Toward institutionalization of responsible research and innovation: insights from case studies of technological centers in Spain

Figures & data

Figure 1. Data collection and analysis.

Figure 2. Proposed methodology.

Table 1. TC challenges.

Challenge	Definition	Focus
Promoting gender diversity	Promoting engagement with strategies for gender diversity inside the organization	Presence of women Female leadership Research and innovation with gender perspective
Promoting environmentally sustainable growth	Promoting a model of R&I that is aligned with the main environmental challenges facing today's society	Environmental management Research and innovation for the environment
Engaging Stakeholders	Developing R&I characterized by a dialogue-based approach	Stakeholder engagement throughout Research and innovation
Learning opportunities for all	Contributing to the training of the current and future workers, researchers and innovators	Skills and knowledge of workers in productive sectors Interaction with the future generations
Promoting inclusive industrialization and innovation	Promoting innovation processes with organizations that are traditionally underrepresented	Social groups, territories or firms

Table 2. Themes and items of analysis.

Challenge	Themes	Definitions	Items	Source
Promoting gender diversity	Employment and recruitment	Decisions made concerning its workforce	Gender balance Measures to achieve work-life balance (reduced/ flexible working hours, etc.) Recruitment and promotion strategies promoting diversity (policy, explicit statement in job offers regarding the search for diverse profile) Transparent and flexible promotion systems	Strand et al. (2015); Bührer and Wroblewski (2019); EC (2019; 2021)
	Organization and governance	Comprises the organizational structure of the TC in terms of equality	The existence of a gender equality Plan, equality certifications, anti-harassment and discriminatory protocols Gender balance in the workforce, leadership positions and project teams Internal monitoring system Gender perspective in R&I
	Communication and training	Activities to showcase and disseminate the center's commitment to gender diversity	Internal training in equality and for women The use of inclusive language and images Internal communication channels
Promoting environmentally sustainable growth	Environmental management (EM)	The framework within which environmental management is understood and carried out	The existence of an environmental management system or action plan Environmental certification Motivations for its implementation Monitoring and evidence	IS0 14000 Strand et al. (2015). Matthews, Stamford, and Shapira 2019
	Management within the TCs	Actions carried out within the centers related to environmental management	Internal culture as regards the subject Specific actions carried out within the framework of the promotion of the environment Interest, projects and lines of research related to environmental issues Consumption, resources and waste considered and controlled in projects (process and outcomes) Environmental challenges identified
	Outward management	Activities for the improvement and promotion of environmental management in the sector	Promotion of environmental management in the sector Sector's environmental challenges Specific actions to address environmental challenges in the sector
	Waste, emissions and consumption	Use of resources and waste management	Energy, water and gas consumption Waste management Recycling policy Control and monitoring of emissions, including carbon footprint Energy generation
Engaging Stakeholders	Idea generation and planning	Stakeholder engagement from the early stages	Partners Users Other stakeholders: citizens, etc. Channels	Arrizabalaga et al. (2018); García-Melón et al. (2022); Goodman et al. (2020); Stahl et al. (2017); Steen and Nauta (2020)
	Execution and translation	Actions to involve stakeholders during execution, prototyping, validation and testing
	Approach	How to deal with the involvement of stakeholders
Learning opportunities for all	Training actions and programs	Internal training strategy	Training actions developed and target public Training plans	Usak et al. (2020); Adhikari and Shrestha (2023); Fraisl et al. (2020)
	Educational components in projects	Inclusion of training and educational components in projects	Educational actions included in projects
Promoting inclusive industrialization and innovation	SMEs in innovation activities	Strategies to encourage SMEs to participate in innovation projects	Initiatives undertaken to include small and micro enterprises in the center's activities List of SMEs in the region that have engaged with the center as clients or project partners	Gonzales-Gemio, Cruz-Cázares, and Parmentier (2020); Heeks, Foster, and Nugroho (2014); Balland et al. (2020)
	Third sector and public sector	Strategies to collaborate with organizations of a different nature, which aim to defend the common good	Efforts made towards the inclusion of socially disadvantaged groups
	Developing countries	Actions to contribute to technology transfer to less developed countries	Interaction with companies in developing countries	Halkos, de Alba, and Todorov (2021); Cheng and Cantore (2020)

Figure 3. Proposed maturity levels for assessing RRI challenges in TCs in each. Adapted from Humphrey (1988); Stahl et al. (2017); Yaghmaei (2018).

Table 3. Maturity levels for the gender diversity challenge.

Themes	Level 1. Unconscious	Level 2. Reactive	Level 3. Proactive	Level 4. Strategic
Employment and Recruitment	No actions identified	Explicit recruitment policy promoting diversity Reconciliation and co-responsibility measures (reduced working hours, flexible working hours, etc.).	Explicit statement in the job offer regarding the search for diverse profiles and the use of inclusive language. Transparent and flexible promotion systems.	Explicit strategies for the search for profiles to balance areas. Existence of an anti-harassment. committee/protocol and simple, anonymous channels of communication for reporting.
Organization and Governance		Equality Plan Equality certification or seal Gender balance in the workforce	Gender balance in project definition Gender balance in leadership positions	Internal monitoring system that tells you where you are in terms of equality. Gender mainstreaming in research/innovation content
Communication and Training		In-house equality training	Use of inclusive language and imagery in internal and external communications	Training of junior positions for women to take on leadership roles

Table 4. Maturity levels for the environmentally-sustainable growth challenge.

