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Cooperative agreements between universities and firms (U–F) have gained prominence. However, the literature on organisational culture and the formation of cooperation agreements is scarce. This study aims to analyse, from the perspective of the managers of small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and those in charge in universities, the perceptions of the influence of organisational culture on this type of U–F cooperation.

To this end, multiple case studies were adopted, involving cooperation agreements between a Portuguese and eight SMEs incubated in UBImedical. Semi-structured interviews were used to gather information, aiming to understand the meaning, importance and possible obstacles caused by organisational culture in this U–F cooperation agreement.

Content analysis of the results obtained leads to the conclusion that cultural compatibility is a crucial factor for successful U–F cooperation. The exchange of knowledge, mutual trust and flexibility between those involved are identified as key determinants to build shared norms that allow a more productive, assertive union.

The study represents an important tool to support SME managers and those in charge of universities, as the evidence obtained can help them to define policies and actions with regard to the U–F cooperation process. More precisely, these SME and university managers could give more attention to culture in future cooperation agreements.

This study advances understanding of the role of organisational culture in a cooperation agreement since this was a gap identified in the literature on the topic. It also contributes to the existing body of work on U–F cooperation, demonstrating that organisational culture is considered important by partners in these agreements and should be adjusted towards compatible alignment of each party’s expectations.

This paper proposes a maturity model to indicate the operational excellence (OE) implementation status of businesses in emerging countries, considering its importance in Industry 4.0.

The study involves four steps. First, undertake a study of the literature to identify the variables to consider in the maturity model; second, identify how to organize the variables found in the first step; third, structure a questionnaire to define the maturity model; and lastly, validate the variables found in the literature and the maturity levels.

A total of 23 variables were validated through interviews with general managers, operation managers and experts within organizations. Interviews were carried out in 49 companies from different sectors. Five maturity levels were defined in this study: basic level, beginner level, training level, innovative level and champion level.

Many businesses are implementing OE as a practice to remain competitive in their industries, targeting economic, environmental and social sustainability. However, OE implementation in companies from developing or emerging countries is far below the average level of that in developed companies due to cultural, political or economic constraints. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, there is no model that indicates the status of OE implementation in companies from emerging countries or the different levels to implement OE. This study fills the mentioned gap.