barriers in SMEs for the emerging economy in Bangladesh. Through literature review and expert opinion survey, we have identified a comprehensive list of SCC barriers under four main categories, namely, information-related, communication-related, intra-organizational, and inter-organizational barriers. Then we applied the Grey DEMATEL and Fuzzy Best-Worst methods to evaluate these SCC barriers and compared the results. We also conducted a sensitivity analysis to assess the robustness of the proposed approach. The study reveals that lack of communication is the most crucial barrier in SCC, providing a model for assessing barriers in other emerging economies. This study contributes to the literature by analyzing SCC barriers and by comparing the results obtained from two different MCDM methods. The findings of this study can help decision-makers to plan for overcoming the most prioritized SCC barriers which ultimately contribute to improving the resilience and sustainability performances of SMEs.

Improving health through multisectoral collaboration: enablers and barriers.

Multisectoral partnerships (MPs) are increasingly viewed as an excellent strategy for promoting population health, although the Canadian evidence on MPs remains scant. The objective of this research was to identify enablers and barriers to multisectoral collaboration across three MPs (focused on food systems, urban development, and active transportation) in a Canadian urban centre. This study is part of a pan-Canadian research program-MUSE (Multisectoral Urban Systems for health and Equity in Canadian cities). A qualitative case study methodology was used to explore enablers and barriers to collaboration among three MPs in a mid-sized Canadian city. Key strategy documents of the MPs and 13 in-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with stakeholders from each MP. Interview data were transcribed and subjected to thematic analysis using NVivo 12 software, with rigour ensured through member checking. Enablers to collaboration included agenda and goal alignment among partners, quality of relationships in MPs, and external enabling factors. Barriers to multisectoral collaboration included agenda and priority differences, factors related to partnership structure, constitution and processes, and external barriers. Based on these factors, we developed a multisectoral collaboration matrix that dichotomizes enablers and barriers into intrinsic/internal and extrinsic/external to increase understanding of health-promoting MPs in Canada. Various enablers and barriers promote or inhibit multisectoral partnerships. By casting these factors into a matrix, members of ongoing or emerging MPs could take advantage of the factors that promote their work and are in their control (intrinsic enablers) or outside their control (extrinsic enablers) while working to overcome challenges presented by collaboration barriers.

Cross-Sectoral Zoonotic Disease Surveillance in Western Kenya: Identifying Drivers and Barriers Within a Resource Constrained Setting.

Background: Collaboration between the human and animal health sectors, including the sharing of disease surveillance data, has the potential to improve public health outcomes through the rapid detection of zoonotic disease events prior to widespread transmission in humans. Kenya has been at the forefront of embracing a collaborative approach in Africa with the inception of the Zoonotic Disease Unit in 2011. Joint outbreak responses have been coordinated at the national level, yet little is currently documented on cross-sectoral collaboration at the sub-national level.Methods: Key informant interviews were conducted with 28 disease surveillance officers from the human and animal health sectors in three counties in western Kenya. An inductive process of thematic analysis was used to identify themes relating to barriers and drivers for cross-sectoral collaboration.Results: The study identified four interlinking themes related to drivers and barriers for cross-sectoral collaboration. To drive collaboration at the sub-national level there needs to be a clear identification of “common objectives,” as currently exemplified by the response to suspected rabies and anthrax cases and routine meat hygiene activities. The action of collaboration, be it integrated responses to outbreaks or communication and data sharing, require “operational structures” to facilitate them, including the formalisation of reporting lines, supporting legislation and the physical infrastructure, from lab equipment to mobile phones, to facilitate the activities. These structures in turn require “appropriate resources” to support them, which will be allocated based on the “political will” of those who control the resources.Conclusions: Ongoing collaborations between human and animal disease surveillance officers at the sub-national level were identified, driven by common objectives such as routine meat hygiene and response to suspected rabies and anthrax cases. In these areas a suitable operational structure is present, including a supportive legislative framework and clearly designated roles for officers within both sectors. There was support from disease surveillance officers to increase their collaboration, communication and data sharing across sectors, yet this is currently hindered by the lack of these formal operational structures and poor allocation of resources to disease surveillance. It was acknowledged that improving this resource allocation will require political will at the sub-national, national and international levels.

