Research administrators can avoid falling into bureaucratic traps by (1) understanding what is important and what is subordinate to it; (2) becoming a better manager; and (3) improving public relations by being more accessible, soliciting complaints, consulting, supporting clients, making the rules work for clients, and educating clients.

Three categories of issues about which universities and industry often differ in research agreements are discussed: (1) major philosophical differences between universities and for-profit organizations; (2) complex intellectual property law and regulations of such forms as computer software and biological materials; and (3) differences in drafting…