University technology transfer - why so difficult?(dondodge.typepad.com)
dondodge.typepad.com
University technology transfer - why so difficult?
http://dondodge.typepad.com/the_next_big_thing/2010/04/university-technology-transfer-why-so-difficult.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+TheNextBigThing+%28The+Next+Big+Thing%29&utm_content=Google+Reader
In the commercial world, we expect any idea to fail many, many times before we figure out how to make it work for the market. We embrace, rather than stigmatize, failure. Academics are conditioned to view failure as, at best, deeply embarrassing and, at worst, career-ending.
My experience is, of course, anecdotal, so take it for what it's worth. The researchers I met cared more about science than money, and because they perceived the commercialization process as potentially damaging to their academic careers, they threw a huge fit when technology transfer was broached. In the end, the university backed off (which warrants another discussion altogether).