DIFFERENT LEVELS OF KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER IN BUILDING A GLOBALLY COMPETITIVE TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER NETWORK

The University Technology Enterprise Network (UTEN), which was launched in March 2007, includes 15 Portuguese Universities and select international partners in a 5-Year program funded by the Portuguese government. Participants in this program included, The Innovation, Creativity, Capital (IC²) Institute at The University of Texas at Austin, The Portuguese National Science Foundation (FCT), Portuguese Technology Transfer Officers (TTOs), and select international partners. The main objective is to accelerate the development of a sustainable, globally competitive, professional technology transfer and commercialization network within Portugal to increase Portugal’s international competitiveness in university–based science and technology transfer and commercialization. To study and explicate key knowledge transfer issues of this project, we use the Knowledge Spiral Model (Nonaka and Takeouchi, 1995) which is based on the distinction between tacit and explicit knowledge theory developed by Poloanyi (1966). Within the Knowledge Spiral Model there are four types of knowledge transformation: 1) Socialization: From tacit to tacit. 2) Externalization: From tacit to explicit. 3) Combination: From explicit to explicit. 4) Internalization: From explicit to tacit. In the UTEN Program, there are specific set of activities and programs related to each of the Knowledge Spiral’s Model four groups of knowledge transformation. These UTEN activities include: International Workshops, Training Weeks, On-the-Job-Training, International Internships, and In-Situ (In-Situation) Training.