Abstract. Relationship marketing (RM) is a prolific area of current marketing theory
development. While RM principles are relevant to a range of business-to-consumer
and business-to-business contexts, their theoretical foundations have principally
emerged in reference to the private sector. By contrast, this exploratory study
examines RM opportunities between entities operating in different sectors, namely
university and industry in Australia. Using a qualitative approach, findings led to
the development of a conceptual framework of university–industry relationships,
integrating variables of organizational environment difference, relationship and
value. Overall, this exploratory study broadens RM theory and application to
relationships involving parties from fundamentally different organizational environments
and suggest opportunities for the implementation of RM in this context. The
article concludes with recommendations for academics and practitioners and provides
several directions for future research.