The Success Factors Powering Industry-Academia Collaboration

Collaboration between industry and academia supports improvement and innovation in industry and helps to ensure industrial relevance in academic research. This article presents an exploratory study of factors for successful collaboration between industry and academia. A survey designed for data collection was first conducted in Sweden and then replicated in Australia. The context for the two studies is different, thus forming a starting point for potential generalizations in the future: the industrial side of collaboration is the key element for successful collaboration, with key factors being buy-in and support from company management and collaboration champion on site. These findings may help industry and academia to set up successful collaborative ventures in the future