Think about why you want to collaborate
Before you start looking for collaboration partners, it is a good idea to consider some basic questions. Once you have a clear picture of the purpose, it is easier to find the right type of partner and build a sustainable foundation for the collaboration.
Consider the following:
- What do you hope to gain from the collaboration?
- What role can you and your research play?
- How much time and resources are you able to allocate?
Get to know each other and one another’s requirements
It is easy to assume that others understand the demands of academia. At the same time, it is not uncommon for us to have limited understanding of the missions and logic of other organisations. To build trust and avoid misunderstandings, it is important to build a shared understanding from the start.
Spend time:
- explaining the research process – with uncertainties, long-term planning and publication requirements;
- listening to your partner’s realities, incentives and goals;
- discussing your various motivations: why do you want to collaborate and what does “results” mean to each of you?
Be clear about expectations and responsibility
Collaboration can be complex, especially when different organisations with different goals, time perspectives and lingo are to work together. Discussing roles, responsibilities and goals early on reduces the risk of future misunderstandings.
Formulate:
- what you want to achieve and why;
- who is responsible for what;
- how you will allocate time, budget and resources; and
- how you will make decisions, report and keep in touch.
Manage legal and ethical issues in a timely manner
Legal and ethical issues may look different depending on the type of collaboration. These could involve data sharing, intellectual property rights or access to public information.
Many collaborations require discussing such issues as:
- how data is managed;
- whether and how results may be disseminated; and
- what applies when information is classified as secret.
If you are clear from the start, it is easier to avoid disagreements later on.
Stay in contact
Planned meetings are all very well and good, but reality often forces changes. Individuals change jobs, other priorities arise and time pressure can make arranging meetings more difficult. This makes it even more important to stay in touch.
Clear communication, even when there is nothing new to report, builds trust and prevents speculation.
Rounding off the collaboration
When a collaborative project comes to an end, it can be tempting to just move on to the next assignment. But setting aside time for joint reflection can have a big impact, both for lessons learned and future collaboration.
Take the time to discuss how the project went:
- Did you achieve what you wanted?
- What worked well?
- What can be improved for next time?
Would you like help?
Help is available, both before and during a collaboration.
- Would you like to discuss designing a collaboration or forms it could take?
The Research Support and Collaboration Office can serve as a sounding board and provide guidance.
Contact fos@umu.se - Do you have questions about real-world impact or commercialisation?
Innovation Support provides advice on how research results can benefit society.
Contact info@umuholding.se - Do you need help with agreements or have legal questions?
The Legal Affairs Office provides support on agreements, secrecy and other legal aspects of collaborations.
Contact universitetsjurist@umu.se
Suggestion: Leverage the experience of others
You can gain valuable insights by talking to colleagues who have previously collaborated externally.
