Professor Jane Marceau

Professor Jane Marceau has recently retired from full time academic work and is now a Visiting Professor at the University of New South Wales.  Her most recent positions include Pro-Vice Chancellor (Research), Professor of Management and Founding Director, Australian Expert Group in Industry Studies (AEGIS), University of Western Sydney. She joined UNSW as an Adjunct Professor in 2004.

She continues to be a frequent consultant and policy adviser to governments and business in Australia. Her work on innovation, notably via The High Road or the Low Road? Alternatives for Australia’s Future (1997, with K. Manley and D. Sicklen), was the major catalyst for the national debate on innovation in Australia.

She has written many reports for governments and business associations in Australia on a wide range of industries (from toolmaking to health, from building and construction to processed food) and science and technology policies which could aid in their development. Since 1998 she has led the development of the innovative ‘product system’ approach to understanding the dynamics of industry development and innovation, an approach which provided much of the inspiration for the federal government’s Action Agenda (industry development) program; has held ARC grants researching the adoption of new competitive strategies involving the addition of a new and ever-wider range of services to their products by manufacturing firms and of firms’ use of knowledge-intensive services and the linked public-private ‘hybridisation’ of public sector research. Most recently, she has been joint leader of two studies of scientists and their careers, motivations and networking, both national and international, as they act as innovation personnel.

Her recent public and professional innovation policy and science-related activities include membership of the Australian Labor Party’s Knowledge Nation Taskforce 2000-2001, co-authorship of the major background paper for the National Innovation Summit, 2000, membership of the federal government’s Strategic Advisers Group, Australian Science Capability Review 2000-2001, and membership of the New South Wales Innovation Council.

In recent years, Jane has been best known as an innovation and technology policy analyst but has had a very long term interest in urban matters as cities are major sites for innovation and employment. When living in Europe she led a 14 country OECD project on education, employment and local initiatives in urban areas and created an urban studies centre at the University of Liverpool.

She is presently a Member of the Greater Sydney Metropolitan Strategy Reference Panel advising on the future development of Sydney. She has special responsibility for technology, industry and employment.

Professor Marceau has a BA - London School of Economics and a PhD - University of Cambridge.