HUMANE: Barcelona 2006
Present UK Trends in Research Policy and Management
Jonathan NichollsRegistrar and Secretary
University of Birmingham
UK International Impact in Science
• UK is punching well above its weight - second only to the United States on most of the measures
• UK gives excellent value for money from its research budget - we are number one in the G8 on efficiency measures.
• For more detail see: David A King, “The Scientific Impact of Nations”, Nature 430, pp. 311 -316 (http://www.dti.gov.uk/science/science-funding/budget/uk_research_base/page29207.html)
Impact of UK Research Relative to World Average
Rebased average impact (world = 1.0) for G8 nations
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1.0
1.2
1.4
1.6
1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
Year
Re
bas
ed
Im
pa
ct
UK
USA
CANADA
FRANCE
GERMANY
ITALY
JAPAN
RUSSIA
EUROPEAN UNION
Data: Thomson ISI® National Science Indicators
Distribution of Citation Impact for Total UK Research 1995-2004
source: HEPI [www.hepi.ac.uk]
0
5
10
15
20
25
RBI = 0 RBI >0 - 0.125 RBI 0.125 - 0.25 RBI 0.25 - 0.5 RBI 0.5 - 1 RBI 1 - 2 RBI 2 - 4 RBI 4 - 8 RBI > 8
Per
cen
tag
e o
f o
utp
ut
1995
-200
4
% of UK output over decade
UK published 680,000 paper with a 10-year average rebased impact (RBI) of 1.24
2006 Shanghai Jiao Tong World League Table
Rank Institution Score
1 Harvard 100
2 Cambridge 72.6
3 Stanford 72.5
4 Berkeley 72.1
5 MIT 69.6
6 CalTech 66
7 Columbia 61.8
8 Princeton 58.6
9 Chicago 58.6
10 Oxford 57.6
11 Yale 55.9
12 Cornell 54.1
13 San Diego 50.5
14 UCLA 50.4
15 Pennsylvania 50.1
Trends in Gross Domestic Expenditure on R and D
Gross Expenditure on R and D by Sector 2003
UK Science Budget
£M 04/05 05/06 06/07 07/08
Science
Budget2734 3087
+13%
3235
+5%
3451
+7%Of which
Resource 2519 2883 3001 3197
Capital 215 204 234 254
HEI research incomeExpenditure by Funding Councils and other funders
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
88-89 89-90 90-91 91-92 92-93 93-94 94-95 95-96 96-97 97-98 98-99 99-00 00-01 01-02 02-03
£ m
illio
n
FCs
Total project funders
Trends in UK Research Policy
• The Future of the Research Assessment Exercise
• Full Economic Costing of Research• Serving National Economic and Social Priorities• Serving the Needs of Industry• The Regional Agenda• Exploitation of Intellectual Property• How is Management Evolving to Face these
Challenges?
UK Universities’ Sources of Research
Income 2004/05 Source: HESA [www.hesa.ac.uk]
Source by Type Amount in £m Percentage
OSI Research Councils 927 32%
UK-based Charities 700 24%
UK Government Bodies (incl.Health)
566 20%
UK Industry 243 8%
EU Government 202 7%
EU Other Sources 34 1%
Other Overseas 151 5%
Other Sources 61 2%
TOTAL 2,884
Advantages of RAE in UK• Has provided a benchmark of quality accepted across the HE sector• Major influence in improving quality and output• Provides a lexicon for basing quality decisions between universities• Provides data to assist universities in internal decision-making• Is independent in its judgements from government and interest
groups in the sector• Has assisted in promoting the idea of a diverse sector (except for
the English “genius” of creating a hierarchy out of a difference!)• Has provided a largely reliable method of concentrating £1bn a year
selectively in departments and universities where there is demonstrable excellence
Change in research active staff
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
1 2 3b 3a 4 5 5*
Rating
Re
se
arc
h a
cti
ve
sta
ff
1996
2001
Disadvantages of RAE in UK
• Has become bureaucratic and beset by gamesmanship that distorts the process and outcomes
• Causes unnatural cyclical behaviour in writing papers, hiring staff which is sometimes inimical to long-term planning
• Induces non-linear behaviour in universities• Has distracted from the core business of teaching and
education (particularly at a time of new fees)• It deters certain forms of research because of (mis?)-
conceptions about their value in the peer-review process• The business of selectivity has now taken place – there
is little significant movement in the top twenty universities after each exercise
The Debate about RAE Reform
• Has the RAE served its purpose – if so, what will replace it and when?
• Can the distribution of funding (currently >£1bn per year) be based on metrics?
