This projects aims to contribute to a substantive and deeper knowledge on this subject. Thus, the central question and driver of the project is that of scientific development in Associated Laboratories – this choice of the empirical object is justified in the “Plan and Methods”- and their contribution to improve technological innovation in firms. To achieve this goal, particular attention will be given to the following analysis dimensions: the forms of producing and organizing scientific activity in laboratories, the scientific life of researchers and their values orientation, the types of funding (public/private) and their impact in the scientists careers and in the modalities of “transfer of knowledge” to firms, as well as to the internationalization of science.

The ICT skills shortage has been growingly mediated by the political power, at a national and European level, as an obstacle to the economic competitiveness and development. In fact, the eEurope Action Plans diagnose the existence of a growing lack in skills, namely in ICT sector, where the number of working posts that remain vacant is increasing. Presently, in what refers to the Portuguese situation, the referred mismatch between the offer and search of ICT professionals as well as its significance is mostly unstudied. This project aims at analysing this mismatch as well as the measures designed to cope with it, within the specificity of the Portuguese situation. The central hypothesis orienting this research is: the ICT skills shortage is strongly influenced by the asymmetry between the logic and rhythm of the development of the economic and educational systems. Within this general framework, three analytical vectors will be addressed: 1) the processes and the conditions that model the search for ICT professionals; 2) the conditions that model the offer of ICT training; 3) the factors conditioning the search for ICT training.