Inside the mind of the academic collaborator: What drives researchers to work with business

Academic engagement with business is often viewed through the lens of institutional strategy or funding opportunity. Yet, at its core, it is shaped by individual academics who actively choose to build external relationships, whether for research collaboration, student engagement, consultancy, or curriculum development.

The profile of the academic collaborator provides a critical entry point for understanding how and why individuals within universities choose to collaborate with business. These collaborators are responding to institutional strategy, but also acting as initiators of engagement, aligning external activity with their own academic goals and values^[1]. Understanding the characteristics of these academic collaborators offers valuable insight into how universities can better enable and sustain productive partnerships with industry.

Based on data from over 17,400 survey respondents, this infographic illustrates the behavioural characteristics of academic collaborators across Europe. Most engage with local businesses, initiate partnerships themselves, and recommend collaboration to peers^[2].

Experience matters

A clear pattern emerges among academics who engage externally: they tend to have either spent time working in industry or accumulated several years of collaboration experience. Even relatively short exposure, such as six months in a business environment, can significantly shift an academic’s orientation towards collaboration. This “understanding effect” suggests that familiarity with business culture, priorities, and operational rhythms makes academics more confident and effective in navigating external engagement^{[3], [4]}.

Moving from industry into academia can enhance collaborative networks and increase research productivity, as individuals apply industry insights and contacts to their academic work; while returning to academia after time in business can reignite collaborative activity and create renewed momentum for engagement^[5]. Programs like Australia’s Industry Fellowships^[6] and EU staff exchanges under Horizon Europe actively promote this kind of two-way mobility, recognising that cross-sector experience builds trust, networks, and practical insights.

Moreover, experience compounds over time. Academics with a history of collaboration are more likely to maintain or expand their engagement year on year. This “experience multiplier” effect highlights the importance of early engagement and the long-term benefits of supporting those who begin to collaborate early in their careers^[7].

Motivations rooted in research

While university leadership may emphasise societal impact, graduate outcomes, or commercialisation, the academic collaborator is frequently driven by research-related motivations. Engagement with business offers opportunities to access real-world data, test ideas in applied settings, and generate publications with practical relevance ^{[8], [9]}. In many cases, this engagement enhances research productivity, leading to new publications or methodological advances^[10]. This framing matters: when external collaboration is perceived as a pathway to advancing academic goals, it becomes a far more attractive prospect.

At the same time, collaborative academics tend to view their institution and region more positively in terms of external engagement capabilities. This may reflect a self-reinforcing dynamic: those who collaborate are better able to see and access the opportunities around them, further strengthening their engagement^[2].

Orazbayeva and Plewa^[1] identify four “constellations” of motivations underlying academic engagement with industry:

• Impact: Applying research for societal or economic benefit.
• Inspiration: Gaining new insights, ideas, and data from industry to stimulate research and teaching.
• Promotion: Building reputation, securing tenure or promotion, or obtaining resources through industry grants.
• Distinction: Achieving recognition and prestige through notable real-world results.

They further highlight a prosocial element: many academics engage to “make a difference,” an intrinsic driver that complements traditional incentives. When collaborations are framed as pathways to advancing academic goals—impacting society, generating novel research questions—academics find them far more attractive^[1].

Navigating barriers and institutional constraints

Interestingly, academic collaborators report facing many of the same barriers as non-collaborators—namely time constraints, administrative burden, and lack of institutional incentives^[11].

However, what sets collaborators apart is often their ability to work through or around these barriers. They are more likely to have built personal relationships with external partners, found trusted contacts within university support structures, or developed strategies for aligning collaboration with their research aims.

Still, these barriers cannot be ignored. Excessive bureaucracy, rigid reward systems, and insufficient support structures can disincentivise even the most motivated academics. Institutional context plays an important role in enabling or hindering collaboration. Environments that recognise and reward engagement, provide clear pathways for partnership, and reduce friction in contracting and IP processes are far more likely to see sustained academic participation.

Career stage, discipline, and cultural fit

Academic collaborators are disproportionately found among those in applied or technical disciplines, particularly in STEM fields, where research is more often aligned with industry needs^[12]. Yet, engagement is not limited to these areas. Recent studies have highlighted growing collaboration activity in the social sciences and humanities, particularly in the context of public policy, community engagement, and cultural sector^[13].

