Abstract:

Over the past 25 years, the Thai gems and jewelry program has been successful in developing human resources at the middle management level in the industry, following the triple helix model of collaboration among university, industry, and government. Despite such success, research innovations from the program have not been well-established to support rapid industrial growth. This research paper proposes two practical frameworks for sustainable business development, based on university-industry experiences. The startup model receives fundamental support from a university to run activities in order to instill an entrepreneurial mindset in students. In this model, students are the key driving force to deliver successful startup businesses. The second partnership model is funded by the government through a budget for academic services projects with local communities. Organizations seeking new opportunities to develop businesses that are community driven with university assistance could fall into this model, leading to more sustainable business development among community, university, and industry. Successful cases from the gems and jewelry program are discussed for further both research and managerial implications.

Keywords:

Jewelry, Triple Helix, Startup, Partnership, Entrepreneur.