Quebec companies give province's universities high marks for collaboration

Businesses in Quebec have an overwhelmingly positive impression of the province's universities and see them as a critical source of talent. Of the 204 small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) surveyed in August, 94% commended Quebec universities for their teaching quality and cited internships as the most common means of collaboration over the past three years.

Provincial universities also ranked highly in their quality of research (87%) and the employability of their graduates (82%). Of the Montreal-based universities, more than 90% of respondents said they helped further the city's economic development, were a business asset and contributed to the city's image and global visibility.

The survey was conducted by Léger Marketing on behalf of the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal and was the centerpiece of the Rendez-vous du Savoir conference held in Montreal October 20-21. The conference was presented by Desjardins Group, whose president and CEO — Monique Leroux — has been appointed to the federal R&D Review panel (R$, October 14/10).

Of those who have collaborated in that period (53%), 83% plan do so again, while only 8% of firms with no past collaboration plan on partnering in the future.

The survey clearly shows that established firms and firms that previously collaborated with universities are more prone to repeat the experience. But many respondents also expressed concern about the ability of the university system to generate the number of skilled personnel their businesses and the Quebec economy require in the future. Nearly three quarters of respondents said the university system needs more research centres while half cited the need for better quality of education. More funding was cited by 47% if Montreal is to become benchmark for North America.

Companies most likely to collaborate are "larger companies with deep pockets" and firms with more than 250 employees and sale of more than $50 million. Firms in the Quebec City area have the highest levels of collaboration.

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