Double helix formation of POSTECH and SKKU
In order to understand the evolutionary cycle of the university within the Corporate Helix model during the double helix formation, three stages are proposed: the concession stage, the inauguration stage, and the assimilation stage.
The concession stage
Pohang Steel Company POSCO had established and solely funded POSTECH University, modeled after the California Institute of Technology in 1986. The Caltech model served as an appropriate model for replication owing to its strong emphasis on science and engineering, its relatively small campus size, and its short history of establishment - key factors that could deliver POSTECH’s vision of eventually becoming the national pride and symbol of science and technology innovation. This event reflected the emergence of an evolutionary era of universities in Korea. There was a growing realization within the key leadership of POSCO that education can drive the necessary social reforms (Innace and Dress 1992). This could further enable the growth and development of the world’s best possible research-oriented university that can provide the necessary manpower to enable Korea’s strengthened position in the international community. There was recognition of the need to create technologies and applications as part of an initial push to develop the nation. POSTECH’s leadership acknowledged that only through originality, innovation, and ingenuity can the intellect and the university be driven towards the quest for knowledge and new discoveries (Cho 2008).
In contrast to POSTECH, SKKU, which was considered the most traditional ivory tower university, was acquired by Samsung Corporation in 1996. Prior to the acquisition, SKKU had been stagnant during the last decade when the traditional education system of Korea faced challenges inside and outside the nation as a result of globalization (Cho 2013). The community of SKKU recognized that a strategic plan for survival was required in such a changing environment. Samsung did not initially view SKKU as a strategic partner. It had assisted SKKU towards becoming an independent entity through the Triple Helix model path. However, over time, given SKKU’s need for a strategic and sustainable plan for survival and for Samsung’s Medical Center’s (established in 1982) need for affiliation with biomedical research for its own sustainability (as advancing medical treatments need to be supplemented by biomedical scientific research), a consensus for corporation acquisition of SKKU was led by SKKU (Cho 2013).
Prior to 1996 the initial dialog between SKKU and Samsung during the acquisition stage did not fare well as a result of differences in each’s scope of interests. Samsung did not initially view SKKU as a strategic partner. Samsung had been supporting more than 25 universities in the nation with funding for over twenty years in Korea through the ‘Samsung Lee Kun Hee Foundation. Samsung was not interested in intensive investment into any single university such as SKKU. Consensus between the two had not been realized until the proposal of the establishment of the medical school for Samsung and the creation and/or reinforcement of programs related to technological innovations, by SKKU’s President Bum Jin Jung. Within SKKU, there was already mutual understanding among faculty members that SKKU would require large pools of financial investments to replace depreciating facilities, to enroll talented students and recruit and retain distinguished faculties in diverse areas.
Nonetheless, the inclusion of the establishment of the medical school for Samsung by SKKU’s key leadership in the acquisition package proved timely and attractive to both Samsung and SKKU. Also included were propositions for capitalizing on SKKU’s pool of research scientists and faculty members in science and technology that could tremendously contribute to Samsung’s innovation process. Furthermore, SKKU’s community also looked forward to Samsung undertaking key managerial roles as a result of the university’s depletion in internal capacity to raise the university’s competitiveness and comparative advantage (Cho 2013). This observation of the initial stages of the double helix formation between University and Industry leads us to the first proposition:
Proposition 1: Double helix formation between University and Industry is initiated through a two-way flexible approach, i.e., the establishment of the University or the acquisition of the University.
The inauguration stage
The establishment of POSTECH was made possible through devotion of key leadership. In the summer of 1986, the Ministry of Education permitted the establishment of POSTECH. POSTECH’s president began recruitment of top faculties among active Korean professors in the USA and Europe. Around 200 distinguished Korean scientists were recruited in ten different Science and Technology departments. Majority of the recruits held specialized doctoral degrees and were the ones who returned to Korea to continue research at POSTECH after years of lecturing at major universities in the USA and abroad. Faculties in POSTECH were awarded one of the highest salaries in the nation and were provided with full support of laboratories, equipments, research funds, and free housing. POSTECH faculty proved a dedicated role in assisting Korea to pursue self-sufficiency (Cho 2008).
