The determinants of operational research collaboration effectiveness between industry and academia: the case of the hard disk drive industry in Thailand

Abstract

Even though the issue of inter-organization collaboration has been explored and revealed in various forms, these studies have not covered the different contexts and forms of collaboration specific to operational research collaboration between industry and academia in Thailand. Therefore, it is needed to consider these phenomena in the context of Thailand. The objectives this dissertation intends to discover are: to describe the context of operational research collaboration between industry and academia, to explore the key determinants of effective operational research collaboration between industry and academia, and to propose a model for effective operational research collaboration between industry and academia: The case of the Hard Disk Drive industry in Thailand. A qualitative approach was adopted by the researcher. The sources of data in this study are related documents and in-depth interviews from key informants that have direct experience with operational research collaboration between industry and academia within the case of the Hard Disk Drive industry in Thailand demonstrated at Western Digital (Thailand), BangPa-In factory. The findings of the dissertation describe the context within the dimensions of the research collaboration landscape between Western Digital (Thailand), BangPa-In Factory, and academia that consists of: general background, sources of funds for the research collaboration project, the importance of operational research collaboration between Western Digital in Thailand and academia for both organizational and individual levels, key players of research collaboration, and the operational research collaboration process that explains from start until finish. The findings also suggest that the key determinants affecting the operational research collaboration effectiveness between the HDD industry and academia are as follows: 1) clear scope, goals and objectives, 2) strong commitment of leadership, 3) trust among stakeholders, 4) communication, 5) win-win situation (mutual benefits), 6) characteristic of key stakeholders, and 7) resources. The findings also revealed the key determinants at the sub-level that affected the operational research collaboration effectiveness. The model was formed based on the findings from the mentioned determinants. Understanding the key determinants will further explain the interorganizational relations theory within different contexts, and contribute to the practical perspectives, for enhancing the collaboration effectiveness between industry and academia, that it’s a major trend in the context of Thailand.