Shaping innovation

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Aspect (a SHAPE platform for Entrepreneurship, Commercialisation and Transformation) is a network of organisations working to ensure research within social sciences, humanities and the arts for people and economy/environment (SHAPE) has tangible societal impact. Sean B.C. Farran, Head of Advocacy and Communications, tells us about Aspect’s mission to harness creativity and foster innovation.

What motivated the launch of the Aspect Network?

The Aspect Network was founded in 2018 in response to a growing recognition that while the commercialisation pipeline for STEM research was well-established, SHAPE (Social Sciences, Humanities, and the Arts for People and the Economy/ Environment) disciplines had not been receiving the same level of support or attention in terms of transforming research into real-world, commercially viable ventures. The potential within SHAPE fields to create significant societal impact was clear, and Aspect was designed to connect universities, researchers, businesses, and industry leaders to bring these ideas to life and address major social challenges.

Aspect has fostered an environment conducive to SHAPE commercialisation through events, knowledge-sharing meetings and funded projects that test and pilot new approaches. Additionally, the development of toolkits, resources and case studies allows Aspect to share insights across its broader community. Through these efforts, Aspect has gradually built a strong, interconnected ecosystem, helping SHAPE researchers and institutions develop the skills and capacity necessary to turn their research into impactful, commercial solutions.

At a time when SHAPE subjects are facing heightened pressures, the need for a supportive ecosystem is critical for enabling socially responsible innovation and delivering the impact of research at scale. Aspect’s continued support for experimentation, collaboration and the sharing of lessons learnt will be pivotal moving forward.

What is the UK’s standing in SHAPE industries currently? What is its potential?

The UK’s SHAPE research is globally recognised for its breadth and depth, and the potential for further innovation is vast. Research within the SHAPE disciplines has already led to transformative impacts across many sectors. As highlighted in a recent report by the British Academy, the UK remains a global leader in driving SHAPE innovation. This is evident in areas such as healthcare, where SHAPE research has informed breakthroughs in mental health treatments and advanced technologies for diagnosing and managing health conditions.

Beyond healthcare, SHAPE research has made notable contributions to sectors such as sustainability, where behavioural, geographical and legal studies are shaping more resilient infrastructure, and in education, where SHAPE research is playing a crucial role in shaping policy and practice.

Aspect plays a key role in harnessing this potential by supporting SHAPE ecosystems across the world, including in South America, Sub-Saharan Africa, the Nordics and Australia. Through the resources and insights generated by Aspect’s work, international SHAPE communities are learning how to streamline their own development. The global potential for sharing these learnings and strengthening SHAPE ecosystems is immense.

What can SHAPE offer society?

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The annual ‘happening’ reSHAPE (c) Josh Caius

Aspect holds SHARE meetings every month, and Members Forums twice a year

Aspect is working with tech company getTWOit Platforms to develop skills recognition across the SHAPE sector

SHAPE subjects, by nature, look at people’s relationship with each other and the world around us. Transforming research in SHAPE disciplines into commercial ventures can inspire new ways of addressing pressing societal needs, ranging from environmental sustainability to social justice.

What makes SHAPE commercialisation such a vibrant frontier is the diversity and dynamism with which researchers are applying their findings to create impactful solutions. These ventures are not only influencing industries but are also reshaping the way we think about business models, investment pathways and legal structures. The capacity for SHAPE ventures to transform how we operate as societies, to scale impact and to create meaningful, sustainable change is what makes this field truly exciting.

How has the Aspect network developed since its inception in 2018?

Aspect’s growth since 2018 has been extraordinary. Initially funded by Research England’s Connecting Capability Fund (CCF), the network has since leveraged an additional £5.58 million through Aspect-related activities. This has allowed over 600 SHAPE research academics to develop innovative ideas and build commercial skills through a wide array of training programmes and support events.

In 2023, Aspect transitioned into a paid membership organisation, focusing on three key pillars of activity:

Community: Building strong connections and fostering collaboration between researchers, institutions and industry partners to exchange knowledge and drive collective progress.
Training: Offering tailored resources and programmes to help academics and professional services staff acquire the skills and expertise needed to commercialise SHAPE research effectively.
Testbed: Providing an environment that encourages experimentation and innovation, where new ideas can be tested and refined to create economic and social value.

Aspect has grown from a small group of members in 2018 to 36 active universities today, with growing international interest. As part of its evolution, Aspect has been increasingly focused on equipping its members with the skills they need to navigate and thrive in the SHAPE innovation space.

What makes the Aspect community unique?

The Aspect community is a diverse group of higher education institutions (HEIs), with participation from both professional services staff and academics. This combination of participants ensures that knowledge exchange occurs at all levels, from institutional thinking to on-the-ground research.

