Estudo comparativo do desenvolvimento de inovações em ICT’S e de produtos em empresas: o caso de uma tecnologia para o monitoramento do Aedes aegypti

Abstract

Recently, universities have started to act as promoters of innovation in the new knowledge economy. A vivid manifestation of this paradigm shift are academic spin-offs, which arise from the licensing of technologies from university laboratories. A Brazilian example is Ecovec, a spin-off from the Federal University of Minas Gerais and a pioneer in monitoring the Aedes aegypti mosquito. The product development management area provides guidance on how a company should organize itself to implement innovations, with a view to reducing uncertainties. However, little is known about the study of innovation processes carried out at universities and about the barriers faced in the development of innovations aimed at transferring to companies. From the observation of an interaction between the spin-off Ecovec and its university of origin, we observed what kind of uncertainties, complexities and decisions were presente throughout the development of an innovation conducted by partner research institutions. Additionally, the project's complexities and decisions were compared to those observed in the literature of product developments made by companies. The aim of this studt was to investigate the particularities of universities in the development of innovations and how they can organize themselves for innovation. Through the evaluation of the decisions made in the project, it was concluded that some of them were different from those made in projects carried out in companies. The decision to abandon a new concept that emerged during the project and the high relevance of the choice to carry out the intellectual protection of the technology were observed. The complexities and uncertainties already mapped by the literature were repeated in the project. However, there was an underestimation of market uncertainties and a significant reduction of organizational and interorganizational uncertainties due to the presence of long-standing partners and the presence of a Technological Innovation Office with experience with technology transfer contracts. The project, which had the active participation of the author of this study, culminated in an innovation that is in the process of intellectual protection for transfer to the academic spin off, consolidating the university-company partnership and aiming at the conclusion of the cycle of research, development and technology licensing. The evaluation of its particularities is, therefore, evidence of how to organize innovation processes in universities and provokes reflections for future research.