Strategy for the Evaluation and Selection of Innovative Technological Projects in Public Universities of México

Nowadays, the importance of a country's ability to transform knowledge into technology is undeniable. The industry as a whole has ceased to have exclusivity as the creator of technological innovation. Although the industry remains a significant source of innovation today, the production of technological innovation has extended to the "Edge of the source of knowledge" (universities and research centers). As a result of the pressure on universities to contribute to society beyond research and education, innovation and technology transfer have emerged as a third mission. All this is based on the certainty that universities have the capacity to generate knowledge and develop technology. Unlike the generation of knowledge, where we have extensive experience, the technology developed in universities is "Basic Academic Technology," which makes it difficult to transfer. In other words, it follows the same pattern used in basic research development. In this work, we present an initial analysis for the creation of a reference model for Institutional Technology Development in public universities in Mexico, taking our experience at IPN as a reference case. Our model is based on the hypothesis that the conditions for technological development in public institutions are similar: no technological foresight studies, scarce or no economic resources, immediate expected results, complex regulatory processes for technology transfer, and few incentives for developers. Our model separates the processes with institutional funding for research development from the processes for technological development. The evaluation of technological projects, unlike research projects, should primarily assess the maturity of the proposed project rather than the academic trajectory of the proposer. The proposed model aims to create processes that promote mature technological development with the necessary characteristics for transfer.