From one-off collaboration to embedded practices: SMEs’ trajectories in university-industry collaborative research

Elise Lagasse (), Quentin Plantec, Pascal Le Masson () and Benoit Weil ()
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Elise Lagasse: CGS i3 - Centre de Gestion Scientifique i3 - Mines Paris - PSL (École nationale supérieure des mines de Paris) - PSL - Université Paris Sciences et Lettres - I3 - Institut interdisciplinaire de l’innovation - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Quentin Plantec: TBS - Toulouse Business School
Pascal Le Masson: CGS i3 - Centre de Gestion Scientifique i3 - Mines Paris - PSL (École nationale supérieure des mines de Paris) - PSL - Université Paris Sciences et Lettres - I3 - Institut interdisciplinaire de l’innovation - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
Benoit Weil: CGS i3 - Centre de Gestion Scientifique i3 - Mines Paris - PSL (École nationale supérieure des mines de Paris) - PSL - Université Paris Sciences et Lettres - I3 - Institut interdisciplinaire de l’innovation - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique

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Abstract: Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) remain weakly represented in university–industry collaborations (UIC), despite their importance for innovation and economic growth. Prior research mainly focuses on large firms or analyzes UIC at the level of individual projects, leaving the firm-level dynamics of SMEs' sustained engagement in collaborative research underexplored. This study adopts an evolutionary perspective to examine how SMEs initiate, structure, and institutionalize collaborative research with universities. The study draws on a longitudinal multiple-case analysis of 21 French SMEs engaged in repeated UICs. Based on 32 semi-structured interviews and 83 secondary data sources, we reconstruct firms' engagement trajectories across multiple collaborative research initiatives. Using an inductive process approach, we identify three interrelated phases: preconditions, in which organizational transitions, sectoral needs and CEO exposure to scientific networks shape latent research orientations; formalization, characterized by the adoption of standardized collaboration instruments and explicit research roles; and institutionalization/transformation, where collaborative research becomes embedded in organizational routines, exceeding initial expectations and occasionally becoming a component of the client relationship. By shifting the focus from individual projects to firm-level trajectories, this study contributes a process model of SMEs' sustainable engagement in UIC and offers insights for managers and policymakers seeking to foster durable collaborative research strategies.

Keywords: University-Industry Collaboration (UIC); SMEs; R&D Strategy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026-06-16
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Published in EURAM, Jun 2026, Kristiansand, Norvège, France

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:hal:journl:hal-05572586

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