In 1996 Samsung decided to acquire SKKU through a joint-venture. A proposal had been submitted to the Ministry of Education for establishment of a medical school by SKKU. During this critical stage, the role and support of the government proved significant since the Korean community exhibited a rather conservative outlook regarding academia that supported the underlying principles of the New Economics of Science view, i.e., academia should stay separated from the private sector. Nonetheless, the government endorsed the proposal and assisted in facilitating the alliance between SKKU and Samsung while providing administrative support to expedite the hybridization between academia and corporation (Cho 2013). Thus, the key role of the Korean government observed during the double helix formation stage leads to the next proposition:
Proposition 2: University and Industry will be better able to integrate double helix formation efforts for the purpose of technological catch-up through the initial facilitation and support of the national government.
The assimilation stage
POSCO and POSTECH key leadership acknowledged that a new research institute would be required and needed to be in proximity to POSTECH for knowledge application and for accelerating the testing process of the applicability of scientific discovery from the university. The Research Institute of Industrial Science and Technology (RIST) was consequently established in March 1987 (Cho 2008). Activities at RIST ranged from short-term projects for industry to future-oriented projects for the development of strategic technology. Studies encompassed areas of iron and steel technology, general science and engineering, advanced materials, management, and economics (Innace and Dress 1992). An advanced science and technology manpower base was eventually secured by RIST.
Moreover, aside from RIST, POSTECH also hosted the Pohang Accelerator Laboratory (a national users’ facility and the only synchrotron light source in Korea). This allowed for the analysis of the atomic structure and drew the attention of researchers worldwide. The installation of the synchrotron light source became Korea’s turning point in scientific development. POSTECH learned to become engaged in research and development through supporting over 60 research centers within its campus. As a result of the availability of the research potential and resource-sharing at POSTECH, the university was able to atract top professors and researchers from around the world (Cho 2008).
In 1994, POSCO’s newly appointed senior management established the POSTECH foundation. As a result USD 140 million of funds had been invested into POSTECH. Eventually, additional endowment was provided to POSTECH under the new industry-academy alliance concept. Within this arrangement POSCO supports research that POSTECH conducts while earning the right to review all scientific findings and the right to commercialize (Cho 2008). There was also endorsed profit-sharing agreement from patents between POSCO and POSTECH. In 2000 a USD 300-million endowment was released by POSCO out of which USD 35 million was devoted to the construction of the POSTECH Biotech Centre. Aside from RIST, the Information Science Centre and the Graduate School of Iron and Steel Technology (GSIST) were also established at POSTECH by POSCO which allowed for similar strategic alliance.
A triadic relationship among academic, research, and industry had therefore been pursued in various areas since the foundation of POSTECH by POSCO. About USD 2 billion in total had been invested into POSTECH by POSCO since its foundation. Two percent of POSCO’s R&D budget had been set aside annually as research fund for POSTECH where research is jointly carried out by RIST and the university’s faculty members who, in turn, provide technological support to the company (Innace and Dress 1992). The triad functioned to not only share profits with society but to also provide basic applied research (Innace and Dress 1992).
Like POSTECH, several ongoing organizational assimilations occurred after the Samsung-SKKU joint-venture. Between 1997 and 1998, SKKU established a medical school, a medical research center, a semiconductor manufacturing R&D center, a department of computer education, and a graduate school of business. The Samsung and SKKU strategic efforts also expanded to restructure the campus through establishment of the college of medicine, the graduate school of design, and the graduate school of business administration. A graduate programme at Samsung Technology Center and partnership with Samsung Art & Design Institute was also established. During the period of 1999 to 2000, SKKU constructed medical buildings and established partnership with Samsung Stock Exchange and Samsung Electronics/Semiconductor. Between 2002 and 2006, SKKU then partnered with Samsung Economic Research Institute and created the department of mobile phones through a joint graduate program with Samsung (Cho 2013).
