Industry - academia dilemma
The following is a part of paper I had published on this context, which explains challenges that hinder Egypt’s “Innovation Ecosystem”
1- Setting Expectations (partnership goals)
While industrial enterprises interest is to use the research results for solving present problems and thereby increase profitability, universities main principle is creating and disseminate new knowledge and publishing research papers, the difference in such mindset alone makes industry- academia partnership difficult to reach.
2- Time Constraint
Industrial enterprises may not always have the time luxury especially that advancements in technology are exponential, so the possibility to import the solution instead of collaborating with universities is always the better option.
3-Intellectual property ownership
The problem with the ownership of intellectual property is one of the most mentioned conflicts between universities and industries. Potential conflicts with university regarding royalty payments from patents or other intellectual property right and concerns about confidentiality.
4- Limited budget to conduct research
It is important to note that the issue here is twofold on one hand industrial enterprises especially SME lack the necessary financial resources to fund research projects and on the other hand even if the funds necessary can be availed the risk of reached a fully functioning product is always an issue.
5- Lack of Strategies to Facilitate Implementation of Enacted Policies
While most academic institutions have highlighted industry linkages in their mission statements and strategic plans, many lack complementary and supportive strategies and mechanisms for regulating interactions with the industrial sector, having a specialized “Technology Transfer and Commercialization Office” in this case is key to the success of any partnership initiative.
6- Governance Models
The staff who run UIL (University and Industry Linkages) offices in many universities do not have appropriate skills and knowledge. Most UIL offices are not staffed with sufficient expertise in entrepreneurialism, intellectual property rights management, and marketing strategies.
7- Other Hurdles
The shortage of important facilities including laboratories, science parks, technology incubation centers, and testing facilities that could attract productive sector in seeking partnership with universities is another factor that impedes the synergy growth between the two actors. However, it is important to note that recent investments by the GOE in science parks, technology incubation centers show a promising future in nurturing partnerships between industry and academia.