inorms 2010
11 to 15 April 2010 =Cape Town International Convention Centre = South Africa
Managing Research for Impact: New Approaches to Research and Innovation Management
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Call for Papers
The INORMS 2010 Programme Committee would like to invite authors to submit proposals for contributed papers for either oral or poster presentation that fall within the overall theme of the Conference: Managing Research for Impact: New approaches to Research and Innovation Management. The following thematic areas will be addressed:
IMPACT IN THE RESEARCH INSTITUTION
IMPACT ON THE RESEARCH AND INNOVATION PROCESS
IMPACT ON SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
M&E FOR RESEARCH AND INNOVATION EXCELLENCE
BUILDING A 21ST CENTURY PROFESSION
DEVELOPING THE NEXT GENERATION OF RESEARCHERS
Please click on the item below to get more information on:
Submission of Abstracts (Abstract Submission Form)
Condition for Publication in Programme
Thematic Session Descriptions
Note: Envisaged topics noted for each session below are for guidance purposes only and not exclusive; however, abstracts submitted within a particular session must fall within the defined research focus for that session.
1. IMPACT IN THE RESEARCH INSTITUTION
Focus: Policy and strategy in institutional research and innovation management
Context: It is widely accepted that professional research and innovation managers in the 21st century are operating within a changed and challenging environment. Institutional research policies, innovation policies, commercialisation strategies and research and innovation management structures must accommodate new demands and imperatives emerging from an ever-expanding stakeholder environment which includes governments, civil society, academia, industry and more. The increasing competitiveness and greater geo-political significance of research and its outputs, both academic and commercial, has transformed research activity from something that individuals do into a serious business for both the researchers and their institutions. Consequently, research and innovation managers are faced with the very complex task of reconciling a range of strategic management and organisational issues and challenges. Some of these challenges include prioritising disciplinary research areas; balancing different types of research outputs such as academic outputs (e.g. publications) and outputs that could lead to commercialisation (e.g. patents); providing spaces for different modes of conducting research (e.g. individual and collaborative); expanding the scope of research and commercialisation funding sources; and collating all of these within coherent, efficient and responsive management systems.
Envisaged topics:
- Building relationships with your institution’s research community and leadership
- Getting the framework right: rules, regulations and risk
- Contributing to research and innovation policy and strategy
- Institutional models for research and innovation strategy development
- A focused approach to research and innovation development: setting priorities
- Balancing traditional academic outputs with innovation products
- Funding strategies: new ways to promote income generation
2. IMPACT ON THE RESEARCH AND INNOVATION PROCESS
Focus: Project/ programme-level management practices within the process of doing research
Context: Amongst the myriad of new stakeholders within the research environment, the researchers themselves are still the key patrons of the professional research and innovation manager. Consequently, research and innovation managers are looked to for guidance concerning programme and project-level management within the process of doing research and developing innovations, in addition to their institutional responsibilities within their organisations. Even experienced researchers sometimes struggle to negotiate the process of research and all researchers are burdened by the associated administrative workload. Researchers struggle even more when faced with the process of translating research outputs to innovations that can be commercialised for the benefit of society.
Researchers often require assistance with various aspects of the process, such as project planning; benchmarking of desired outcomes and outputs; procurement and allocation of human and financial resources; accessing scholarly information sources; acquiring new data collection and analysis software and expertise; disseminating the results of their research; and commercialising their research outputs. The move towards collaborative research practice – which entails the establishment of cross-disciplinary centres of excellence and research groups, and strategic partnerships across research organisations nationally and internationally or with industry – means that there is also a greater need for institutional coordination of research projects and an understanding of the Intellectual Property considerations in joint projects. Research and innovation managers must therefore have a good understanding of the requirements of the research and innovation process and the innovation value chain, and must add value through efficient and responsive mechanisms to serve these requirements.
