The ISSUES Project: An Example of Knowledge Brokering at the Research Programme Level

Abstract

This paper examines knowledge brokering as a method of knowledge transfer at the research programme level using the ISSUES project as an example. The analysis is undertaken in the context of existing theories of knowledge brokering, focussing on the three roles of knowledge brokers: knowledge managers, linking agents and capacity builders. To illustrate the nature of brokering at the programme level, the authors propose two models: the 'one-to-one' model, where brokers work with individual producers and users of knowledge, often supporting the transactional side of knowledge transfer; and the 'many-to-many' model, where brokers mediate between multiple producers and users of knowledge to encourage the formation of individual relationships. This latter model has particular relevance to large and complex research programmes. Using examples from the ISSUES project, the paper recommends that future applications of this approach may benefits from embedding knowledge brokering into the work of the research programme as well as coordinating it with other knowledge transfer schemes. © Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2011.