PROFESSOR DYLAN JONES-EVANS

If we are to create a successful knowledge-based economy, then the transfer of knowledge from universities to businesses will be a vital part of that transformation over the next decade. In particular, understanding what actually happens in the interactions between higher education and industry and improving the way both partners work together will be key in maximising the potential to create and support the industries of the future. That is why new research published this week by the Centre for Business Research at the University of Cambridge and the National Centre for Universities and Business (NCUB) should be vital reading for Vice Chancellors, chief executives and policymakers. It is an impressive study and this column will not be able to do justice to all of the results that have emerged from a survey of nearly 4,000 businesses examining how they interact with universities in the UK. However, some of the higher level findings show that universities and businesses do work together...

Like many others at the beginning of this year, I had a long look at what had happened in the previous twelve months and decided to make some changes to my life. Apart from the usual health and fitness promises (some of which, believe it or not, are still being kept), one of the real challenges was being able to make the time to spend with people I find interesting, stimulating and can really add something special to my life. Like everyone else, life had just become too busy to take even a few hours off regularly to catch up with those brilliant individuals who encourage and motivate you to better things. So after talking this through with two close friends - Gareth Jones of Town Square and David Williams of the Youth Development Agency – we decided to each identify a small number of people we would like to invite for a regular night out of great food, good wine and brilliant conversations. As a result, we had our first ‘supper club’ at Casanovas in Cardiff in February and s...

Perhaps it is apt that in the week leading up to today’s Independence Day celebrations that a study commissioned by the computer company Dell identified the USA as the best location, out of 31 countries, for women entrepreneurs. It was followed by Canada, Australia and Sweden, with the UK ranked fifth overall. The “Global Women Entrepreneur Leaders Scorecard” ranked those countries based on key criteria such as business environment, access to resources, leadership and rights, existing pipelines for entrepreneurship, potential women leaders in entrepreneurship and government practices. It also examined key indicators such as the percentage of women chief executives and number of women on company boards. It is a fascinating report and despite the US topping the scorecard, it shows much remains to be done in America and elsewhere to improve the environment for female entrepreneurs. For example, as compared to men, fewer women perceive they have the skills to start up a business o...

A report released last week demonstrated that there is still a long way to go to ensure that small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) take advantage of the professional advice that is on offer to help them develop their business. According to research undertaken by Bibby Financial Services, 23 per cent of SMEs in the UK trust friends and family the most when seeking guidance. This was followed by financial advisers (18 per cent), the internet (14 per cent), accountants (14 per cent) and solicitors (nine per cent). In terms of the key areas in which SMEs need advice, the issue of tax payments is the topic that businesses most frequently seek advice on, followed by sales and marketing, and funding. Some would argue that this is a wake-up call for those advisers supporting businesses. Given this, more needs to be done to ensure that SMEs are linked in directly into the high quality advice that the professional services businesses, both large and small, can provide to the business...