Themes	Level 1. Unconscious	Level 2. Reactive	Level 3. Proactive	Level 4. Strategic
Environmental Management System (EMS)	There is no action, strategy or activity that includes or promotes the management of environmental themes	Existence of EM activities in compliance with a regulation Some indicators related to EM	Existence of a controlled EMS motivated by funder requests or industry tendencies Indicators and other information available	Certified EMS EMS is part of the organizational strategic plan Internal monitoring system for the EMS
Internal actions		Specific measures for environmental protection enforced by top management or some internal areas Environment-related projects at the request of clients, partners or funders Impact of projects on the environment or on sustainable development when required by funders	Some actions taken to promote environmental protection, and consumption and waste reduction. Environmental components included in projects Internal environmental challenges identified	Internal culture of environmental stewardship among the employees Action plan to reduce the center's environmental impact and carbon footprint The inclusion of environmental issues is encouraged in all projects and in the sector. Specific environmental research lines All projects consider environmental components Life cycle analysis of projects before, during and after. Plans to address internal environmental challenges.
Outward management		Experience in environmental consulting or training Identification of environmental challenges imposed via legislation on the sector	Training and technical and legal advice to the sector on environmental issues Environmental challenges identified in the sector	Promotion and dissemination of projects and knowledge of environmental issues in the sector Plans aimed at responding to external environmental challenges, beyond their sector
Waste, emissions and consumption		Track of electricity and water consumption only when required Classified record of generated waste Recycling of generated waste	Control of electricity and water consumption Waste managed by external organizations Recycling waste beyond its activity Detailed record of recycling Calculation of atmospheric and acoustic emissions Plan for calculating carbon footprint	Different indicators to monitor electricity and water consumption Plan for waste reduction Carbon footprint calculation External recognition for management of carbon emissions (scopes 1 and 2) Generation of energy to be returned to the grid or self-consumption

Table 5. Maturity levels for the engaging of stakeholders’ challenge.

Themes	Level 1. Unconscious	Level 2. Reactive	Level 3. Proactive	Level 4. Strategic
Idea generation and planning	No approach or activities for stakeholder engagement	Projects are designed with partners	The center has stakeholder observatories	Stakeholders are involved in the early stages of projects. Co-creation and co-design with social actors
Execution and translation		Prototype testing with users when it is necessary	Channels to enable stakeholder participation in innovation processes Stakeholders involved in the validation of results or testing	Stakeholders involved in all R&I stages as part of internal policy
Approach		Market research with users when it is necessary for projects	Observatory data bases used to select stakeholders at some stages	Stakeholder mapping is frequently carried out by the center The center legitimizes the social value of its activities

Table 6. Maturity levels for the Learning opportunities for all challenge.

Themes	Level 1. Unconscious	Level 2. Reactive	Level 3. Proactive	Level 4. Strategic
Training and educational actions and programs	There is no action, strategy or activity that includes or promotes education in innovation processes	Internal training programs Training, courses or conferences organized for other companies’ requirement	The institute receives visits from educational institutions (schools and centers) The institute provides international training	Strategic plan to articulate internal/external training programs Vocational training supported with instructors The institute collaborates with or co-directs university master's programs Research markets consulted and survey conducted to find out training trends and demands.
Educational components in projects		Educational actions included in projects when it is required	Development/participation in external training projects or programs	Collaborations with institutional and/or company chairs

Table 7. Maturity levels for the Inclusive industrialization and Innovation challenge.

Themes	Level 1. Unconscious	Level 2. Reactive	Level 3. Proactive	Level 4. Strategic
Participation of SMEs in innovation activities	No action geared toward interaction with SMEs, non-profit organizations or organizations located in developing countries	Interaction with SMEs as a requirement of projects	The center actively seeks new SMEs to collaborate in innovation and/or research projects	Management and monitoring system for the purposes of monitoring and increasing the interaction with SMEs
Collaboration with third sector and public sector		Interaction with third sector or public sector organizations as a requirement of projects	The center actively seeks to collaborate with third sector, public sector or other non-business organizations	Activities designed for interaction with third sector, public sector or other non-business organizations
Collaboration in developing countries		Interaction with companies, or other types of organizations, such as RTOs, located in developing countries when they hire its services or as a requirement of projects	The center actively seeks to increase its interactions with companies, or other types of organizations located in developing countries	Formal strategy or action plan to increase the interaction with companies, or other types of organizations, located in developing countries

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Data availability statement

The data that support the findings of this study are available on request from the corresponding author, H.GU. The data are not publicly available because they contain information that could compromise the privacy of research participants and their organizations.