Envisaged topics:
- Adding value through knowledge management, sharing and technologies
- Adding value in accessing funding, project design and consortium negotiation
- Working together: new approaches to collaboration, partnerships and interdisciplinary research and innovation models
- Globalisation of research: threats and opportunities in cross-border partnerships and projects
- Project management, quality and evaluation
- Integrity, ethics and governance
Focus: Managing innovation, technology transfer and research commercialisation
Context: The innovation value chain from research to commercialisation holds particular challenges for the technology transfer managers responsible for ensuring research results are transferred to society through licensing and new company creation. These challenges range from managing researchers, who feel their mandate does not include commercialisation, to educating university management, who see the activity only as a way of generating third stream income. In addition, the tools available for assessing the value of technologies are often not appropriate for the early stage of the technology available. Thus, the skills required by a successful technology transfer manager are many and varied, and must be acquired through an intimate knowledge of the research process, combined with commercial background with some knowledge of law and finance. New tools are required that provide rapid and accurate assessment of early stage intellectual property but take social benefit into account.
The models for technology transfer vary from institution to institution and depend, among other things, on the history of the office, the type of institution and the emphasis placed on research and innovation. The development of regional and national networks and communities of practice are critical to support this new and developing field and ensure that innovation and technology transfer is embedded in our institutions and that the correct metrics are developed and applied to this activity.
Envisaged topics:
- Creation of regional and national technology transfer networks
- Skills required for running a successful technology transfer office
- Requirements for embedding a knowledge transfer culture at institutions
- Challenges in commercialising research outputs
- Successful models and management systems for technology transfer offices
- Tools for assessment of early stage technologies
- Measurement of impact of technology transfer
4. IMPACT ON SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Focus: Social responsibility in research and innovation management/The role of professional research and innovation managers in social and economic development
Context: Research has long been recognised as contributing to the social, cultural and economic development of society in that knowledge creation is seen as the first step towards generation of material benefits for individuals and nations. Local, regional and national innovation systems, which include academia, industry and government, are becoming an increasing focus to ensure that research can be translated into innovations that can have an impact on social and economic development. Today, producers of knowledge are expected to ensure that research can ultimately meet specific objectives for economic growth and social upliftment. Transnational government policies and strategies are key factors in influencing the role that research institutions could and should play, with industry and civil society becoming increasingly more active stakeholders. Problem-oriented, demand-driven research requires a multi-stakeholder approach. Researchers must not only collaborate across disciplines, but also utilise participative methods to conduct their research. The dissemination, transfer and implementation of research results and outputs must facilitate practical utilisation outside the research institution. Business, government and the general public must be able to maintain their trust in the quality and objectivity of research results and in the quality of the innovations produced. Research institutions must ensure cohesion and coordination of interaction across a range of stakeholders. These are only some of the requirements for impact on social and economic development which challenge traditional practices in professional research and innovation management and funding.
Envisaged topics:
- University-community technology exchange: relationships with non-commercial users
- University-industry-government relationships: creation of systems of innovation locally, regionally and nationally
- Policy frameworks to explore the social and economic relevance of research and innovation management
- Research and innovation contributions to government policy and strategy
- New models for public dissemination of research and innovation outputs
- Research and innovation managers and the media
- Research and innovation management and international development
- Measuring the social and economic impact of research and innovation
- Managing and promoting end-user informed research for mutual benefit – case studies and learnings
- Research and innovation managers as portals to expertise
5. M&E FOR RESEARCH AND INNOVATION EXCELLENCE
Focus: Monitoring and evaluation (M&E), quality assessment and quality assurance practices in research and innovation management
Context: Science is fundamentally elitist. The quality of traditional research inputs and outputs is critical to the competitiveness and prestige of institutions and excellence is often a prerequisite for participation in research collaboration. Changes in international, national, and institutional priorities, the structure of research organisations and the types of research they conduct have been accompanied by changes in the way research productivity is evaluated. In addition, the increasing focus on commercialisable research outputs such as patents and other forms of Intellectual Property often seems in direct conflict with the usual forms of monitoring research output.
Various monitoring and evaluation (M&E) systems are used to assess both research and individual researchers, including a vast range of quantitative and qualitative indicators such as numbers of publications, citations, patents, prizes and awards; the relevance of research; contributions to research capacity development; partnerships, networking and mobility of researchers; and earned research income. While evaluation processes are seen as tools for professional research and innovation managers to guide priorities, improve the quality of research and measure innovativeness, there are many criticisms of the systems used. The inherent tension between quality, quantity and impact remains a topic of fierce debate.
