Public Returns to Technology Transfer

Abstract

Throughout the 1980s, state governments greatly expanded their role in economic development. Individually, states adopted programs _that ranged from traditional approaches focusing on business subsidies and tax breaks through "new wave" approaches focusing on resource enhancement and public-private cooperation. As part of a comprehensive economic development initiative in Kansas, the Kansas Technology Enterprise Corporation (KTEC) was established as a nonprofit corporation in 1987. KTEC's legislated mission is to foster technological innovation, and to promote the creation, growth, and expansion of Kansas enterprises. As of June, 1993, KTEC supports over fifteen programs and commands a budget of over $8 million.

As state-level economic development programs have expanded and increased in complexity and funding, so has the call for accountability of these programs. Several states have started to design systems to monitor the results of their development efforts. The ROPI (or Return On Public Investment) system of evaluation was designed by the Institute for Public Policy and Business Research (IPPBR) at the University of Kansas under a KTEC grant during 1991-92. It is applied for the first time in this report. The purpose of the report is to provide information and recommendations in support of three different kinds of evaluation efforts, as discussed below:

1. Evaluation of the Kansas Technology Enterprise Corporation by its "owners" (the citizens of Kansas), and by their elected policy team (the Kansas legislature and the governor). This report is intended to inform public decisions concerning KTEC funding, programs, and policies.

2. Evaluation of the component programs of KTEC by its management team (Board of Directors of KTEC, officers, and others). This report is intended to inform KTEC's internal program management. The information is intended to be useful in helping KTEC to make budget allocation and program design decisions.

3. Evaluation of the new ROPI methodology that was applied in this report. The ROPI project provides lessons and insights on how to evaluate government programs. The report describes a method of evaluation which should be of interest or potential interest to the officers and directors of KTEC, the Kansas legislature, the governor, and the Kansas voters, as well as to policy-makers in other states. The report is intended to inform their decisions on the selection and funding of evaluation studies.