The community is characterised by it spirit of collaborative experimentation. For example, we recently launched SHARE (SHAPE Research Exchange). SHARE is a monthly platform that enables staff, researchers and external stakeholders to connect, collaborate and explore new models for commercialising SHAPE research, encouraging entrepreneurial thinking and engaging with businesses. Alongside this, we have launched the Aspect Micro-Commissions via our Testbed, providing seed funding for members to pilot new collaborative initiatives, the findings from which are then shared with the network. The collaborative spirit of initiatives such as these illustrates the Aspect community’s momentum – members at every stage of the commercialisation journey are contributing ideas, sharing best practices and discovering new opportunities to innovate.

What help has Aspect provided to academics to translate their research into commercial ventures?

One of the standout programmes that Aspect has developed is the Aspect Research Commercialisation (ARC) Accelerator, which was originally conceived as an Aspect Testbed project. The ARC Accelerator has grown from strength to strength under a highly skilled team and is now delivering the £3.9 million Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)/Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) SHAPE Catalyst programme, running until 2026 and open to all UK universities.

The ARC journey offers clear guidance for researchers at every stage, from potential ideas brewing in someone’s head to scaling their ventures. Many innovative ventures have already emerged from the ARC and Catalyst programmes, helping to showcase the commercial potential within SHAPE disciplines. You can learn more on the ARC website: arcaccelerator.io/case-studies

How does Aspect facilitate discussion and collaboration across a global community?

Aspect hosts monthly SHARE events, Testbed collaborative projects, bi-annual forums and an annual celebration of SHAPE ventures called reSHAPE. ASPECT also leverages advanced digital tools such as the Aspect Members Platform provided by tech company getTWOit Platforms, which was founded by alumni from Aspect members the London School of Economics and Political Sciences (LSE) and the University of Glasgow. The platform allows Aspect members to connect, share resources and engage in self-learning courses through a user-friendly interface. It also enables members to access all of Aspect’s toolkits, resources and outputs from the Testbed projects over the years and streamlines applications to our Testbed Micro-Commission by allowing participants and assessors to easily submit, rate and feedback on project ideas.

The tools on the Members Platform are designed to support the development of distinct communities within the Aspect network and beyond. For example, specialised groups focusing on video and board games derived from SHAPE research have developed their own thriving sub-community – the Aspect Games Hub – which is populated with Aspect-produced content and tools specific to games commercialisation which can be used to engage broader audiences. The platform also supports the emergence of ecosystems in other areas of the world, such as initiatives like SHAPE NL which is a consortium of Dutch universities who we are able to share content and resources at the click of a button. Members can use these tools to start stimulating the growth of their own local community that can then cross-pollinate with ours. We are actively working on similar set-ups for other areas in the world too, including South America, Sub-Saharan Africa, Australia and the Nordics.

This level of connectivity and resource sharing has huge potential in helping innovation ecosystems around the world collaborate more efficiently and avoid duplication of efforts – effectively creating a ‘network of networks’, driving a global dialogue on SHAPE and SHAPE + STEM commercialisation.

What types of research is Aspect Testbed funding?

The projects funded through the Aspect Testbed are incredibly diverse, ranging from marketing toolkits and training resources to deep dives into business engagement best practices and ecosystem mapping. With over 400 outputs, the Testbed has provided critical insights into how SHAPE research can drive both economic and societal change. Many of these are available on the Aspect website (aspect.ac.uk/testbed), but, of course, the best bits are available via the Members Platform.

What are the next steps for Aspect?

Lately, we have been busy working on reSHAPE, the world’s only showcase event for high-calibre SHAPE ventures. This event is a collaboration between us and The British Academy, the UK’s Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), ARC Accelerator, and Mischon de Reya LLP. Now in its third year, the event is a temperature check for the entire SHAPE ecosystem, allowing policymakers, investors and key stakeholders to take the pulse of SHAPE innovation.

Another exiting development is something we’ve been looking at for a long time: an initiative focused on skills development using getTWOit’s micro-credential system. These micro-credentials are unique because they are designed to help academics and university staff gain a clear understanding of the specific skills they are developing in relation to SHAPE and SHAPE commercialisation. Unlike traditional micro-credentials and Open Badges, these offer targeted, skills-based recognition that enables individuals to map their progress and identify both strengths and gaps in their skillset, with benefits to professional development and academia/industry collaboration.

By adopting this approach, Aspect can help individuals and institutions understand the measurable impact of their activities, collaborations and training programmes, decrease duplications, and increase collaboration opportunities.

With new members joining Aspect from around the world every day, there are very exciting times ahead!

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