ARC Linkages: Effective Processes and Successful Outcomes

1
ARC LinkagesEffective Processes and Successful
Outcomes

• John McDonald
• Research and Graduate Studies Office
• 23 September 2004

2
Deadlines and Contact

• Linkages-Projects Round 2
• Internal closing date 5 November, 2004
• ARC closing date 26 November, 2004
• Announcements in April/May 2005
• Funding to commence July 2005
• UB grants administration
• Kirsty Bernard in RAGSO
• k.bernard_at_ballarat.edu.au

3
RAGSO Responsibilities (up to point of ARC
submission)

• GAMS registration and maintenance
• Liaise with applicants and answer queries
• Check compliance and eligibility
• Organise feedback by DVC and IRRR Director
• Organise editorial review
• Arrange for UB sign-offs
• Submit electronic and hard copies to ARC

4
Linkage Schemes

• Linkage Projects
• Linkage Infrastructure (L-IEF)
• Build collaboration and resource capacity between
  institutions
• Linkage International
• Fellowships (reciprocal)
• Collaborations between research centres of
  excellence

5
L-P Aims

• Encourage and develop long-term strategic
  research alliances
• Support collaborative research to benefit
  regional and rural communities
• Foster opportunities for postdocs to pursue
  internationally competitive research
• Provide industry-oriented research training for
  HDR students
• Produce world-class researchers to meet industry
  needs

6
L-P Funding

• Research project costs and
• Australian Postdoctoral Fellowships Industry
  (APDI) for those with less than 3 years postdoc
  experience
• Australian Postgraduate Awards Industry (APAI)
  for study to a Masters or PhD
• Linkage Industry Fellowships (LIF) for transfers
  between universities and industry partners
• NB Limited teaching relief for CI

7
L-P Criteria for Assessment

• Track record 20
• Project content
• Significance and innovation 25
• Approach and training 20
• National benefit 10
• Industry partner commitment 25

8
L-P Selection Process

• ARC funding requested gt 150,000
• Independent assessors assigned
• Applicants to comment on assessors reports
• Relative ranking on applications, assessment and
  response
• Assessed budget and make recommendations
• ARC funding requested lt 150,000
• No external assessment or opportunity to comment

9
L-P Industry Partner Contributions

• APAI
• Minimum 5000 cash and 5000 in cash or in kind
  each year
• Additional project costs requested of ARC must be
  matched on at least for
• Additional 50,000 or more requested per year
  combined minimum (inc. for APAIs) should be 20
  of total amount sought
• No APAI
• cash contributions must match sought from ARC
• If gt50,000 per year sought from ARC, cash should
  be 20 of total
• Can apply for exemption from 20 cash requirement
  up to 6 weeks before closing date

10
L-P Selection Report Highlightsfor Round 2, 2004

• National Research Priorities
• ¾ of all applications
• 80 of all funding
• No. applications, success rates, grant sizes
• 581 applications
• 426 involved substantial project support (56
  success rate with average first year funding of
  89,000)
• 155 APAI only (39 success rate with average
  first year funding of 25,000)
• Success rates across discipline groups
  consistently in 48-55 range

11
L-P Selection Report Highlightsfor Round 2, 2004

• LIF underutilised
• 4 applications, 2 funded
• APDI underutilised
• 47 applications, 27 funded

12
L-P Recent Learnings

• UBs application numbers have dropped off
• Opportunity cost of pursuing contracted research
  and tenders
• Some researchers at maximum load (4)
• APAI only applications have lower success rates
• UBs success rates have dropped off
• Reduced ARC emphasis on regional/rural
• Research intensive universities have moved into
  L-P
• Need hard evidence of long-term strategic
  alliance and available infrastructure (not
  opportunistic)
• However, 20 of L-P funding still set aside for
  regional/rural research

13
L-P Recent Learnings

• Shift in character of successful L-P
• Aligned with National Research Priorities
• Based on longer-term strategic alliances with
  industry (rather than one-off/opportunistic)
• Less common to be APAI only with minimum
  contribution from industry
• Often substantial contribution from industry
• Often multiple industry partners and/or peak
  agencies, major companies, state or federal govt
  departments
• Often multiple CIs with substantial track
  records
• Often collaborations between universities or
  research agencies (research-intensive
  universities)

14
L-P Collected Wisdom

• Benefits of L-P
• Success rate is comparatively high (Discovery and
  NHMRC around 20-25)
• Access to industry knowledge
• Better applicability and uptake of research
  outcomes
• Potentially closer involvement compared to
  contracted research
• Leverage for future contracted research

15
L-P Collected Wisdom

• Locating and securing a partner (for life not
  just the wedding ceremony)
• Journals, websites, conferences, working parties,
  committees and boards, staff and student
  contacts, previous contracted research, consortia
• Invest in relationship-building
• ARC reviewers can tell if it is a shotgun or
  arranged marriage
• Strategic partnership in place? Preliminary
  results? Track record of joint work/publications?
• Project Management Team established?

16
L-P Collected Wisdom

• Three stories of research ideas, funding and IP
• 1. ARC Discovery or NHMRC
• Researcher-centered
• 2. Contracted research
• Industry-centered
• 3. ARC Linkages
• Joint or collaborative

17
L-P Collected Wisdom

• Need a local champion for the project within the
  industry (clout to obtain signatures, work
  through contractual issues and get funding
  commitment)
• Set up project management team in 3-6 months
  prior to submission
• Generates shared ownership
• Professional and coordinated approach

18
L-P Collected Wisdom

• Clarify expectations and desired outcomes in the
  earliest stages of the partnership
• Budget commitments and funding cycles
• Resolve IP ownership
• Partner Investigator?