Open Innovation in the Agri-Food Sector: Perspectives from a Systematic Literature Review and a Structured Survey in MSMEs

Open innovation, understood as a strategy for business competitiveness, has experienced growing relevance, even in traditional economic sectors, such as agri-food. This article focuses on the trends and challenges of open innovation applied to the agri-food field, based on two approaches, a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) and a structured survey, answered mainly by micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). For the SLR, the Scopus bibliographic database was chosen. Documents were filtered by type, novelty, and impact factor of the journal (based on the Scimago Rank). The final selection included 50 articles that were deeply analyzed. In addition, the survey was applied to 57 agri-food companies from the department of Nariño (Colombia), establishing a diagnosis of the extent of openness of their collaborative barriers and innovation capacities. The review’s results revealed a marked European dominance in this research field. Product co-creation, eco-innovation, and bioeconomy are main fields of interest and application of open innovation. The challenges identified are related to intellectual property rights and effective communication between stakeholders. The survey was successful in establishing a statistically significant correlation between innovation performance and collaboration with external partners. As a conclusion, an open innovation approach can provide dynamism and cohesion in agri-food systems.

Complaining about occupational safety and health: a barrier for collaboration between managers and workers on construction sites

Collaborative safety practices between construction site managers and workers are considered essential in occupational safety and health (OSH). However, establishing joint OSH engagement between managers and workers is still a challenge. Little is known about how managers and workers’ “complaining” about OSH affects collective OSH action and the quality of manager-worker relations. Drawing on an understanding of complaining as “boundary work”, this study empirically analyses how managers and workers’ verbalisations either downplay (collaboration) or build (demarcation) boundaries. Interviews and observations between managers and workers were carried out on a construction project in Denmark to identify why and how complaining is used. A typology consisting of four “complaining” mechanisms was developed, highlighting their associated relational dynamics: (1) Shifting responsibility for advancing OSH, (2) Defending oneself against strained working conditions, (3) Dealing strategically with criticism, and (4) Blaming other occupational groups. Complaining about OSH as boundary work – both collaboration and demarcation – between managers and workers furthers professional fragmentation and conflicts OSH collaboration, yet it occurs in a “safe space” for professional disagreement. We suggest that these communicational aspects and associated relational dynamics should be an area of increased focus in order to promote managers and workers’ OSH collaboration.

Making Research Collaborations: Learning from Processes of Transdisciplinary Engagement in Agricultural Research

This article is an attempt to capture the process and outcomes of disciplinary collaborations in two multi-partner transdisciplinary research projects on agriculture. The focus of the projects was building smallholder resilience in semi-arid tropics. The collaborating disciplines fall broadly into natural sciences and social sciences. The farming community and other actors across the agricultural value chain, being the end users of research, were active stakeholders. This paper details the drivers and barriers in transdisciplinary collaboration and articulates the extent of disciplinary integration achieved between the natural sciences, social sciences and the end users of research. The key elements contributing to effectiveness of transdisciplinary research are the conceptual clarity of disciplinary contributions and interfaces, shared knowledge of the expected research outcomes, positioning of the different disciplines within the research framework, openness of the researchers to disciplinary cross fertilisation, the transdisciplinary research experience of the partnering institutions and accommodation of the cultural differences between the collaborating partners.

Collaboration among nurses when transitioning older adults between hospital and community settings: a scoping review.

The transitioning of older patients between healthcare sectors requires the provision of high-quality nursing care. Collaboration among nurses is identified as an essential element of transitional care, yet nurse-nurse collaboration has received little attention. The aim of this study was to examine the extent, range and nature of nurse-nurse collaboration when transitioning older patients between hospital and community settings, and to identify gaps in the literature. Arksey and O'Malley's (International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 8, 2005 and 19) framework was used to undertake a scoping review to answer the research questions: how do nurses collaborate together when transitioning older patients from hospital to community settings and what are the facilitators, barriers and outcomes of nurse-nurse collaboration when transitioning older patients between sectors? The Nurse-Nurse Collaboration Scale (NNCS) subdomains informed the identification of selected studies. Twelve papers were included with most coming from Scandinavian countries and the majority using qualitative methodologies. Communication, coordination and professionalism were found to be both facilitators and barriers of nurse-nurse collaboration. Gaps in the literature included conflict management, and the outcomes of collaboration which was only reported in one study. The findings indicate there is limited study of collaboration among nurses when transitioning older patients between hospital and community settings. Future research should address the impact of conflict on nurses working in collaborative practice as well as conducting intervention studies to examine the outcomes of nurse-nurse collaboration.