Dynamic capabilities, subnational environment, and university technology transfer

Abstract

University technology transfer allows universities to extract benefits from their research. We examine how universities can create and capture value from their technology creation and technology commercialization efforts by embracing a dynamic capabilities perspective. Our longitudinal analysis involves 829 universities and 3908 university-year observations in 30 subnational regions (provinces) in China during a 6-year period. Our findings reveal (1) that universities create more ideas and capture more licensing value through dynamic management and active orchestration of assets, (2) that a developed factor market accelerates value creation and commercialization, and (3) that a developed institutional environment at the subnational level stimulates value creation but inhibits value capture. These interesting findings justify a dynamic capabilities perspective of the university technology transfer process while opening avenues for future research.