Envisaged topics:
- National models for evaluating researcher excellence
- Evaluation of systems and structures to support and grow research excellence
- New approaches to quality assurance frameworks/methodologies
- Measuring and mapping of research outputs (traditional academic outputs and innovations) as elements in research and innovation management
- Rewarding innovation and impact – incentives for the researcher
6. BUILDING A 21ST CENTURY PROFESSION
Focus: ‘Professionalising’ institutional research and innovation management and administration
Context: The governance and regulation of research has become increasingly complex which in turn has made increasing demands on professional research and innovation managers. Planning, coordination and administration of institutional research and managing the innovation value chain requires an increasingly professional approach whereby managers and administrators must provide high quality, client-centred services to diverse internal and external stakeholders. This implies the appointment of both academic and administrative staff to specific research and innovation management positions and upgrading the capabilities of staff throughout the institution to better manage research and innovation activities. The majority of personnel are recruited from a variety of different backgrounds and, with no recognised career pathway, often have to develop the specific skills they need as they go along. These skills include (but are not limited to) administrative and organisational skills; entrepreneurship; strategic thinking, planning and leadership ability; diverse communication and networking skills; project management; and resource procurement and management. In addition, research and innovation managers must have a good understanding of the research process and the requirements of researchers, and of relevant information technology, legal (particularly contract and Intellectual Property law, and tax laws) and accounting fields. Most significantly, research and innovation management staff must have the ability and willingness to work in a capacity which supports and enables researchers across the entire innovation value chain from basic research to commercialisation and technology transfer.
Envisaged topics:
- Developing a professional ethos and structure
- Who are research and innovation managers – where do we come from, where are we going to?
- Managing across the innovation value chain – requirements, differences in approach
- Professional training, accreditation and career development
- Representing the profession: working with funders and governments
- Internationalising the profession – is research and innovation management the same in developed and developing countries?
- Information management – integrated e-systems
7. DIVERSIFYING THE FUNDING BASE
Focus: ‘Third-stream’ funding for higher education research and innovation (i.e. funding from sources other than national government/ state and student fees)
Context: Higher education remains one of the largest knowledge producers and employers of knowledge workers (researchers). Changes affecting the financing of higher education research include declining public subsidies (‘first-stream’ funding) and pressure to limit increases to, and income from, tuition fees (second-stream funding). The result has been the need to increase income from other sources, i.e. ‘third-stream funding.’ This includes “tied” funding (i.e. allocated for specific research projects from industry, national and international funding streams), as well as “untied” funding (i.e. generated through the commercialisation of research outputs). International funding, in particular, is a major component of third-stream funding, realised through the internationalisation of the higher education research platform. While international collaboration has always been an intrinsic part of the research endeavour, the forces of competitiveness and globalisation are accelerating the scope, pace and importance of cross-border research. Around the world, governments, funding agencies and higher education institutions are working to internationalise their research and innovation efforts, driven by the need to establish a global research reputation, to access global knowledge and expertise, and to exploit new sources of finance. It is widely acknowledged in higher education that foreign sources of finance facilitated through international collaboration provide a myriad of benefits for higher education. For example, cost-sharing for expensive research instrumentation and facilities; human and financial resources for larger, more complex and longer-term projects; international benchmarking for increased credibility; and improved mobility for researchers and research students. However, international research collaboration is diverse in size, type and rationale and requires an innovative and responsive higher education research management model.
