An Empirical Investigation into UK University–industry Collaboration: the Development of an Impact Framework

Providing evidence of the impact of university–industry (U–I) partnerships is challenging. This empirical research contributes to this thought-provoking subject area by developing an impact assessment framework to assess the effect of collaboration between university and industry. This is examined through a multiple case study approach: 13 partnership schemes, each of two years duration, in manufacturing and healthcare. This study demonstrates that effective knowledge transfer from universities to enterprises is not only hypothetically feasible, but also realistically tangible and measurable. It explores how Business and Management Schools transfer knowledge and technology through external interventions and formal partnership schemes. Our findings show that impact and knowledge transfer can be evaluated, but requires active facilitation before, during and after the project, plus a level of openness and expert engagement within the partnerships. Additionally, our findings established that healthcare partnerships generated higher perceived levels of impact than manufacturing. This perhaps indicates that further work is necessary to resolve the issues limiting the productivity gains of manufacturing partnerships.