Management of Technology in Academic Research

This chapter describes the concept of management of technology (MOT) and the attempts to apply this concept in academic research, to support research and education in the university laboratories at the Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST).

The concept of MOT became popular in European countries and the United States starting in the 1980s, and has made rapid strides in Japan since 2002. MOT can have diverse definitions, but here we examine it as an education programme aimed at enhancing the management abilities of technologists responsible for research and development in corporations; such a programme is usually taught at graduate schools in the management and engineering areas. These MOT courses and programmes are mainly targeted at corporate employees, and their primary mission, as recognised by faculty members in charge of them, is to respond to the needs of research and development divisions in profit-making organisations.