Towards a knowledge region

Building an attractive and innovative knowledge region – A lesson from South Moravia

What are the barriers to achieving research excellence? What are the obstacles to successful technology transfer? Under what frame conditions can a society benefit from research? A survey of public-sphere science and research institutions in South Moravia provides answers to these questions so essential for building a knowledge region – insights that in many ways hold true for CENTROPE as a whole.

Molecular biology as well as related scientific branches and applied fields represent the main specialisation of the research sphere in South Moravia. As the cornerstones of the region’s innovation system, they generate new knowledge that can stimulate innovative entrepreneurship in several business sectors. Together with material research, instrument production, ICTs, mechanical and electrical engineering, this major research focus was covered by a study looking into potentials for excellence and technology transfer in South Moravia.

90 research teams in the South Moravian Region participated in this survey carried out in 2010 with the prime aim of acquiring more knowledge on the conditions of, and barriers to, the development of research in public-sphere science and research institutions and the transfer of research outputs to everyday practice.

Enlarging the pool of talent: a worthwhile investment for the future

The survey identified a number of obstacles impeding higher research excellence in the region. To start at the lowest level, there is only scant interest in technical and natural sciences already among secondary school-leavers. Low prospective incomes, an insufficient international reputation and inadequate quality of support facilities all contribute to an unfavourable image of research careers and obstruct the development of young peoples’ interest in science. At the upper end of the university education system, the structure of doctoral study programmes in the Czech Republic – where the average quality of graduates significantly lags behind their potential – also contributes to a comparatively small pool of talent from which to recruit future researchers. Solutions for improving the situation are e.g. international scholarships for talented students and young researchers as well as an improved joint marketing strategy aimed at presenting the region as a natural location for top-quality science, research and technology.

Closer co-operation among key players: the decisive factor for successful technology transfer

Another, complementary approach to make the best out of the region’s knowledge and potential is to improve technology transfer (TT) between public research and private enterprises. A key element for fostering TT is to improve co-operation and co-ordination between regional and local self-government, local universities and other research institutions on the one hand and leading local businesses and their representatives (such as chambers of commerce) on the other hand. The goal of such closer co-operation is to speed up the process of introducing effective procedures and assistance services for TT support at academic institutions.

To reach this ambitious aim, the survey recommends inter alia adapting the current version of the Regional Innovation Strategy of the South Moravian Region to include a tool that will facilitate changes within local research and development institutions. This tool should help to unite key players with experience in managing and implementing TT support activities and inspire research institutions or individual research teams to make use of TT assistance services. It should not compete against the Technology Agency of the Czech Republic but supplement it with a funding model. Furthermore, the study authors recommend the introduction of independent technology scouts to provide active marketing and represent local research and development institutions. Such scouts would help to significantly improve the commercial potential of local academic institutions and to commercialise research outputs.