Abstract:

The collaboration between Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and companies plays a critical role in fostering innovation and driving economic growth. However, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) often encounter challenges in approaching HEI due to limited awareness, complexity, and resource constraints. This paper explores the Duunissa24 initiative, implemented by Finnish HEI, which aims to bridge the gap between SMEs and HEI by facilitating inter-sectoral mobility. The core concept of Duunissa24 involves sending HEI management personnel to work in companies for a day. The concept allows the participants to gain firsthand experience, better understand the needs of the companies, identify opportunities for collaboration, find innovative cases and facilitate their integration back into the HEIs curricula and RDI activities. This paper discusses the advantages of observation and participation over traditional interview-based methods, highlighting the potential for interviewer bias and companies' reluctance to openly discuss their problems. The insights gained from the Duunissa24 initiative provide valuable guidance for RDI organizations, policymakers, and other stakeholders interested in strengthening the collaboration between academia and industry.

Keywords:

University-Industry Cooperation, participatory approach, experiment, SMEs.