Building and maintaining collaborations with Industry
Dr Colin Wyatt, Director of Business Development
What problems are we trying to solve?
• Supplement point to point relationships
• Enhance relationships
• Generate incremental research capability and activity
• Obtain associated benefits
What do Universities want from Industry?
• Support for curriculum development?
• Placements for students & graduates?
• Contributions to overheads?
• Supplements for academic salaries?
• Support for strategic initiatives?
• Access to industrial expertise?
What do academics want from Industry?
• Access to materials and equipment?
• New publication opportunities?
• Partners for translation of academic achievement?
• New directions and funding?
• Revenue share, spin-out equity, consultancy fees
Industry has varying perspectives on collaboration
• For true collaborative research GSK pays a minimum of 46% overheads in the UK, and
more routinely pays between 60 and 70% overheads on salary costs. This already
compares most unfavourably with the situation in mainland Europe where overhead
rates in the range of 5-25% are common. GSK
• It must be recognised that company research and development budgets are largely
fixed over relatively long time periods. If universities suddenly start to charge higher
overheads on contract or collaborative research then this is likely to result in
companies cutting back on these interactions and on the amount of research that can
be funded. Other options would be for companies to conduct the research in house, or
with other providers in the UK or abroad. A relatively small increase in the price of
university research, without any other changes being agreed (e.g.. In relation to
delivery time, ownership of IP etc.) could thus lead to a significant withdrawal from
University-Business engagements in the UK. CBI
• The benefits of participation are a common view of technology trends, visions and
challenges; community building; training & development; know-how; technology
deliverables and the driving of open standards. We have learnt that choosing projects
wisely includes selecting good partners with realistic expectations as it takes longer
than you think. BT
There are many barriers
• Capacity
• R&D budgets
• Interest
• Not invented here
• Objectives
• Ignorance
• “Turf wars”
• Competition
• Autonomy
• Structures
• Ignorance
University Industry
Bus Dev
• Capabilities and capacity?
• Empowerment
• Proactivity
• Central vs. distributed?
Structural: Dedicated organisations work across the
commercialisation value chain
Problem Solving, Scientific Increasing the quantity, Technology transfer, company
Services and Expert Advice size and quality of incubation and early stage
research collaborations venture capital
Resources: BDMs come in various flavours
• Central / Embedded
• Sector / theme / business unit / account
• Are they really different?
• You need a hybrid structure
Resources: What is an Account Manager?
• “Owns” the client
• Acts as a gatekeeper
• Build company networks
• Build internal networks
• Obtain and disseminate client intelligence
• Accountable for revenue from client
• Remit goes beyond contract signature
• What is viable in an HEI context?
• Relationship, rather than Account, Managers
Organisation: there are enabling factors
• Buy in: faculty heads & academics
• Clarity and acceptance of role definition
• Clear definition of remit and boundaries
• Relationship managers work throughout the value
chain
• Bid management ownership is crucial
• Implement underlying processes e.g. pipeline
management; key account analysis
• MOUs: limited value but useful
• CRM systems: a distraction
For example:
• aADI programme with GSK
• Build from large project to some aspects of de facto account management
• Information and client knowledge
• Networks and influence
• Not accountable for sales or gatekeeping
• Sector BD Managers
• De facto account management for a small number of significant clients
• Role emerges from ongoing engagement and extends beyond the contract
• Deliver:
» Information and client knowledge
» Networks and influence
» Repeat sales
» Enhanced relationship
• e.g.
» BioPharma: Syngenta; J&J
» ICT: IBM
» Defence: QinetiQ; AWE
Principles for successful collaboration between industry and
academia
• Have dedicated commercialisation teams
• Have teams focused on different aspects of commercialisation
• Implement a hybrid centralised – distributed organisational model
• Have a mixed operating model with staff focussed on market sectors,
“accounts” and units / themes
• Grow Relationship Managers from ongoing projects
• Proactively “sell” the university’s capabilities with a focused engagement
process
• Manage the projects not just the science
• Apply an appropriate business model
• Be clear about remit and boundaries
• Get buy in from key stakeholders – PIs are critical
• Implement necessary processes
• Beware of IT vendors bearing promises
Contact
www.imperial.ac.uk/businessdevelopment
Email c.wyatt@imperial.ac.uk
bds@imperial.ac.uk
Telephone +44 (0)207 594 6502