The management and transfer of knowledge in dual training in Colombia: the seeds of research as instrument of improvement

Vocational training emerges in the world as a response to the felt training needs for the productive sector, with Germany\’s vocational training model being the biggest reference for success. Colombia assumes the challenge for the implementation of this type of training in undergraduate since 2001, in a joint work between the chambers of commerce of different cities and the German government. Being a bet to improve the productivity and competitiveness of companies and thus close the gaps in training between the academy and the company. The experience gathered during these years, presents great challenges around the understanding of the factors that have conditioned its implementation, as well as the insertion of this knowledge, product of this relationship in the improvement of organizations, so as to generate differential value for that participate in the process. In this sense, the present study intends, on the one hand, to analyze the processes of Management and knowledge transfer in Colombian Higher Education Institutions of dual training and on the other hand to generate and validate a practical proposal that potentiates the relationship between academia and business in contexts applied, based on the development of research seedbeds, which will allow, at the end, to analyze the knowledge management processes in vocational training enhanced by research seedbeds. The methodology used responds to the mixed approach to research, in the first instance a qualitative phase was carried out based on a case study, having as a research universe the four Higher Education Institutions that provide undergraduate professional training in Colombia, based on the realization of focus groups with students, analysis of documents of each institution and in-depth interviews with teachers, practice coordinators, businessmen and decision makers in the model, later the triangulation of the results was carried out, this allowed to find the elements that characterize and energize the processes of knowledge management and transfer, in the professional training, as well as the barriers, opportunities and facilitators in the implementation in Colombia, based on a process of codification and categorization of the information collected. Subsequently, based on the design and validation of a conceptual model of research seedbeds based on the development of communities of practice, the variables that most influence the generation and transfer of knowledge applied in the academy and business relationship were analyzed, through the application of a self-managed questionnaire with participants in the research seedbeds and non-participating students. The results show the dynamics of management and knowledge transfer in professional training in Colombia and show a model of applied knowledge management that generates value for the parties involved, in terms of academic knowledge and innovations for the business sector.