On the road again: Researcher mobility inside the R&D network

This paper examines the roles of international assignments and other forms of researcher mobility inside the integrated R&D networks of six of the largest European pharmaceutical companies. From in-depth interviews with R&D managers and scientists it is found that, while the use of international assignments is both limited and often not aimed specifically at the transfer of knowledge, other forms of short-term mobility are widely employed. But what is transferred through such short-term visits is narrow in focus and often related to specific projects whereas international assignments enable the transfer of broader and more complex knowledge. The potential impact of these changes in the inter-unit mobility patterns of researchers may be to limit both the exploitation of potential synergies across disciplines and the creation of enduring and strong personal ties among researchers working in distant locations.