Knowledge Commercialisation Australasia (KCA) welcomes Ambitious Australia and commends the Expert Panel for a bold, integrated reform vision. The report rightly identifies that incremental change is no longer sufficient. As the peak body for research translation, commercialisation, and knowledge exchange professionals across Australia and New Zealand, KCA supports the call to adopt the full package.
Australia’s research translation system is already delivering at scale. KCA’s Survey of Commercialisation Outcomes from Public Research (SCOPR®) 2024 data from 76 publicly funded research organisations shows $1 billion in industry contracts, 611 new commercial deals, $241 million in commercialisation revenue, 89 new companies, and 422 active spinouts backed by $878 million in equity. Just 349 FTE technology transfer staff support 43,275 researchers - one technology transfer professional for every 124 researchers. This is high performance under significant capacity constraints, where demand is outpacing the system’s ability to deliver.
Every reform in this report, including the National Strategic Initiatives (NSI), RDTI expansion, and procurement-led innovation, will further increase that demand. This is welcome. But reform ambitions must be matched by investment in translation capability.
Building workforce capability (Recs 12–13). The report calls for an RD&I workforce strategy encompassing the full spectrum of expertise from research through to business, yet research commercialisation and knowledge exchange professionals are not named. KCA provides the infrastructure to build this workforce at scale, including accredited training programs, a globally recognised Registered Technology Transfer Professional (RTTP) credential through the Alliance of Technology Transfer Professionals, a structured Capability Framework, and professional development pathways. Australia has 79 accredited RTTPs; with deliberate investment, this will grow to meet the demands of the Pillars model.
Outcome-focused measurement (Rec 19). The report recommends an RD&I Performance Framework shifting from inputs to outcomes. SCOPR® already delivers this by tracking patents, invention disclosures, licences, spinouts, industry contracts, and revenue across 76 institutions after KCA stepped in following the government defunding of its own survey in 2016. Government re-investment in SCOPR® is the most practical, immediate step toward Recommendation 19.
NSIs as a ‘front door’ for industry (Rec 1d). NSIs are tasked with facilitating industry-research collaborations, managing proof-of-concept schemes, and supporting startup creation – this is the daily work of the professionals KCA represents. Embedding experienced technology transfer professionals in NSI governance as strategic contributors will accelerate the partnerships, licensing arrangements, and spinout pathways NSIs are designed to catalyse. KCA can assist with identifying and placing suitably qualified professionals through its network and RTTP accreditation framework.
IP that enables partnership (Chapter 2). Global experience shows that transparency, not cookie-cutter contracts, makes partnerships work. The complexity the report observes in IP negotiations reflects genuinely intricate, multi-stakeholder deals protecting publicly funded research while enabling commercial outcomes. Better-resourced, professionally accredited translation teams deliver faster, more effective processes. The solution is investment in capability, not compliance reform.
Investing in translation infrastructure makes the system work. KCA urges the government to fund research translation professionals as system infrastructure, modelled on the UK’s Higher Education Innovation Fund; embed translation expertise in NSI governance; invest in SCOPR® as national measurement infrastructure; and support professional accreditation pathways such as RTTP. The SCOPR® evidence is clear: 562 companies, $2.9 billion in commercialisation income, and $7.7 billion in industry contracts over eight years. When you invest in translation capability, outcomes follow. KCA and its broader community of over 760 research translation practitioners across 98 organisations stand ready to ensure these reforms deliver.