Examining alliance management capabilities in university-industry collaboration

Effective university-industry technology transfer requires universities to maintain and strengthen research and technology capabilities on the one hand, but also to develop and strengthen management capabilities to build and manage relationships with external partners on the other hand. This research seeks to advance the knowledge on university-industry collaboration by examining how managerial routines that in sum reflect the concept of alliance management capability influence success of outward university technology transfer. The results of an empirical study with academics from different universities in Germany offer insights into net effects and configurational effects of routines to manage interorganizational collaboration on technology transfer success. The findings indicate that academic units’ alliance management capability has a significant positive effect on technology transfer success. In addition, the findings indicate different configurations of alliance management routines, reflecting alternative, consistently sufficient pathways to technology transfer success. This knowledge contributes to current debates by disclosing important predictors of successful university-industry collaboration. In addition, it informs decision makers in universities about how to configure management systems to govern outward technology transfer activity.