The final dissemination event organized by University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, took place online October 8, 2021.
5 external representatives of business participated, together with 40 university stakeholders – academic and non-academic staff, and students.
The event was opened by the International Relations Office of the University and the University’s Deputy Vice Chancellor. The agenda was focused on the results and impact of the INNOTAL Project, the activities of the Talent Development Lab, and the benefits from the project.
A few questions were raised by the participants about the issue of less demand for research commercialization from the industrial sector in the country and the mechanism of using the physical resources of the Talent Development Lab by university students and faculty under the prevailing situation. The discussion then focused on the development of new food products by the university over the years, and the observation that student research has had very limited commercialization due to poor demand from the industry. It was found that most of the innovations were conducted without identifying the proper consumer demand gaps. Research has gone in the direction of the interest of the research team, keeping the target consumer insufficiently involved. On the other hand, the industry expects to get everything free of charge form public institutions.
The final proposal was to use proper design thinking approach with student teams and external stakeholders. A new concept of “prosumer” was proposed - a pre-analysis between producer and consumer to produce what the consumer really needs before starting any new production or enterprise.
To address the current issues of accessibility due to frequent curfew and university closure, the team proposed to use the online e-lab platform for linking industry, faculty and students.
The deputy Vice Chancellor highlighted the importance of the INNOTAL project and the Lab resources for enhancing graduates’ employability, innovation and the business commercialization activities of the university centres. The meeting raised further awareness of the purpose of the Talent Development Lab, and the entrepreneurship training modules developed in the project.
5 external representatives of business participated, together with 40 university stakeholders – academic and non-academic staff, and students.
The event was opened by the International Relations Office of the University and the University’s Deputy Vice Chancellor. The agenda was focused on the results and impact of the INNOTAL Project, the activities of the Talent Development Lab, and the benefits from the project.
A few questions were raised by the participants about the issue of less demand for research commercialization from the industrial sector in the country and the mechanism of using the physical resources of the Talent Development Lab by university students and faculty under the prevailing situation. The discussion then focused on the development of new food products by the university over the years, and the observation that student research has had very limited commercialization due to poor demand from the industry. It was found that most of the innovations were conducted without identifying the proper consumer demand gaps. Research has gone in the direction of the interest of the research team, keeping the target consumer insufficiently involved. On the other hand, the industry expects to get everything free of charge form public institutions.
The final proposal was to use proper design thinking approach with student teams and external stakeholders. A new concept of “prosumer” was proposed - a pre-analysis between producer and consumer to produce what the consumer really needs before starting any new production or enterprise.
To address the current issues of accessibility due to frequent curfew and university closure, the team proposed to use the online e-lab platform for linking industry, faculty and students.
The deputy Vice Chancellor highlighted the importance of the INNOTAL project and the Lab resources for enhancing graduates’ employability, innovation and the business commercialization activities of the university centres. The meeting raised further awareness of the purpose of the Talent Development Lab, and the entrepreneurship training modules developed in the project.
