Powering Innovation

Businesses of any size and in any sector, including virtual UK based businesses and third sector organisations, can apply for a KTP (Public sector organisations can apply for Management KTP only.)

Please see the eligibility criteria here.

Some guidelines and pre-requisites if you’re wondering whether KTP is right for you. You’ll need:

The right people & culture

• Buy in and direction from senior management
• A strategic business ambition / plan towards growth through innovation
• Enough relevant employees to embed the knowledge and exploit it
• Key personnel with enough time to support the KTP
• A commitment to partnership working, collaboration and growing talent
• Rapport … it’s a journey lasting several years.

The business requisites:

• Financially robust & able to afford the growth resulting from the KTP
• A stable trading position (core business with capacity to grow)
• Sufficient staff to ensure absorptive capacity and adequate supervision
• Adequate offices / facilities

Innovate UK Business Connect provides local experts called Knowledge Transfer Advisers to help you every step of the way.:

• Assessing the feasibility of your idea and helping you scope out and cost the project 
• Supporting your grant application 
• Providing mentoring, coaching and professional development to your Associate 
• Delivering expert advice and guidance to the Project team to ensure all three partners achieve their objectives 
• Working with you throughout the lifetime of your KTP to shape, manage and deliver it on time 
• Accessing colleagues elsewhere in the innovation ecosystem to help fully exploit the project’s potential. 

Once you have had your grant application approved (nearly 90% of applications are successful), the university or research organisation will recruit a suitably qualified graduate (known as the Associate), usually with a Master’s or PhD, to work on the project, based at your company.

The Associate will be the conduit for change, transferring and implementing the knowledge generated and providing feedback from you to the academic partner, who will devote 0.5 days per week to your project.

Your Knowledge Transfer Adviser will visit every 3 – 4 months to provide ongoing support to you, and coaching and mentoring support to the Associate. They can access colleagues elsewhere in the network to help your business fully exploit the project.

The length of Knowledge Transfer Partnerships varies from 12 – 36 months, depending on the nature of the project and the requirements of your business.

Innovate UK Business Connect is a partner of Innovate UK, supporting businesses to innovate and grow. Innovate UK Business Connect provides specialist support via Knowledge Transfer Advisers to access, apply for and succeed in a Knowledge Transfer Partnership.

Knowledge Transfer Advisers  are central to the success of these dynamic partnerships. With extensive experience of research and industry, they are a source of independent expert advice, passionate about delivering success for businesses and attracting high-quality graduates to industry via Knowledge Transfer Partnerships.

Knowledge Transfer Advisers are there every step of the way to help set up and manage your unique KTP collaboration between your business,  a university/research organisation and a suitably qualified graduate (the Associate).

Find out more about the role KTAs play in supporting your project; and find your nearest KTA here.

In the first instance, you should talk to a Knowledge Transfer Adviser who can answer all your questions about Knowledge Transfer Partnerships, checking the feasibility of your idea and its suitability for funding. Advisers can then help find an academic partner and draw up a grant application with you.

Locate and contact your local Knowledge Transfer Adviser on our map of KTA locations or from the list here.