Alberta unveils major overhaul of provincial research and innovation system

Realigning the S&T landscape

The Alberta government is preparing to significantly reduce and realign the number of its research and innovation organizations. The move is in response to growing concerns that the difficulty in navigating the rapidly growing S&T landscape could jeopardize future competitiveness. With the likely passage of the Alberta Research and Innovation Act by the legislature later this spring, the Ministry of Advanced Education and Technology (AET) will begin implementing recommendations contained in the recently released Roles and Mandates Framework report.

That document's recommendations, prepared after extensive stakeholder consultation, includes a provision to merge 10 existing organizations into a new advisory body and four new board-governed corporations — semi arm's-length organizations focused on bioindustries (forestry and agriculture), energy and the environment, health and bringing technology to market (see chart on page 2).

Among the highlights of the proposed new framework is a revived Alberta Science and Research Authority (ASRA), a connector or concierge service to simplify access to and navigation of the innovation system. There is also a new commercialization corporation combining the likes of the Alberta Research Council (ARC), Alberta Ingenuity (AI) and selected components of the province's information and communications technology (ICT) assets.

"This is a classic piece of change management and transition … We're moving in a modern direction and it will be a stronger system," says Dr Peter Hackett, AI's president and CEO. "Alberta can create a very strong and integrated approach to the creation of new industries."

While existing organizations will become part of larger entities, many of the well-known, established names will be retained.

"There are a number of great brands in our system and many have international recognition," says AET minister Doug Horner. "It means that for organizations like ARC, they will no longer have their own board of directors … This is dramatic change. It's not just one piece. We're re-jigging the whole system."

For ARC — the largest of Canada's remaining provincial research organizations — the re-structuring will bring it closer to the university community and increase its interaction with smaller tech-based companies. ARC president and CEO John McDougall says that by combining forces with Alberta Ingenuity and other S&T assets, the province is departing from what he says is the typical Canadian syndrome of spreading capacity throughout too many organizations.

"We tend to go overboard in slicing and dicing the pie. Too much variety probably gives you indigestion," says McDougall. "I'm quite supportive (of the re-alignment) because it will result in some tremendous efficiencies and increase our ability to bring more critical mass to bear on matters people want to address."

Reducing the number of research and innovation entities raises the question of who will head up the new corporations. Another unknown at this point is whether there will be more financial resources pumped into the innovation system.

Horner asserts that the re-alignment will result in greater leveraging of resources from other sources, resulting in a net increase. He also says that once the restructuring is complete the government may look at where its greatest strengths are and "perhaps add to that strength".

If fully realized, the new framework will restore ASRA to its original status as a key strategic agency for policy and program development. Both Horner and McDougall agree that ASRA has drifted away from its original mandate, necessitating a revival that will reconnect that agency to the highest levels of government.

"ASRA was set up many years ago and many felt that it has lost its way a bit in terms of what its true role was," says Horner.

A number of key initiatives and reports were taken under consideration when preparing for changes to the provincial innovation system. Over the past several years, international boards of review examined the Alberta Heritage Foundation for Medical Research (2004), ASRA (2007) and most recently AI (2008). The recommendations made by those reviews were combined with the consultation process as well as an inventory of the three sectors for which the new corporations are being established.

The most recent review of the AI contained several observations that the new framework addresses directly.

The review — chaired by Dr Alan Bernstein, executive director of the New York City-based Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise — concluded that Alberta's innovation system "requires a fresh look".

"The system has grown organically, with a large number of players taking up parts of the landscape. As a result, innovation in the province is not benefitting to the greatest possible extent possible from the increased focus and strategic direction that would come from a simpler, more transparent system," states the report. "(Alberta) Ingenuity should be a major player in a redefined research and innovation system."

Horner agrees and says the proliferation of organizations requires a new system of governance that ASRA and the advisory council will provide.

"A new framework is needed to truly make the research and innovation system transparent and effective where everyone knows who is connected and why," says Horner. "Right now there are 6,900 projects in the health sciences and life sciences alone and hundreds in energy and environment and growing quickly."

The reorganization should be complete by the fall with the naming of new corporation presidents. AI's Hackett says the execution of the new framework will be critical to ensure that the changes have the intended impact on provincial research and innovation, particularly the commercialization corporation that AI will be part of. He points to the recently created Alberta Enterprise Corp which oversees the new $100-million fund of funds to stimulate venture capital investment as an example (R$, June 20/08).

"It has an independent private sector board and that is the model for the new corporations," says Hackett. "We need clarity around the functions of the new organizations which will lead to clear business plans, new boards and new leadership."

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