Competition V Connectivity in the Market Place.

Continued improvement in the tertiary education system is in many ways linked to decreasing financial input from the Government since disbanding the free education funding model in New Zealand. The other contributing factor being withdrawal of core funding allocations from our national research organisations to compete in the contestable funding process. This being detrimental to Academics with highly theoretical research interests or emerging researchers as they now compete for funding with professional researchers while balancing full-time teaching. Recent changes to research funding mechanisms have seen areas of national significance and key growth areas targeted by long term financial commitments by the government. These resources are based on the provision that Academic, Institutional and Commercial Collaborations are the main project drivers. This presentation will undertake to identify how Academic freedom, Institutional identity and Commercial sensitivities might be managed to enable successful and ongoing collaborations