Partnership and Regionality Group: STEM I

What constitutes a well functioning partnership? Relationship in which all parties have mutual benefits (win – win) Active engagement and commitment of partners Timely responsiveness of partners There must be some clear objectives, ongoing activities Resource sharing Respect of all partners Mechanism for resolution of differences Regular communication and meetings

Are academic and none academic partnerships different, if so how? Yes, they are different? Academic partnership revolves around core mission: training, research, outreach et. None academic partnership are complementary and supportive can receive students for internship, can help with commercialization of outputs Contribute to curricular development Source of research problems Potential employers

Are national and regional partnership different, if so how? Yes, they are, but there are similarities. Different in that National partners come from the same contexts: rules, regulations, similar challenges and national priorities etc. Similar in that they may Share similar development challenges e.g. gender, water, railways etc Common interests Different strengths, experiences, and weaknesses that can complement each other

How do you establish new partnership, with partners who have no or little experience e.g. University – industry? Cultivate ground for partnership Show to partners what you can offer, what you expect from them, and clearly indicate their benefits Create a forum for nurturing the partnership Appears as problem solvers Action oriented approach i.e. indicating that we can add value through training, product development Show how jointly we can provide solutions to the society needs Open the doors of university for bringing the industries experiences to the university

Important Dos and Don’t of partnerships Identify common areas of interest Mutual respects Transparency Accountability Regular communication and meetings Hurt feelings of your partners Misuse of the partnership out of the agreed objectives e.g. for one party gains Disclosure of confidentially agreed outcomes or products

Advantages and disadvantages Well functioning partnership has no disadvantages but there are risk associated with management of partnership Missing of common interest Imbalance benefits to partners Risk of disclosure of confidential information Initial time investment is long Initial steps can be costly Maintaining commitment can be difficult Misplacement of resources Delays in implementation Sharing knowledge, experiences, and skills Sharing resources (financial, human, equipment etc) Capacity building Attract resources as group

How can we maximize advantages How to maximize Sharing knowledge, experiences, and skills Sharing resources (financial, human, equipment etc) Capacity building Attract resources as group Continuous engagement and collaboration Agreeing on how to share the resources Staff exchange, training, seminars, etc Joint proposal, consortiums, consultancies, conferences, get together to celebrate achievements

How can we maximize advantages Disadvantage How to minimize Missing of common interest Imbalance benefits to partners Risk of disclosure of confidential information Initial time investment is long Initial steps can be costly Maintaining commitment can be difficult Misplacement of resources Delays in implementation Partnership agreements with well detailed activities, amount timeline, who is responsible, and reporting. Good planning