Understanding the innovation process is the key to understanding economic growth. Firms and economies that foster innovation are generally more successful than those that do not. Consequently, conducting research to gain insight into the innovation process is one of the primary activities of the TIMC.
Areas of Research
The TIMC undertakes research directed at improving the ability of firms and governments develop effective management practices and policies for technological innovation. Research is conducted at many levels. The TIMC studies firms, public research organizations, industries, clusters, technologies, regions and nations. A key element of this research involves detailed analysis of innovation processes, how they vary across industries, and how they are changing.
The research is commonly undertaken collaboratively with a variety of leading Australian and international research partners, and is conducted in the following areas:
Corporate Strategies and Government Policies for Technology and Innovation
Corporate strategies and government policies for innovation have been transformed by the emergence of the global knowledge economy. The globalisation of markets and sources of technology, the knowledge-based nature of contemporary competitive advantage, and the increased complexity of the relationships between business and science and technology, has required new strategies and policies to be developed.
Research topics in this area include: national innovation systems and their relationships with cluster development, corporate innovation strategy, government, university and business relationships, technological collaboration, the internationalisation of R&D, technology policies and strategies in Asia, and technology diffusion.
The Intensification of the Innovation Process
The innovation process is fundamentally changing. This has led to an increased need to manage the complexity, uncertainty, risk and speed of the innovation process. The TIMC is researching both a new range of management practices, and the application of new technologies (in modelling, simulation, virtual reality and rapid prototyping) to the innovation process itself. These have led to what we call the intensification of the innovation process defined as the search for greater economies of effort and definiteness of aim in innovation.
The Commercialisation of Publicly Funded Research
The last two decades have seen a growing worldwide interest in the transfer of technology, knowledge and intellectual capital from universities and public research institutions to industry as a mechanism for economic growth. Nationally and internationally, it is recognized that the role of universities is changing to encompass a "Third stream" of activity based around commercialization (as described by Ammon Salter, a TIMC research collaborator, in a report to the Russell Group of Universities in the UK).
The Australian Government's innovation statement, Backing Australia's Ability describes the central role of universities as "dynamos of growth in the innovation process". TIMC research aims to contribute to an understanding of how and why commercialization of academic research develops over time from concept to implemented reality; to examine the processes that lead to successful and unsuccessful outcomes; and to determine to what extent knowledge about commercialization processes can be generalized from one situation to another.
Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Small businesses have long been regarded as the "engine room" of national economies in industrialized nations. They achieve this status through their dual role as job generators and innovators.
TIMC research aims to understand how the high-growth innovative firms achieve their success. Areas of interest include: measuring innovation in small firms, the life cycle of innovation, sectoral studies in biotechnology, IT and services, and large and small firm relationships around technology and innovation.
Sustainability and Innovation
The sustainability of business, both economically and ecologically, is one of this century's central debates. While corporations can have positive effects on society and the environment, they can also impact negatively. The sustainability and innovation program aims to examine how industries and corporations can become sustainable. TIMC research aims to explore the links between innovation and sustainability and how these can contribute to long term competitive benefits. For instance, specific research projects examine: How organizations change to become sustainable; How organizations absorb ecological information and transfer this into innovation based outcomes. TIMC research in this area is being undertaken in a variety of country and industry settings.
