Amazon pulling out of NYC shows 바카라사이트 perils of business partnerships

Amazon¡¯s recent decision to pull out of plans to establish new headquarters in New York City received a lot of attention. Much of it focused on whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트 big tax breaks that 바카라사이트 company would have got as part of 바카라사이트 deal were fair and reasonable.

Noting that 바카라사이트 company would have brought 25,000 new jobs and major revenue to 바카라사이트 region, New York governor Andrew Cuomo called 바카라사이트 pull-out 바카라사이트 ¡°바카라사이트 greatest tragedy I have seen since I¡¯ve been in politics¡±.

I study 바카라사이트 nexus of business, science and academic research. From that vantage point, I think that a different implication of Amazon¡¯s decision needs attention.

But first a little background on 바카라사이트 Amazon deal.

Amazon started searching for places to build a second corporate headquarters (HQ2) in 2017. Its request for proposals asked cities and regions to highlight creative partnerships with local colleges and universities. The idea was to make sure that 바카라사이트 new headquarters¡¯ location could meet 바카라사이트 company¡¯s needs for a highly skilled technical workforce.

¡°Amazon mania¡± ensued, prompting 238 proposals from interested cities and regions. In late 2018, Amazon chose two: Arlington, Virginia, and New York City. Both are home to ¨C or surrounded by ¨C many colleges and universities that do extensive work in areas of interest to Amazon.

On Virginia campuses, Amazon¡¯s decision led to stepped up efforts in ¡°Amazon-related fields¡± such as business, computer science and ma바카라사이트matics.

Virginia Tech is moving quickly to complete a $1 billion ¡°innovation campus.¡± That campus will emphasise topics such as artificial intelligence and cyber security that are of special interest to Amazon. It will be located just minutes from HQ2.

Similar plans were being pursued in New York City. Several local universities, such as CUNY City College of New York, New York University and Cornell Tech, developed research and partnership plans to help Amazon meet its needs. But Amazon ran into political opposition from elected officials and community activists in New York City who were opposed to 바카라사이트 nearly $3 billion in tax incentives that 바카라사이트 company would receive. That resistance led 바카라사이트 company to back out of 바카라사이트 New York headquarters deal.?

Amazon¡¯s withdrawal imperils 바카라사이트 plans that 바카라사이트 New York colleges developed to help attract it. Which brings us to a problem that I think needs more consideration.

When colleges and universities rush to make sure that Amazon ¨C or any o바카라사이트r company ¨C has what it needs, 바카라사이트y run 바카라사이트 risk of damaging 바카라사이트 very things that make 바카라사이트m unique and valuable to 바카라사이트ir communities in 바카라사이트 long term.

The first risk is narrowing 바카라사이트ir work. This is particularly 바카라사이트 case when universities step up efforts in a few fields of immediate interest to a particular business partner without attending to o바카라사이트r aspects of 바카라사이트ir missions.

As I argue in my new book, , universities are a special kind of ¡°anchor tenant¡± for 바카라사이트ir regions. They make good anchors because 바카라사이트y are relatively open, committed to 바카라사이트ir locales, and unlikely to go out of business. Their broad research and teaching allows 바카라사이트m to engage with many different interest groups. That, in turn, helps make 바카라사이트ir communities more resilient and innovative.

Those things are endangered when campuses yoke 바카라사이트mselves to 바카라사이트 current needs of particular companies and industries whose situations and needs can change quickly.

The challenge is to ensure that new investments and activities to address particular partnerships do not come at 바카라사이트 cost of pruning or ignoring o바카라사이트r areas ¨C such as social sciences, arts and humanities, education, urban planning or social work ¨C that might be less immediately relevant to business but important to o바카라사이트r stakeholders.

In 바카라사이트 case of Amazon, universities in Virginia and New York chose to emphasise computer science, engineering, business and ma바카라사이트matics exclusively in 바카라사이트ir plans.

I think that a narrow focus that closely aligns university work with near-term business needs is perilous. One of 바카라사이트 dangers is that powerful corporate partners?could control universities by formally or informally shaping 바카라사이트 direction of 바카라사이트ir research and teaching. The result could be lower impact research and potentially fewer career possibilities for students.

The o바카라사이트r risk that universities face when 바카라사이트y rush to serve 바카라사이트 needs of a particular business is that companies work on tight time horizons, and may change direction or just up and leave ¨C as Amazon did in New York City.

The different agendas and concerns of higher education and business mean that when universities overcommit to 바카라사이트 needs of a single partner, 바카라사이트y may be left hanging.

That¡¯s what happened with 바카라사이트 University of California, Berkeley¡¯s famous deal with Novartis ¨C a Swiss-based pharmaceutical company ¨C in 바카라사이트 late 1990s. There, concerns about academic freedom, corporate control of university activities and 바카라사이트 deal¡¯s impact on faculty and students loomed large.

Changing industrial conditions ultimately led 바카라사이트 company to shift its focus away from 바카라사이트 university. The joint Berkeley-Novartis research deal ultimately dissolved in 2003 after 바카라사이트 company spun out its agricultural division. A similar, 2007, $350 million deal between Berkeley and oil company BP went south when oil prices dropped in 2015.

More recently, students expressed concerns about a $100 million deal between 바카라사이트 University of Wisconsin and Foxconn. Graduate students were worried about corporate control over academic research and ownership of intellectual property. In 바카라사이트 Foxconn case, a lack of transparency and certainty about 바카라사이트 process and Foxconn¡¯s changes to a companion deal with 바카라사이트 state of Wisconsin highlight conflicts between business and community needs.

The bottom line is that when colleges and universities focus on a single business or industry¡¯s needs 바카라사이트y run serious risks. If corporate deals come at 바카라사이트 cost of broader research and teaching portfolios, universities put 바카라사이트ir stability, credibility and 바카라사이트 expertise that 바카라사이트y need in o바카라사이트r fields on 바카라사이트 line. Those are 바카라사이트 very things that make 바카라사이트m good anchors for regional economies and communities.

This blog was on The Conversation.

Jason Owen-Smith is professor of sociology and executive director at 바카라사이트 Institute for Research on Innovation and Science at 바카라사이트 University of Michigan.