The Hidden Challenge of Industry-University Partnerships
Engaging with industry partners can boost a university’s research impact, drive technology transfer, and secure funding
By Natalie Guest, Symplectic
Universities house a vast array of knowledgeable faculty and researchers who are leaders in their respective fields. These experts can be invaluable resources for innovative ideas, problem-solving, and research collaborations. Being able to engage with industry partners can significantly boost a university’s research impact, drive technology transfer, and secure funding.
However, making those initial connections is not without its challenges. For industry partners seeking expertise, finding the right person can be easier said than done. Navigating the complex and fragmented structures of universities can be a significant barrier for potential industry partners or funders. Potential partners often spend time combing through university websites and faculty directories, looking for the right fit to develop the collaboration they have in mind.
Many universities have separate websites for different schools and departments, often with limited cross-functional search capabilities. These websites and directories may sometimes return information of dubious veracity, richness, and utility, or may offer only a historical snapshot of faculty and services. With no single source of truth, private sector representatives must navigate multiple points of entry, multiple datasets, and disparate catalogs. Getting a holistic view of the complexity and richness of a university’s work and research can be challenging: often, even a member of university faculty may be unaware that someone else on their own campus is working on a similar project with overlapping goals.
Realising the potential of assets
Beyond people-expertise, universities can also be treasure troves of resources, cutting-edge equipment and advanced technologies. Many university campuses invest in expensive, specialised equipment and resources such as electron microscopes, 3D printers, and testing facilities, which come with a hefty price tag and require advanced training.
However, these facilities often have little cross-campus visibility and, as a result, can be under-utilised. This means the full potential of these assets often remains untapped, which benefits no one: valuable research is not conducted, equipment remains untouched, and universities may even jeopardize the funding originally secured for those assets if they cannot demonstrate appropriate usage and societal impact.
Forward-thinking universities are exploring ways to improve visibility of these assets, leveraging tools and implementing initiatives to make them more accessible to both internal and external partners. Potential industry partnerships might include lease agreements, training, or access to specialised equipment that companies cannot justify purchasing independently. Creating these partnerships with universities can provide private companies with valuable resources, training, and expertise, effectively creating a mutually beneficial relationship that drives innovation across sectors.
Collaboration and research discovery
The University of Toronto (U of T) is one of North America’s largest and most prestigious research universities, with nearly 100,000 students and annual research funding of $1.4 billion. The institution is partnered with 14 hospitals, making it one of the largest biomedical research centres on the continent. As part of its strategy to foster research-industry collaboration, U of T recently partnered with Symplectic to launch the DiscoverResearch portal: a powerful tool designed to connect industry partners with the university’s extensive research expertise and resources.
“Where companies have a challenge, they have a topic, their next step is: how do they identify the right people?” says Derek Newton, Assistant Vice-President, Innovation, Partnerships and Entrepreneurship at the Innovations & Partnerships Office (IPO). “That’s where DiscoverResearch comes in. DiscoverResearch is a really amazing new tool that helps industry navigate this very big institution – there are over 16,500 affiliated researchers, across multiple domains, and it allows a visitor to find all those types of researchers and to reach out.”
“It’s also a great collaboration tool for our own researchers to find collaborative opportunities within the institution that may not have been obvious to them,” says Newton. “Sometimes we surprise ourselves, because we’re just such a huge organization!”
Tools like DiscoverResearch ensure that industry can more easily engage with university expertise, creating opportunities for impactful collaborations that extend beyond initial projects. By providing streamlined, publicly available access to expertise and facilities, these platforms are powerful resources not only for making connections but also for building ongoing, mutually beneficial relationships between universities and their industry partners.
“We have many great examples where a company starts working with a researcher at the University of Toronto, and as they get more involved, they discover other research areas or business units within their organization that also want to connect,” says Newton.
Since its launch, DiscoverResearch has been transforming the way U of T showcases its research and engages with industry partners. With over 2,400 profiles and growing, the platform is enhancing visibility, fostering collaborations, and connecting industry with world-class expertise. Over the first year alone, DiscoverResearch reports over a million page views with over 800,000 unique visitors, underscoring its strong early impact.
Tapping into expertise
As U of T moves forward, the university plans to deepen its industry engagement and continue leveraging DiscoverResearch to highlight its diverse research capabilities.
“I’m hoping that DiscoverResearch can really help the Canadian corporate sector expand their imaginations around how to tap into expertise, how to attract the talent that they need to grow, compete, and bring new products to market,” says Newton.
At Symplectic, we are dedicated to helping universities maximise their research impact and strengthen their industry engagement. To support this mission, we’ve released our latest whitepaper, Catalyzing Collaboration: How Research Information Management Systems Drive Academic-Industry Partnerships. The paper explores effective strategies and solutions for bridging the gap between academia and industry, with insights from the University of Toronto and the Ohio Innovation Exchange.
By leveraging public profile tools like DiscoverResearch, industry partners gain streamlined access to expertise, research collaborations, and state-of-the-art resources. For universities, these tools enhance visibility, attract funding, and provide measurable societal impact. Together, these partnerships can foster a thriving ecosystem which drives advancements on regional, national, and global scales, and where knowledge and innovation can truly flourish.
Natalie Guest has over a decade of experience in the scholarly publishing and research information technology sectors. As Marketing Director at Symplectic (part of Digital Science), she drives strategic messaging and brand development for cutting-edge research information management solutions used by universities, research institutions, and funding organisations worldwide.