From 2004 to 2009, the law school, the international house, Samsung library, and international hall were constructed. Also, the humanities and social science campus in Seoul and the natural sciences campus in Suwon had begun operations, placing natural sciences on an equal footing with its strong foundation in humanities. Additionally, during this period the ‘Core Initiative Programmes’ had strategically been funded by Samsung for each campus (Cho 2013). Samsung eventually extended its funding support towards the humanities and liberal arts, as well as science, engineering and business at SKKU. Samsung had also introduced a comparative performance based salary system. This was driven by productivity and an enabling environment for faculties to carry out research activities through availability of research funds and equipment.
Additionally, Samsung had also offered full scholarships and research funds for students at the medical school and departments of semiconductor/electronics, and faculties. This led engineering faculties to get engaged in the generation of innovative products with Samsung’s research scientists while engineering graduates further received employment with Samsung. Additionally, the Samsung Economic Research Institute (SERI), which is the largest private think tank in the nation, became a resource for SKKU, allowing it to develop strategies for ongoing improvements in the effectiveness of human resources and capital. SERI also participated in SKKU’s strategic planning which provided the university with the required instincts to sense its surrounding environment that is constantly changing and to embrace adaptation while developing greater integration, quality, and stronger integrity by capitalizing on their available strengths (Cho 2013).
The establishment of SKKU’s governance infrastructure also resulted in the restructuring of old financial frameworks and systems. Qualified faculty and staff were carefully selected by SKKU while professional administrative cadres were recruited (Cho 2013). Aside from the USD 50 to 100 million investments in SKKU each year by Samsung since 1997, assimilation of the Samsung-SKKU joint-venture was also successful through the voluntary engagement and participation of faculty members in SKKU’s restructuring process. This was paramount among the university community and this led to the transformation process of SKKU into an entrepreneurial university.
Assimilation within SKKU was successful for two key reasons. Firstly, Samsung did not exercise academic capitalism to reshape the university to become entrepreneurial. To achieve the best intellectual outcomes, Samsung helped the faculty pursue the research field of their choice and ensured that corporate intervention did not distort the judgments and actions of the professors when they selected specific research directions. Samsung also did its best not to threaten the traditional integrity of the university. Samsung tried to maintain institutional autonomy, lively faculty independence, and vigorous academic freedom. Samsung and SKKU’s President tried to develop responsible, effective, and balanced governance, leadership, and management as it entered the new era. Secondly, self-motivation was eventually voluntarily mobilized among the faculty. They realized that it was absolutely essential for SKKU to address its environment, its programs, and its future in a more systemic way if they were to grow in quality and move into the academic fields of tomorrow. The faculty’s reaction was cautious but supportive. These observations from the assimilation stages of both POSTECH and SKKU lead to the following proposition:
Proposition 3: Successful double helix formation can be realized only after substantial realignment of structures and resources by the University and Industry directed at serving a common goal for technological catch-up within a Nation Innovation System.
Triplex formation with the government of South Korea
In terms of the SKKU and POSTECH affiliation with the existing government during their evolutionary process to becoming entrepreneurial universities, both received support and assistance from government. The establishment of POSTECH was made possible through the endorsement of the ministry of education. Also, the government had played a somewhat indirect role within the POSTECH triad with industry and government. For example, the then Korean president Kim Young Sam had appointed Kim Man Jae, the former Korean Vice Premier, as chairman of POSCO once previously chaired by Park Tae Jun (POSCO’s previous chairman) who had left (Cho 2008). Through this strategic industry-academy alliance with close involvement from the government, POSCO was then able to provide POSTECH with endowments that enabled the university to evolve into an autonomous yet independent entity while being recognized as a partner of industry.
The role of the government also proved crucial to the transformation of SKKU into an entrepreneurial university. The government supported the acquisition of SKKU by Samsung amidst growing controversies owing to the conservative views of the larger Korean community. The government provided full administrative support, while the ministry of education facilitated the interaction between Samsung and SKKU through removal and shrinking the legal barriers related to the acquisition of a university by a corporation (Cho 2013). Even though the government is not directly engaged during the double helix formation, its role is crucial to offer the necessary support to assist the transformation of the ivory tower into an entrepreneurial university. The Corporate Helix relationship thus demonstrates the necessity of the country, state, or local governments to support key areas of the university-industry alliance process. This will in turn allow for the strategic transformation into corporate departments, college, or university that enables technological-catch up of the nation to innovation-based growth.