Another notable trend is the impact of career stage. Academics with longer tenure at a university—particularly those in mid-to-late career stages—are statistically less likely to initiate new collaborations. Collaborative PhD schemes—such as France’s CIFRE program—show that early-career researchers achieve high outputs when projects blend fundamental and applied goals, and that their orientation toward industry or academia can evolve with experience^[14]. Mid-career scholars often exhibit peak collaboration activity post-tenure, while late-career academics may scale back or shift to mentoring roles^[14].

This has implications for staff development and career pathways. Supporting early-career academics to gain experience in industry settings—through secondments, fellowships, or collaborative doctoral programmes — can help foster a long-term culture of external engagement.

At the same time, inclusive engagement strategies are essential. Women continue to be underrepresented in formal collaborations with industry, often participating less frequently and in forms that yield lower recognition or reward^[16]. 

Recent efforts—such as NSF I-Corps outreach to women, female innovator awards, and mentorship programmes—are beginning to address this gap, highlighting the importance of targeted initiatives to ensure engagement opportunities are accessible, visible, and valued across all demographics^{[15], [16]}.

References

^[1] Orazbayeva, B. & Plewa, C. (2022) ‘Academic motivations to engage in university-business cooperation: a fuzzy set analysis’, Studies in Higher Education, 47(3), pp. 486–498.

^[2] Davey, T., Meerman, A., Galán-Muros, V., Orazbayeva, B. & Baaken, T. (2018). The State of University-Business Cooperation in Europe. Luxembourg: European Commission.

^[3] D’Este, P. & Patel, P. (2007). University–industry linkages in the UK: What are the factors underlying the variety of interactions with industry? Research Policy, 36(9), pp.1295–1313.

^[4] Perkmann, M. & Walsh, K. (2007). University–industry relationships and open innovation: Towards a research agenda. International Journal of Management Reviews, 9(4), pp.259–280.

^[5] Jiang, F., Pan, T., Wang, J., & Ma, Y. (2024). “To academia or industry: Mobility and impact on ACM Fellows’ scientific careers.” Information Processing & Management, 61(4), 103736.

^[6] ARC (2022) Industry Fellowships Program. Australian Research Council.

^[7] Bozeman, B., Fay, D. & Slade, C. (2012). Research collaboration in universities and academic entrepreneurship: The-state-of-the-art. The Journal of Technology Transfer, 38(1), pp.1–67.

^[8] D’Este, P. & Perkmann, M. (2011). Why do academics engage with industry? The entrepreneurial university and individual motivations. Journal of Technology Transfer, 36(3), pp.316–339.

^[9] Breschi, S., Lissoni, F. & Montobbio, F. (2007). The scientific productivity of academic inventors: New evidence from Italian data. Economics of Innovation and New Technology, 16(2), pp.101–118.

^[10] Wood, M. (2011). A Process Model of Academic Entrepreneurship. Business Horizons, 54(2), pp.153–161.

^[11] Galán-Muros, V. & Davey, T. (2017). The UBC Ecosystem: Putting Together a Comprehensive Framework for University–Business Cooperation. The Journal of Technology Transfer, 44, pp.1311–1346.

^[12] Bekkers, R. & Bodas Freitas, I.M. (2008). Analysing knowledge transfer channels between universities and industry: To what degree do sectors also matter? Research Policy, 37(10), pp.1837–1853.

^[13] Karlsdóttir, V. et al. (2023) ‘Mapping barriers to university–industry collaboration: the Icelandic case’, Industry and Higher Education, 37(6), pp. 792–809.

^[14] Plantec, Q., Cabanes, B., Le Masson, P., & Weil, B. (2023). “Early-career academic engagement in university–industry collaborative PhDs: Research orientation and project performance.” Research Policy, 52(9), 104856.

^[15] Tartari, V. & Salter, A. (2013) ‘The gender gap in university–industry research collaboration’, Research Policy, 42(4), pp. 963–976.

^[16] NSF (2023) I-Corps Participant Demographics. National Science Foundation.

Ready for more?

Our brief Who really makes university-business collaboration happen? Insights into academic and business collaborators takes a deeper look at the individuals who make collaboration work in practice, exploring their motivations, behaviours, and the barriers they face; while also offering strategic recommendations for universities, businesses, and policymakers to better support them.

Arno Meerman (author) is the CEO at UIIN.
Sarah Jaber (author) is the Director at UIIN.
Pablo Morey (infographic) is a Junior Membership Experience Officer at UIIN.