Envisaged topics:
- New/ innovative/ non-traditional sources of external funding for research and innovation
- New skills required by research and innovation managers for accessing funding
- Experiences from developing/ emerging institutions vs. established/ OECD institutions
- Research-led networks/ partnerships
- Globalisation and global niche markets - threats and opportunities
- Cooperative research centres and team science
- Novel approaches to international research funding
- A new paradigm for cross-border knowledge exchange
8. DEVELOPING THE NEXT GENERATION OF RESEARCHERS
Focus: Managing research and innovation capacity development
Context: The quality and sustainability of the research and innovation endeavour in institutions depends on an adequate supply of highly-skilled, intellectually-curious and dedicated researchers via a research capacity development ‘pipeline’. This pipeline begins at school-level and progresses through undergraduate and postgraduate training to the doctoral degree and, ultimately, to employment and promotion within research institutions. Many interrelated factors affect the productivity of the pipeline, including (but not limited to) the ageing of the cohort of established researchers who serve as mentors for graduate students and other emerging researchers; restrictive or uncertain institutional appointment and promotion structures, coupled with increasing workloads and non-competitive salary scales; attractive non-research employment opportunities for graduates; ‘brain-drain’; extended throughput timeframes for doctoral education; and diminishing interest in higher education and academic careers amongst the youth. Addressing these challenges and thereby safeguarding the research and innovation capacity development pipeline in the long-term is increasingly becoming the responsibility of professional research and innovation managers. This requires specific strategies for developing and retaining researchers, including strategies for influencing education reform from the secondary level; attracting young people and foreign nationals into higher education and research careers; increasing funding for postgraduate and postdoctoral education; supporting career-long research skills development; providing opportunities for researchers to be involved in the implementation and commercialisation of their research outputs; and advancing institutional research and innovation leadership, mentorship and excellence.
Envisaged topics:
- Academic staff development and opportunities
- The ageing cohort of active research population
- Lessons from dedicated strategic initiatives for building a new generation of academics
- Accelerating the development of emerging/ young researchers
- Strategies for the retention of academics at universities
- Involvement of researchers in innovation and commercialisation without leaving the institution
- PhD as key driver for capacity development
9. OPEN THEME
Focus: Foci not covered in defined thematic areas 1-8
Context: The Programme Committee is cognisant of the fact that the management of research and innovation represents an expansive area of work. The Open Theme therefore provides room for authors to submit abstracts which do not fit comfortably within a defined thematic sessions (i.e. sessions 1 to 8 above). However, oral and poster presentations submitted within this Theme must still reinforce the overall conference theme. Organisations or research groups are also welcome to submit motivations for additional thematic sessions not covered by sessions 1 through 8 under this Open Theme. Such motivations must, however, be supported by an adequate number of abstracts for oral presentations. Depending on the quality and quantity of abstracts received, one or more additional thematic sessions may be added to the Conference programme.
Envisaged topics: Topics not covered in the defined thematic areas 1-8
Abstracts must be submitted in English, must consist of a minimum of 200 and a maximum of 300 words and must reach the Secretariat not later than 15 November 2009. Please use the attached abstract submission form to submit your abstract.
Abstracts will be reviewed by the Conference Programme Committee and Session Coordinators and authors will be notified whether their papers have been accepted for oral or poster presentations by 30 January 2010.
Please note that no papers will be included in the programme unless full payment for the speaker has been received by 31 March 2010.
Please download the Abstract Submission Form from here.
Abstracts of oral presentations and posters accepted for presentation at the conference will be published in a Book of Abstracts, available online and in hard-copy format at the event. Authors must therefore assure that abstracts submitted are publication-ready.
Conference proceedings will be published as a special edition of the Acta Academica, an accredited South African journal publishing independently refereed research articles. Authors will be notified of the details for preparation of papers for publication by 30 January 2009 and will be expected to submit a draft version of their paper to the Programme Committee by 9 April 2010. Final versions for review by the journal editorial board and subsequent publication must be submitted by 7 May 2010.
Please email thereza@technoscene.co.za if you have any questions or need further assistance with the submission of your abstract.
Abstracts must be submitted in English, must consist of a minimum of 200 and a maximum of 300 words and must reach the Secretariat not later than 30 November 2009. Please use the attached template to submit your abstract.
Abstracts will be reviewed by the international Programme Committee and authors will be notified whether their papers have been accepted for oral or poster presentations by 30 January 2010.
Condition for publication in programme
Please note that no papers will be included in the programme unless full payment for the speaker has been received by 28 February 2010.