The Integrated Research Enterprise

It used to be that world-class research was enough. Global research expenditures increased >25% in the last 3 years, and annual global R&D spend is now greater than the movies, professional sports, video game, and liquor industries combined. As monies available continue to increase, particularly from new sources outside traditional funding programs, opportunities for research and dissemination of knowledge expand and evolve.

To effectively compete, the modern academic institution must grapple with new influences. Every country and region faces unique challenges, yet three distinct pressures are shaping research institutions across the globe:

1. Massive increases in collaboration and research sponsorship
2. Growing recognition of technology development and commercialization as part of the academic endeavor
3. Increased pressure to drive entrepreneurship, both for knowledge dissemination and economic development

This seminar will focus on the evolving nature of academic research in light of these three pressures. Discussion will focus on the growing involvement and coordination across the modern university, among department leads and administration, in particular. A major finding in our analysis is that to effectively compete, institutions must take a coordinated approach to multiple research support programs and outputs, a process we label Knowledge Supply Chain Management.