After examining current practice in Australia and overseas, and analysing 22 submissions from organisations, the WG has concluded that current metrics for commercialisation of publicly funded research need to be extended to reflect a broader understanding of the commercial and economic benefits of research commercialisation. Current metrics emphasise the commercialisation of intellectual property (IP), especially through patents, licenses and spin-out company formation. These data capture only a small portion of the commercially significant interactions that take place between the publicly funded research sector and private enterprise (i.e. including current and emerging business).

The WG proposes that the metrics be expanded to include measures relating to research consultancies and contracts, and the development and deployment of appropriate skills. In addition to making three recommendations, the WG has identified several areas for furthe rexamination (details in section titled Issues for further study/development ), including:

• further develop policy and performance monitoring methodologies to capture researcher-industry interactions, including the role of knowledge and skills transfer to private sector enterprises

• examine the links between policy, funding decisions and research commercialisation metrics

• review the National Principles of Intellectual Property Management for Publicly Funded Research to ensure they reflect current and emerging IP practice and the needs of the research and innovation system.