Industry xChange Retreats to Develop the Enterprising Researcher (QAA 12567) #FEEUK

Industry xChange Retreats to Develop the Enterprising Researcher (QAA 12567) #FEEUK

Group Size ? 1.) Small group (teams of 4-6)
2.) Individual Task
3.) Large Group
4.) Any

Large Group

Learning Environment ? 1.) Lecture Theatre
2.) Presentation Space
3.) Carousel Tables (small working group)
4.) Any
5.) Outside
6.) Special

Any

QAA Enterprise Theme(s) ? 1.) Creativity and Innovation
2.) Opportunity recognition, creation and evaluation
3.) Decision making supported by critical analysis and judgement
4.) Implementation of ideas through leadership and management
5.) Reflection and Action
6.) Interpersonal Skills
7.) Communication and Strategy

1Creativity and Innovation 2Opportunity recognition‚ creation and evaluation 5Reflection and Action 6Interpersonal Skills 7Communication and Strategy

Objective:

To create opportunities for all postgraduate researchers across the College to participate in enhanced professional development through interaction with industry

Introduction:

This case study describes the retreat model as part of an EPSRC-funded Industry & Enterprise programme. The retreats were residential and delivered face-to-face in various 1, 2 and 3-day formats and then more recently online. The retreats are themed according to the government’s Industrial Strategy challenges. Retreat participants are involved in a range of practical activities aimed at networking and knowledge exchange, creating impact in industry from research, working on innovation and idea generation and receiving advice and developmental support through observations and feedback. The core component of the xChange retreats is to connect doctoral student talent toindustry representatives to understand key trends in the sectors, the skills that industry are looking for and how to transform academic ideas into real business innovation. 

On completion of the retreat, students will be better able to: 

  • Identify pathways to impact for research and industrial challenges
  • Assess industry requirements and use appropriate communication strategies
  • Employ innovation / entrepreneurial skills and attributes
  • Develop successful communication skills for innovation, ideas and influence

 

Activity: 

 

The residential retreat can be held over 1-3 days and can be tailored with a mix of activities. Students are divided into inter-disciplinary groups and are assigned a coach. The retreats involve heavy input from industry who are predominantly alumni and operate in areas relevant to the retreat’s industrial theme. Retreats can take place across the UK and in locations that have significance for the theme and where companies or companion events are co- located. 

 

Day One is about communicating research and developing a more entrepreneurial mindset: 

 

  • Pitching and presentation coaching
  • Industry panel presentations and Q&A
  • Students pitch to industry (via a concept poster when face-to-face and slide deck online) 

 

 

 

Days Two and Three are about engaging in a practical activity to understand industry challenges and display enterprising skills: 

 

  • Entrepreneurial masterclass
  • Site tour and/or industry networking event / EXPO
  • Challenge activity to solve a real-life business problem

 

Impact:

 

Student feedback demonstrates immediate impact post-retreat and in the long term after follow-up 4-6 months later. 

 

Student Feedback (post-retreat) 

“Working closely with prestigious and experienced mentors on how to communicate effectively. There were quite a few nuggets of information given throughout the day that are invaluable in the industry-partnerships/commercialisation world and have honestly strengthened my own attitude towards communication.”

 

This student recognised the value of role models to help them reflect and strengthen their attitude and abilities. The role models give them something to emulate or in threshold concept terms ‘mimic’, which suggests that it is an important practice step towards developing the appropriate mindset.

 

“When I signed up for the retreat, I was not too sure it would be very beneficial to me, given that the invited speakers were not directly related to my industries of interest. However, I am glad to have attended the course and I am glad to be better equipped to face my research, knowing that with an innovative mindset, there are more career prospects for me.”

 

This student overcame what was initially perceived as a barrier to learning and identified that having an entrepreneurial mindset could afford a flexibility in opportunities and perhaps find a new professional identity.

 

“To be honest, I registered for this event purely for the exhibition, and I did not expect muchfrom the course. However, I gained much more than I expected. […] I gained a lot of insight and recognised my own weakness. Thanks for all the speakers, they bring me new horizons, newexperience from the industry world. These somehow encouraged me to talk bold, approachothers more actively and think outside the box. The main msg: Practice and keep learning! I am inspired by how these entrepreneurs keep learning regardless what age they are. That is what makes them successful!”

 

This student’s learning was transformative and changed their view of the world. The student shows promise of developing a growth mindset in that they recognised that opportunities to develop are constantly evolving and therefore creating a wider range of possibilities.

 

Student Feedback (4-6 months later)

 

A follow-up survey repeated some of the relevant questions from the post-retreat evaluation to assess whetherknowledge has been sustained or put into practice. It also included some new questions to determine perceived behaviour change, types of impact and open-ended questions about any successes or barriers experienced in implementing the practices learned from the retreat:

 

·       Agreement in meeting the learning outcomes was still generally high even six months later, which shows thatknowledge and practice gained from the retreat has been sustained

Confidence in applying skills, the help from the materials and recommending the retreat to others are all rated more highly than six months ago

 

·       Ratings on industry activities, such as networking with industry and pitching are rated consistently as six months ago. Satisfaction that the activities and course content were a valuable use of their time is rated higher than six months ago, which indicates that the value of industry engagement activities still endure

 

·       The top three practices that students implemented post-retreat in ranking order were: 1) made new connections with fellow students on the programme – this resonates with one of the reasons for attending the retreat, which was to meet researchers from other departments; 2) helped to inform research – this demonstrates a cross-fertilising effect the retreat had for students in being able to showcase their research to industry via the pitchingexercise, but also advance knowledge of their own area; and 3) focused job hunting  this shows a benefit in thestudents being able to target appropriate, or realise new companies or industry sectors

The top three aspects that had benefited students the most in the past six months in ranking order were: 1)communicating research; informing career choices; and informing research.

 

Resources:

 

 

  • Post-its
  • A1 A4 paper and pens
  • Concept poster template

 

References:

Imperial College London, Graduate School: Industry & Enterprise programme

 

About the Author
This guide was produced by Dr Jane-Lisa Coughlan (Senior Teaching Fellow (Industry & Enterprise), Imperial College London).