Registration & Morning Mingle

Event Check-In and Registration

• This session will offer valuable insights for academic leaders, industry professionals, and policymakers on how to effectively use PhD and apprenticeship programs to deepen collaboration, address industry challenges, and build a workforce ready to meet future needs. The discussion will cover:

  • PhD programs as catalysts for innovation
  • Apprenticeships as talent pipelines that meet industry demands
  • Focusing on the win-win nature of these partnerships, where academia benefits from access to industry insights, funding, and data, while companies gain early access to talent and the latest academic research
  • Funding models and knowledge transfer
  • Success stories and future directions

Boilerplate agreements, or standardized contracts with pre-set terms are particularly common in collaborations, licensing, and other business transactions. While they are useful for routine, straightforward transactions, offering speed, efficiency, and consistency, they also lack flexibility and have potential for imbalance that make them less suitable for complex or high-stakes agreements. To maximize their benefits, it’s essential to periodically review and update these agreements and tailor them where necessary to meet the specific needs of the parties involved. Ideally, legal counsel should still review even boilerplate contracts to ensure that they fit the circumstances of each transaction. This session will provide a comprehensive analysis of the practical benefits and potential risk of boilerplate agreements, offering insights into when and how they are most effective.

Dr Malcom Skingle

Through a review of literature, this presenta-tion assesses the impact and necessity of institutional instruments such as writing centres by exploring the range of services they offer, including consultations, workshops, and feedback provision. The study highlights benefits such as fostering a vibrant writing culture, addressing writing challenges, and aiding multilingual scholars. It aims to provide insights into the role of writing centers in universities’ research missions and inform decisions on institutional support for scholarly publication initiatives.

This practice has garnered significant controversy, as it is often seen as exploiting the patent system for financial gain without contributing to technological advancement. While it can be seen as a protective measure, it may also stifle innovation by creating large patent portfolios that discourage smaller players from entering the market or pursuing new developments. This session will explore ethical dilemmas, examining the fine line between legitimate patent enforcement and exploitation of the system. It will also discuss potential legal reforms and alternative solutions to ensure that the patent system promotes innovation, fairness, and technological progress.

• Funding organisations often have specific strategic priorities, whether related to global challenges like climate change, public health, or technological innovation. They come in many forms: government agencies, non-profits, corporate entities, and venture capital firms – all of which have different expectations, timelines, and reporting requirements. This session will explore how researchers and institutions can align their projects with the goals of these organizations to increase the likelihood of securing grants and financial support.

  Dr Cornelia Malherbe

• Establishing core values early
• Hiring for cultural fit and alignment
• Creating a scalable onboarding process
• Maintaining open communication channels
• Decentralising decision-making
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Collaborative publishing models, such as library-led publishing initiatives and consortia-based publishing platforms, are gaining traction in the digital era. This paper explores the significance and benefits of purposeful collaborative efforts between research libraries and university presses, emphasizing the clarity of intentions in fostering such partnerships. It discusses the potential outcomes and advantages for both entities, including enhanced scholarly communication, increased dissemination of research outputs, and optimized resource
allocation.

This intervention is designed to empower individuals to adapt, grow, and thrive amidst constant change by embracing personal reinvention as a lifelong strategy.

Through a combination of interactive exercises, self-assessment tools, and actionable insights, participants will explore how to cultivate a mindset of flexibility and resilience. The workshop covers key strategies for aligning personal and professional growth with the latest industry trends, technological shifts, and evolving market needs.

Dr Morne Mostert

Innovation hubs created through university-industry collaboration are emerging as vital engines of technological advancement and economic growth. These collaborative ecosystems bring together the strengths of academia—cutting-edge research, talent, and creativity—and the resources, market knowledge, and practical application capabilities of industry. This session explores the strategies and best practices for establishing and nurturing strong university-industry innovation hubs. It focuses on how universities and businesses can co-create environments that foster open innovation, knowledge exchange, and commercialization.

Anita Nel

Mid-Afternoon Break

• Anticipating the skillsets required for fast-evolving sectors
• Curriculum co-creation
• Developing internship programs, apprenticeships, and co-op placements
• Reskilling and upskilling programs
• Building soft skills for the future of work
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Chairperson’s Closing Remarks