The corporate world and the academic world are colliding as businesses increasingly forge links with higher education institutes. Meaningful collaboration with higher education institutions is now a key priority for many US multinational companies.
Industry-academia collaboration can take many forms - from internships to course development to research partnerships - but the benefits to both parties are manifold.
According to Lorna Martyn, Ireland regional chairand SVP technology with Fidelity Investments, the technology and financial services industries are constantly evolving. “This means academic courses need to expand and focus on the emerging skills required to develop the next generation of the workforce and upskill those already in employment,” says Martyn.
Fidelity connects with academia on multiple levels, she says, from funding programmes that support access to third-level education to engaging in academic collaboration aimed at solving business problems. This generates new intellectual property and contributes to the development of postgraduate curricula.
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Not only are these long-term relationships mutually beneficial, they fuel the knowledge economy, Martyn says. “We are convinced that ongoing collaboration between industry and academia is one of the essential pathways to address the skills and pipeline challenges.”
These kinds of collaborations have been evolving over many decades, she points out. “The scale and level of connection between industry and academia in Ireland over the years has created a highly connected ecosystem focused on identifying synergies for R & and development of emerging skills.” Investment in education and R & is crucial to future innovation and skills development in Ireland, she adds.
“Industry can offer practical opportunities for undergraduate interns to practise and evolve their skills and prepare for the world of work, while R & relationships with the various centres connect the latest academic thinking with real world challenges to develop new intellectual property and innovative products and solutions.”
Another organisation working directly with academic institutions is Schneider Electric, a sustainability and efficiency partner for the data centres of large American-born multinationals in Ireland. This can have very tangible results. One example is the recent design and delivery of a new data centre cooling infrastructure for University College Dublin, says Rhonda Doyle, director of operations, services and projects at Schneider Ireland. “Our cooling solution is more scalable and efficient and provides resilient cooling for the university’s IT infrastructure,” explains Doyle.. “The cooling solution helps make the facility more energy efficient and unlocks valuable real estate for redevelopment and new educational facilities.”
Like many businesses, Schneider Electric face challenges due to the gap in science, technology, engineering, and maths (STEM) related skills needed to drive the sustainability agenda forward and support the roll-out of decarbonisation technologies. “Across the wider economy we see a general lack of applications for jobs like the day-to-day running of manufacturing facilities, automation of processing plants, which need engineering and IT skills,” says Doyle. “This is why we find it important to engage with organisations such as the Electrical Industries Federation of Ireland (EIFI) as part of our commitment to supporting electrical and engineering talent in Ireland.”
The organisation is also actively involved in mentoring female electrical and engineering undergraduates as part of the ESTEeM programme with Technical University Dublin. Part of the program includes administering the annual Schneider Electric Award, which gives one female student in a STEM subject €3,000 to support her studies.
Skillnet Ireland plays a key role in facilitating the engagement between enterprise and the higher education sector in the co-creation of new programmes to meet future skills, a model often called the triple helix. Many US companies have engaged with Skillnet Ireland to develop new programmes for skills in emerging technologies including in artificial intelligence, data science, blockchain, life sciences, advanced manufacturing, fintech, robotics and cyber, says Tracey Donnery, director of policy and communications at Skillnet Ireland.
“These programmes are largely developed and delivered through Skillnet-directed collaborations with industry and the higher education sector,” she explains. “These partnerships between companies, both US companies and indigenous companies engaging with the higher education sector, drive innovation and support economic development across the economy.”
One example is the Higher Diploma in Engineering in Automation and Digital Manufacturing that was launched earlier this year in association with Atlantic Technological University (ATU) and Skillnet Ireland. This course grew from the partnership between Cobotics Skillnet companies in the advanced manufacturing sector, ATU and the Regional Skills Forum West. The programmes in automation, robotics and digital manufacturing will enable companies to transform and future-proof their businesses and help workers to further develop their careers in robotics.
“This demonstrates the importance of collaboration in driving talent development and will address the skills needs of Irish manufacturing companies in transitioning from manual to automated processes,” Donnery says.
John Shaw is country manager with Legato, which provides IT and business operations services for US health insurers. He says collaboration with academia is a must for their organisation given the nature of their work.
“In our world, the technology changes fast, as does the philosophy,” says Shaw. “We have to keep ourselves fresh with emerging ideas in our sector.” Legato does this by working closely with Science Foundation-funded multi-academic research centres such as CEDAR, Insight and ADAPT.
“The original goal of connecting with these research centres was to access talent through their alumni network but now in the next phase we are looking at how we learn more, innovate more and evolve a business via their framework,” Shaw explains.
“We encounter people who are studying perhaps for a Master’s degree or PhD, and they are seeking their next move but we are also encountering ideas we hadn’t come across before. We might then decide to invest in this research or take a stake in the start-up company. If we find something in the health tech ecosystem in Irish universities, perhaps we can bring that back to the US.”
The benefits extend beyond the company in question, Shaw stresses, noting the “job multiplier effect” and adding: “For every job created in the health tech ecosystem, we see several other jobs created around that.”