Determinants of effective knowledge transfer from academic researchers to industry practitioners

Engagement of academic researchers in dissemination of research-generated knowledge to industry is expected to increase the impact of research. We employed a mixed- methods research approach to identify and investigate the factors that may determine the effectiveness of such engagement at the individual level by investigating knowledge-transfer activities of researchers in the IT outsourcing field. The findings indicate researchers’ motivation, knowledge transfer mechanisms, and communication/interaction channels with industry may explain effective knowledge transfer. Impact-minded researchers were significantly more effective than publication-minded researchers in knowledge transfer. Recommendations to research managers and policy makers are provided.