Collaborating with companies is inspiring: Hanne Bruun talks about her visit to TV2

Hanne Bruun works at the Department of Media Studies and Journalism at Aarhus University. While teaching a course called TV and TV Theory in the Digital Era, she also spent some time working at TV2. 

The aim of her visit was to gain insight into how a public-service supplier like TV2 works. Bruun was particularly interested in the thinking behind the TV network’s programme planning across its various channels and platforms. While she was there, she gained greater insight into relevant working processes and was able to contribute to content-related and organisational processes of reflection at TV2. 

An opportunity to discover new fields of research 

Hanne Bruun feels that her visit gave her far more detailed understanding of how the TV industry works. In relation to her own teaching and research, the visit gave her greater understanding of the kind of qualification profiles that graduates need if they want to work in the TV industry. She also discovered new areas of research that have not been explored previously. 

This kind of collaboration showed how researchers and industries can work together in a productive manner, and gave Bruun the kind of insight into the industry that you can’t gain from reading books. She has subsequently contributed to a number of internal seminars and useful collaborative relationships. 

The visit to TV2 was arranged via a member of staff at the station with whom Bruun had worked previously in connection with a research project. 

Good advice when visiting companies 

• Company visits need to be arranged well in advance, so major changes may have been made at the company before you actually start your visit. As a result, your planned areas of focus and activities may have to change at short notice. 
• It’s a good idea for the researcher and company involved to identify one or more joint problem(s) which both parties want to solve. This will help to provide a constant point of focus throughout the visit.  
• Your learning output will be greater if you are familiar with the organisation/company before you start. 
• You need clear collaboration agreements regarding confidentiality, and it must be stated clearly that the objective of the visit is to share knowledge and working interests – not to collect data.