• Would such an approach disadvantage the Arts and Social Sciences?
• To move to a sustainable, world class research base over the next few years– Quality is high– But finances not sustainable
• Government expects HEIs to recover FEC for research “taking one year with another”– Knowing the Full Economic Cost– Pricing for sustainability– Adequate re-investment
Full Economic Costing [FEC]:The Government’s Vision
What is Full Economic Costing in the UK?• Directly Incurred Costs
– Research Assistants– Technicians– Equipment, consumables etc.
• Directly Allocated Costs– Principal and Co-Investigators (estimate of time)– Estates costs (£ per FTE)– Specialist facilities, pooled support staff (usage)
• Indirect Costs (£ per FTE)
Who will pay the Full Economic Cost?
• fEC only determines COST not PRICE• From September 2005, all Research Council
applications must be based on fEC.• Research Councils’ price will be 80 % of the
fEC• Charities unlikely to meet full cost• Prices to other sponsors to be fEC or more• We will need to make choices about what we
do if we are to be sustainable
Pricing StrategiesType of work Pricing
Research of high academic value and prestige (RAE benefits, IPR etc.) [Core Teaching]
At least all directly incurred and directly allocated costs
(loss-leader)
Applied research (little addition to HE knowledge base or IPR), short courses, PG students, T contracts (discretionary T)
fEC
(sustainable)
Consultancy (knowledge activity, but no IPR), overseas students
fEC plus (never below)
(makes a contribution above costs)
Commercial (minimal academic benefit) Market price informed by fEC
(surplus for subsidy and investment)
Serving National Economic and Social Needs
• Powerful thrust of policy that university research must be focused on national priorities since 1980s but gathering force again
• Already changes in medical research to reflect this.
• Possible that the amount of state funding for each subject will be altered in consequence
• Greater prominence given to so-called applied research or the application of research
• May have serious consequences for subject balance in universities
Serving the Needs of Industry
• In its response to the review of the RAE, the employers’ federation (CBI) has pressed hard for greater prominence to be given to indicators directly related to work that is valuable to industry
• Government believes that industry should have a greater say on what is funded and what work universities undertake
• This has problems, particularly in the SME sector and in balancing short-term focus with longer-term research with no immediate benefit
• How well does industry serve the needs of universties?
Regional Development Agency Budgets
Total RDA Allocations by Region £ million £ million £ million
2005-06 2006-07 2007-08
Advantage West Midlands 272 284 291
East of England Development Agency 129 134 138
East Midlands Development Agency 156 163 167
London Development Agency 373 391 400
North West Development Agency 382 400 409
One NorthEast 240 251 258
South East England Development Agency 157 163 167
South West of England Development Agency 153 159 164
Yorkshire Forward 295 310 316
Totals 2,157 2,256 2,309
What do the RDAs Do?
• To further economic development and regeneration
• To promote business efficiency, investment and competitiveness
• To promote employment
• To enhance development and application of skill relevant to employment
• To contribute to sustainable development
Extension of the Role of RDAs
• Each has a body often called an Innovation and Technology Council.
• A view is forming that RDAs should have more control over public research funding in the UK to ensure it is meeting regional priorities
Exploitation of IP
• Improved performance in recent years• Stimulated by government policy and by
the provision of new funding to launch projects, appoint specialist staff, etc.
• Key feature of Government policy in terms of serving the needs of the economy and society
• Increasingly valuable to universities but not to be over-stated
Total Revenue and Costs of IP Activities in UK HE (real terms)
IP Income by Source in UK HE (real terms)
Number of Disclosures made by UK Universities
Number of FTE Staff engage in Business and Community Activity in
UK Universities
Income from Collaborative Research in UK Universities
The Management Challenge
• Research is a business and has developed commercial characteristics
• Different specialists now needed to support research:– Networkers (internally and externally)– Financial experts (FEC)– Commercial experts (Pricing research and selling it)– Contract specialists (protecting interests/compliance)– Business developers (sources of funds/new partners)– IP exploiters (straddling the university and industry)– Research park managers– Partnership brokers (managing strategic partnerships)– Lobbyists (making the case with government/agencies)
The Management Response
• Find structural solutions that integrate the specialists and integrate them where research is conducted and funded
• Establish a one-stop shop or portal for potential funders and partners and for your own staff
• Recruit or develop staff with the new skills required to succeed
• Improve governance arrangements to set boundaries not to impede
• Learn to manage entrepreneurs (The New Cowboy - Google Video)
Thank You for Listening
Any Questions?
Jonathan Nicholls
University of Birmingham