BCE is one of JISC's strategic themes. Here is all the work that JISC is doing in the area of BCE.
Business and community engagement
What is Business and Community Engagement?
Business and Community Engagement (BCE) is the strategic management, by higher and further education institutions (HEI/FECs), of relationships with external partners and clients, and of the associated knowledge exchange and workforce development services. Deliver benefits to the economy and society and enrich institutions themselves
The objective is to deliver benefits to the economy and society and enrich the institutions themselves, resulting in a more highly skilled workforce, a more efficient, dynamic and sustainable economy and a more cohesive, knowledge-enabled society.
BCE includes knowledge transfer/exchange, innovation and employer engagement, themes high on the Government’s agenda, reflected by Innovation Nation , the Science and Innovation Investment Framework 2004-14 and several key reviews including Sainsbury, Leitch and Foster, which are drivers of national policy. BCE enables HEIs and FECs rise to these challenges and contribute to innovation, economic prosperity and enhanced quality of life.
BCE is fundamentally about solving problems and creating opportunities through external engagement, and strategic management of the resulting interactions, partnerships and transactions. It includes both research-based and education-based services and typically constitutes knowledge and expertise-based services such as consultancy, CPD, regeneration or commercialisation of research. It includes employer engagement, an agenda shared with the learning and teaching. Effective BCE requires institutions to be responsive to external demand and alert to opportunity, and to have the infrastructure, enterprise culture and capability to make an impact in this field.
The scope of engagement includes the commercial sector, the public sector (including charities and trusts) the cultural landscape and the social and civic arena. All institutions undertake BCE across this scope of engagement, but the exact mix and the resulting services deployed depend on institutional strategies.
JISC works with a range of key stakeholders through its BCE programme, including HEFCE through their Employer Engagement (Workforce Development programme) and Business and Community themes.
View publications related to Business and community engagement