Quality management of research, development and innovation activities in Finnish universities of applied sciences

Abstract

This study utilises the quality audit reports of Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences to describe the quality management of their research, development and innovation activities (RDI). The institutions are trying to find ways of enlarging the volume of RDI activities and this is clearly reflected in the ways in which they manage quality. Much of the focus lies on the project proposal preparation phase and strategic direction of resources, while less attention has been paid to monitoring and developing the quality of the output. These emphases are analysed in relation to Harvey & Green’s seminal notions on quality in an attempt to see how useful this theoretical framework is in explaining perceptions on quality in RDI activities. More research should be done on the conceptualisation of quality in especially non-university higher education sector.