Lessons Learned in Industrial and International Collaboration at the Integrated Media Systems Center

3⁄4 The Integrated Media Systems Center (IMSC) is the National Science Foundation's exclusive Engineering Research Center for multimed ia and Internet research. IMSC carries out a successful cross -disciplinary program of research, education, outreach, industry and international collaboration and technology transfer. IMSC's industry and international collaboration program has ranged from 20-30 members per year, who are interested in the multidisciplinary research results and technology integration projects. A key lesson learned for success in these collaborations has been the use of industry -like project organizations to integrate researc h results into cohesive projects. We have adapted traditional industry project management techniques for success in the university environment. Our model for group interaction emphasizes interdisciplinary collaboration and interaction. Each faculty parti cipant must agree that there are useful benefits and new research goals to be achieved by cooperation on projects with broader, interdisciplinary goals. They must accept and share a common vision of the goals (developed in group meetings by consensus) and long-term benefit of group involvement. One of the main challenges to the project manager in academia (APM) in achieving project goals is their limited direct influence on the project team. The APM’s main motivational influences are the challenge of the research, the expertise of those involved, the friendship associated with academic environment, and to a lesser extent, influence on budgets. The APM need not be one of the technical leads, and it is best if he or she is a credible (technically informed) and impartial (to depersonalize issues in the presence of conflicts) team member. Success metrics are needed to effectively manage academic projects. Based on project vision and goals, these criteria help characterize success of the research project in ter ms of quality, relevance, outreach and impact of the final effort. Clearly defining goals, objectives and success criteria up -front helps all parties understand their role and improve participation among team members. We ensured that (i) this simple but o ften overlooked step was always clearly examined and understood, and (ii) all team members, including all graduate and undergraduate students were present for discussions. The APM holds responsibility for translating goals into project specifications and requirements, and formalizing the project plan in an easily accessible central document. We use variations of a “Project Requirements Document” adapted from the traditional Product Requirements Document widely used by product managers in industry. Regular meetings of all project personnel are a must for successful projects. A review of milestones and outstanding issues leads to a highly motivational “Management by Embarrassment” approach. An additional key role for the APM is to balance the risk profile of the research against the milestones and project objectives. At IMSC, we have endeavored to create an entrepreneurial culture whereby new discoveries with commercial potential are protected by provisional patents as soon as possible so as not to impede the flow of knowledge, whether in the form of publications, presentations or even external discussions. To protect company proprietary information, pending publications are reviewed by companies only to ensure that no such information was inadvertently in cluded. Index Terms 3⁄4 industry programs, international programs, lessons learned, project management. INTRODUCTION TO THE INTEGRATED M EDIA SYSTEMS CENTER (IMSC) The Integrated Media Systems Center (IMSC) is the National Science Foundation's (NSF) exclusive Engineering Research Center for multimedia and Internet research. IMSC carries out a successful cross-disciplinary program of research, education, outreach, industry and international collaboration and technology transfer. As a leader in the multimedia and Internet field, IMSC has developed unique immersive technologies, such as 3D face and body modeling, detection and animation, immersivision panoramic video technology, facial expression analysis and emotion detection, emotive speech processing, advanced information management, and multichannel immersive audio. IMSC's integrated research approach is