ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE AS A DETERMINANT OF ACADEMIC PATENT AND LICENSING BEHA VIOR: A SURVEY OF AMERICAN RESEARCH UNIVERSITIES Prepared for: The Committee on Management of University Intellectual Property: Lessons from a Generation of Experience, Resear

Abstract: This study examines the influences of university organizational structure on technology transfer performance. The analysis treats the organizational structure of the technology-transfer office as an independent variable that accounts, in part, for measured differences in inter-institutional patenting, licensing, and sponsored research activities. We derive and investigate hypotheses that link attributes of organizational form – information processing capacity, coordination capability and incentive alignment – to technology transfer outcomes. A detailed analysis of survey data from American major research universities provides evidence of the existence of alternative organizational structures. The data also suggest that these organizational capabilities result in differences in technology transfer activity