Breadth Of Collaboration Research Articles

Inventor bricolage and firm technology research and development

We examine the conditions around firm use of ‘inventor bricolage,’ or the reconstruction of technological capabilities through reallocation of extant individual inventors to address new opportunities embodied in patents. Empirically, we examine the dynamics of both firm and individual patenting activity in publicly traded Life Science Diagnostic firms to explore how inventor bricolage is related to firms' existing research and development (R&D) capabilities and firms' acquisition of external capabilities through merger and acquisition (M&A) activities. Evidence at the firm level suggests that breadth of inventors' human capital and collaboration with co‐researchers with relevant experience is positively related to inventor bricolage. At the inventor level, the fewer patents an inventor has, the broader the individual's prior patent portfolio, and the more co‐researchers with relevant experience, the more likely inventors will patent in a new area. M&A does not appear to have an impact on the utilization of existing human capital. Our findings suggest that R&D managers should assign inventors with less assimilative capacity and more creative capacity in teams where there is relevant experience in order to promote inventor bricolage.

Institutional Determinants of Collaboration: An Empirical Study of County Open-Space Protection

Collaboration is an increasingly important topic in the public administration and management literatures. A preponderance of studies focuses on how managers can build trust between the government and collaborative partners by means of behavioral attributes and managerial skill. In this article, the author suggests that stable institutions and local government structure facilitate collaboration by allowing public managers to more credibly commit in a policy arena. Using county data on open-space policy, the author finds empirical support for the proposition that county form of government, along with rules governing debt accumulation and administrative commitment, increases the breadth of county collaboration in open-space protection.

Behind the Mask: How the World Survived SARS, the First Epidemic of the 21st Century

Behind the Mask: How the World Survived SARS, the First Epidemic of the Twenty-First Century recounts the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) that swept through much of the world, especially Asia, in 2003. The author does a superb job of telling the reader about what was occurring before SARS appeared, what happened during the outbreak, and what efforts are underway to prevent its return. The author has blended research results and interviews with frontline staff, particularly healthcare providers, into 20 nicely interlaced chapters. The stage for this commentary is a timeline of events, starting November 16, 2002, with the first known case of SARS in Guangdong Province, China, and ending in December 2003–January 2004 with 4 cases of SARS and the slaughtering of ≈10,000 civets in Guangdong Province. Where possible, the author avoided the use of medical terms and jargon and provides helpful lay translations where their use was unavoidable. As a result, the book is accessible to readers both inside and outside the healthcare arena. The information presented in the book is, for the most part, current and accurate; different views and beliefs are presented when necessary. There are minor typographical mistakes as well as a few incorrect statements, such as in chapter 1, page 6, where the author refers to past public health efforts to eradicate viruses. The author states that smallpox virus and poliovirus have both been eradicated and that both are now bioterrorism agents. However, despite tremendous progress through efforts of many governments and public and private entities, poliovirus has yet to be eradicated and is not regarded as a bioterrorism agent at this time. With regard to SARS, however, the author successfully portrays the human side of the outbreak response—a response heralded as unparalleled by many of the involved officials. Dr Carlo Urbani, the World Health Organization (WHO) physician in Vietnam who worked tirelessly and who was an eventual casualty of SARS, is among the many heroes who are featured in this book. Lesser-known facts, such as the thought processes that led to identifying SARS, are also provided. For example, before the SARS coronavirus was shown to be the causative agent, the outbreak was thought to be caused by either avian influenza or chlamydia. The reader is made aware of all of the challenges posed by the SARS virus, such as the delay in recognizing that there was an outbreak, the difficulties in diagnosing and reporting the disease and obtaining specimens, the breadth and scope of national and international collaboration and coordination, and not knowing the causative agent. This book does a nice job of giving readers a flavor of the experiences faced by persons at WHO, persons at the country ministry level, individual healthcare providers, and SARS patients. I highly recommend this book, especially to anyone who was not directly involved in the SARS outbreak response; they too can share the experience of the global community response to a disease that was first recognized in 1 province of China.

Managing Construction Research at Universities

This paper provides suggestions on how to manage a construction graduate research program. It is written from the perspective of a major research institution where facility members must balance their commitments to undergraduate and graduate teaching, advising, research, and continuing education. The paper presents a pragmatic view of the writers' 31 years of experience in university teaching and research. The paper describes important factors that affect faculty productivity in scholarly activities. Specific topical areas are the involvement in the undergraduate program, graduate program coursework, and the number of graduate students. Suggestions for controlling the graduate program are made relative to its size, admission policy, thesis and report requirements, and the mix between master's and doctoral candidates. The process of maturing into a quality research is outlined as a two-phase process. Early in one's career, breadth of exposure and collaboration with others is important. Maintaining quality is of paramount importance. In midcareer, depth in ressarch is a desired goal. The maturing process is accompanied by the future development of research skills and in-depth knowledge of a literature. In initiating a new research initiative, the feasibility needs to be established. Begging and borrowing are essential skills.