Transcript Ritva Laakso

University research, R&D and
business co-operation
President Ritva Laakso-Manninen
HAAGA-HELIA University of Applied Sciences
Helsinki, Finland
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Research and R&D
 Research
 Basic scientific research, the purpose of which is to increase
our understanding of the many phenomena of our world and
society
 Emphasis of which is on an international level and also it is
more often supported by international research funds
 Research and Development
 Applied research geared toward the needs of business and
industry, the purpose of which is not only to understand but
also to be applied in day to day business operations
 It often has a regional emphasis, and it is supported by
national research funds and corporate funding
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The position of traditional universities and UAS
in the knowledge infrastructure
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Applied research is growing rapidly,
major drivers:
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Meeting the needs of a knowledge-based economy
Boosting regional innovativeness
Focus on SME’s
Relevance for professional education
Relevance for professional practice
 Applied research is itself a driver for the development
of business and society as a whole
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(EDUPROF 2009: Research in UAS in Europe)
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Major challenges
 Defining basic research and applied research in
practical situations is not an easy task
 Applied research is sometimes seen as having of less
value
 Applied research requires increased speed in order to
keep up with the operating rhythm of companies
 Companies (especially SME’s) are interested in research
co-operation, but they are not very keen on paying for
it
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(EDUPROF 2009: Research in UAS in Europe)
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Facts of HAAGA-HELIA
 Private University of Applied Sciences
 Student enrolment 10 000 (1000 int.
students), 6 campuses
 Personnel 650/450 teachers
 Bachelor’s and Master’s level education
 International
 Degree Programmes in English, Finnish
and Swedish
 180 international partner institutions
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www.haaga-helia.fi
23.2.2009
Fields of education
Business
Hotel and
restaurant
Vocational teacher
education
Tourism
management
Sports
management
Management
assistant training
Journalism
Information
technology
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R&D at HAAGA-HELIA
 Our aim is to support the competitiveness of business
 The needs of companies are the base for our R&D
operations
 We focus on the following strategic areas:
 Service concepts and sales
 New business opportunities and ICT supporting business
 New learning solutions
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Criteria of a good project at HAAGA-HELIA
The project…
 has a genuine business orientation
 is one of HAAGA-HELIA’s strategic focus areas
 is based on joint planning and operation with corporate
partners
 has external funding
 includes student participants
 pools expertise from different units and has participants
from across HAAGA-HELIA
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Case example:
Workplace communication R&D project
Project objectives
 to investigate what communication is like in knowledge-based
organisations today
 what kinds of expectations are targeted at such organisations
 and also to develop methods for communication planning,
implementation and assessment.
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Workplace communication:
Project phases
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2)
3)
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5) The communication assessment tool was licenced to a corporate partner
who is implementing it with its customers.
6) Research in internationally operating companies
The project included HAAGA-HELIA’s experts and students. Students have
participated in project tasks and completed theses on various aspects of the
project.
Cooperation with companies has been tight, more than 800 participants
from over 70 organisations.
The project has been funded by the Finnish Work Environment Fund,
several companies and HAAGA-HELIA.
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Research of the situation in Finnish companies
Analysis of results together with experts from diverse companies
A book on the results (Juholin 2009: The Revolution in Communications )
Development of a measurement tool for communication assessment
(ComBaro)
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To summarize
 Up-to-date research and R&D are core elements in
advancing modern society, they both contribute to the
development of business and society as a whole
 Both basic and applied research are necessary, they both
have a special role to play
 The key element in national innovation systems is to
integrate research, R&D and business
 Also all higher education should be tied to research and R&D
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Thank you!
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