University–industry relationships in Wales: A conceptual study of the role and profile of industry-facing staff

Purpose: This study explores the skills, knowledge and competencies required of Industry-Facing Staff who support university–industry collaboration in Wales and examines how these capabilities contribute to the development and sustainability of effective relationships between universities and business partners. While collaboration is widely recognised as central to regional innovation and economic development, existing literature has focused predominantly on institutional structures, strategic mechanisms and partnership models, rather than the people who facilitate engagement in practice. As a result, the professional capabilities of Industry-Facing Staff remain insufficiently defined or theorised. Positioned within Business Management, the study draws on three complementary theoretical perspectives: the Triple Helix (Etzkowitz & Leydesdorff, 1995), Commitment–Trust Theory (Morgan & Hunt, 1994) and Dominic’s (2021) Conceptual Model of Relationship Managers. Design/Methodology/Approach: A mixed-methods approach was adopted, initially with surveys of industry representatives, Industry-Facing Staff and academic staff to capture expectations, experiences and perceptions of the Industr-Facing Staff role and these findings informed a second phase of semi-structured interviews across the same groups, enabling deeper insight. The literature review critically examined existing university–industry frameworks, while the three theoretical lenses structured the analysis and connected interpersonal, organisational and systemic dimensions of the role. Findings: The findings identified several key capabilities influencing the effectiveness of university–industry collaboration. Across all participant groups, relational qualities such as trust-building, clear communication, responsiveness and continuity were central to successful engagement. Technical knowledge and contextual understanding were also important but held greatest value when combined with strong interpersonal competence. Additionally, the study also found that expectations varied across business size and sector. Originality/Value: This study proposes the Inner Helix, a conceptual extension of existing innovation and relationship models that theorises the relational layer occupied by Industry-Facing Staff and articulates its role in enabling and sustaining university–industry collaboration, alongside an empirically derived profile of Industry-Facing Staff.

Citation

Gough, L. D. (2026). University–industry relationships in Wales: A conceptual study of the role and profile of industry-facing staff

Publisher

University of Chester

URI

https://chesterrep.openrepository.com/handle/10034/630095

Type

Thesis or dissertation