Researchers looking at true world

Researchers looking at true world.....
The new Institute for Business Research being launched in Tauranga
The new Institute for Business Research at the University of Waikato is being launched in Tauranga on Friday December 3.

A lot of good business research information is not finding its way to the business community that can best make use of it, says institute director Stuart Locke.

The Waikato University Institute for Business Research is being created partly to encourage the Waikato and Bay of Plenty business communities to ask questions that dig into that intellectual property, says institute director Stuart Locke.

The average academic spends 40 percent of the time on research, 40 per cent teaching and 20 per cent on administration.

With the top management school in the country, Waikato University has some really good research sitting around not being used by the business community, says Stuart.

The IBR is also envisaged as an employment agency for PhD students looking for suitable research projects.

The intention is to attract the interest of businesses that have significant issues, and team them up with up to date research information. If existing research doesn’t apply, then new research can be undertaken.

“I think we are the first cab off the rank in terms of this sort of thing in New Zealand,” says Stuart, who works with the IBR’s Agribusiness Research Group.

The new Institute for Business Research is being launched at the University of Waikato on Thursday December 2 in Hamilton, and on Friday December 3 in Tauranga.

Keynote speaker at the openings is Professor David Hensher, the Founding Director of the Institute of Transport and Logistics Studies (ITLS) and Professor of Management at the University of Sydney.

An authority on urban transport issue, David is the recipient of the 2009 IATBR Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition for his long-standing and exceptional contribution to the wider travel behaviour community. He’s a member of the Singapore Land Transport Authority International Advisory Panel, and is the author of 12 books.
David is a frequent commentator in Australian media, on the broader issues of private participation in infrastructure, especially toll roads, congestion charging and the role in urban areas of rail vs bus transport.