Abstract
The economic strength of nations worldwide is increasingly dependent on its research systems to sustain innovation and new product and service development. Besides research, education and entrepreneurial innovation are seen as core factors to promote a dynamic and competitive modern economy and nearly all governments in the world pursue research and technological development programs to fund research activities especially at universities, research laboratories, and companies, intending to constantly advance their economy. How can knowledge from basic research be used for industrial practice at an early stage? What are the different channels of knowledge transfer? And above all, how can this process be accelerated? In this chapter, we will discuss the mechanisms and consequences of new technology transfer instruments and approaches and depict their relevance for a more productive technology transfer. We end with an outlook on the potential role of artificial intelligence and machine learning for the future of technology transfer.
This chapter draws on an earlier publication by the authors in Piller and Hilgers (2013).
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bercovitz, J., & Feldman, M. (2011). The mechanisms of collaboration in inventive teams: Composition, social networks, and geography. Research Policy,40(1), 81–93.
Bloom, N., Jones, C. I., Van Reenen, J., & Webb, M. (2019). Are ideas getting harder to find? (Version 4.0 of the National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper w23782). https://web.stanford.edu/~chadj/IdeaPF.pdf.
BMBF. (2018). Bundesbericht Forschung und Innovation 2018. Berlin.
Bogers, M., Zobel, A. K., Afuah, A., Almirall, E., Brunswicker, S., Dahlander, L., … Hagedoorn, J. (2017). The open innovation research landscape: Established perspectives and emerging themes across different levels of analysis. Industry and Innovation, 24(1), 8–40.
Bruneel, J., d’Este, P., & Salter, A. (2010). Investigating the factors that diminish the barriers to university–industry collaboration. Research Policy,39(7), 858–868.
Chai, S., & Shih, W. (2017). Why big data isn’t enough. MIT Sloan Management Review,58(2), 57–63.
Cohen, W. M., & Levinthal, D. A. (1990). Absorptive capacity: A new perspective on learning and innovation. Administrative Science Quarterly, 35, 128–152.
Diener, K., & Piller, F. T. (2019). The market for open innovation. The 2020 open innovation accelerator survey (3rd, totally revised ed.). Raleigh, NC: Lulu.
Furman, J., & Seamans, R. (2019). AI and the economy. Innovation Policy and the Economy,19(1), 161–191.
Gopalakrishnan, S., & Santoro, M. D. (2004). Distinguishing between knowledge transfer and technology transfer activities: The role of key organizational factors. IEEE Transactions on Engineering Management,51(1), 57–69.
Gray, J. (2009). eScience: A transformed scientific method. In J. Hey, S. Tansley, & K. Tolle (Eds.), The fourth paradigm: Data-intensive scientific discovery (pp. 17–31). Redmond, WA: Microsoft Research.
Kakatkar, C., Bilgram, V., & Füller, J. (2018). Innovation analytics: Leveraging artificial intelligence in the innovation process. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3293533.
Katila, R., & Ahuja, G. (2002). Something old, something new: A longitudinal study of search behavior and new product introduction. Academy of Management Journal,45(6), 1183–1194.
Kavusan, K., Noorderhaven, N. G., & Duysters, G. M. (2016). Knowledge acquisition and complementary specialization in alliances: The impact of technological overlap and alliance experience. Research Policy,45(10), 2153–2165.
Laursen, K., Reichstein, T., & Salter, A. (2011). Exploring the effect of geographical proximity and university quality on university–industry collaboration in the United Kingdom. Regional Studies,45(4), 507–523.
Lee, Y. S. (1996). ‘Technology transfer’ and the research university: A search for the boundaries of university-industry collaboration. Research Policy,25(6), 843–863.
Mollick, E. (2014). The dynamics of crowdfunding: An exploratory study. Journal of Business Venturing,29(1), 1–16.
Nambisan, S., Wright, M., & Feldman, M. (2019). The digital transformation of innovation and entrepreneurship: Progress, challenges and key themes. Research Policy,48(8), 103773.
Pechmann, A., Piller, F. T., & Schumacher, G. (2010). Technologie- und Erkenntnistransfer aus der Wissenschaft in die Industrie. Schriftenreihe Projektträger Jülich.
Piller, F. T., & Hilgers, D. (Eds.). (2013). Handbook technology transfer: New methods to transfer academic research into industrial practice (Original: Praxishandbuch Technologietransfer: Innovative Methoden zum Transfer wissenschaftlicher Ergebnisse in die industrielle Anwendung). Düsseldorf: Symposion Publishing.
Piller, F. T., Möslein, K., Ihl, C., & Reichwald, R. (2017). Interaktive Wertschöpfung kompakt: Open Innovation, Individualisierung und neue Formen der Arbeitsteilung. New York and Berlin: Springer.
Rai, A., Constantinides, P., & Sarker, S. (2019). Editor’s comments: Next-generation digital platforms: Toward human–AI hybrids. MIS Quarterly,43(1), iii–x.
Rajalo, S., & Vadi, M. (2017). University-industry innovation collaboration: Reconceptualization. Technovation,62, 42–54.
Rindfleisch, A., O’Hern, M., & Sachdev, V. (2017). The digital revolution, 3D printing, and innovation as data. Journal of Product Innovation Management,34(5), 681–690.
Rotman, D. (2019). AI is reinventing the way we invent. MIT Technology Review. https://www.technologyreview.com/s/612898/ai-is-reinventing-the-way-we-invent/.
Shane, S., & Venkataraman, S. (2000). The promise of entrepreneurship as a field of research. Academy of Management Review,25(1), 217–226.
Steinmo, M., & Rasmussen, E. (2018). The interplay of cognitive and relational social capital dimensions in university-industry collaboration: Overcoming the experience barrier. Research Policy,47(10), 1964–1974.
Van Wijk, R., Jansen, J. J., & Lyles, M. A. (2008). Inter- and intra-organizational knowledge transfer: A meta-analytic review and assessment of its antecedents and consequences. Journal of Management Studies,45(4), 830–853.
Walter, A. (2005). Technologietransfer. In S. Albers & O. Gassmann (Eds.), Handbuch Technologie- und Innovationsmanagement (pp. 101–118). Wiesbaden: Gabler.
Zahra, S. A., & George, G. (2002). Absorptive capacity: A review, reconceptualization, and extension. Academy of Management Review,27(2), 185–203.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2021 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Piller, F., Hilgers, D., Schmidthuber, L. (2021). The Relevance of Technology Transfer. In: Mietzner, D., Schultz, C. (eds) New Perspectives in Technology Transfer. FGF Studies in Small Business and Entrepreneurship. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-61477-5_9
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-61477-5_9
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-61476-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-61477-5
eBook Packages: Business and ManagementBusiness and Management (R0)