Fundamental elements of university-industry interaction from a grounded theory approach

PurposeThis work aims to analyze the university-industry interaction in innovation ecosystems. The problem under study addresses how agents can operate in university-industry interactions to enhance the connections, specifically in the aspect of operational mechanisms of an innovation ecosystem.Design/methodology/approachThe study is qualitative, applied through grounded theory approach, cross-sectional and multiple sources of evidence - semi-structured interviews were conducted. An explanatory conceptual model was subsequently compared with the literature and validated with specialists.FindingsThe results showed that the university-industry interaction is influenced by several factors, such as networking, legal support, facilitating agents, management practices. Despite this, some other factors were identified for the improvement of U-I relationships, such as: strengthening of triple helix, greater legal certainty and encouragement of open innovation.Research limitations/implicationsThe small sample size and the heterogeneity among the universities interviewed did not allow full saturation to occur. In spite of that, a significant level of saturation with respect to the challenges and barriers was observed.Practical implicationsThis work has a direct dialogue with researchers, managers and actors involved in university-industry interaction with regard to increasing the capacity for creation and dissemination of knowledge among organizations, educational institutions, government and companies.Originality/valueBy adopting a grounded theory approach, a detailed research agenda addresses research needs in two main areas: activities that precede the interaction between universities and companies, and the organization and management of the consequences of collaborative relationships.