University- an agent of change: Designing L.A.B services for community well-being

Universities, as service providers, are key community assets. Recently, the role of universities has shifted from a traditional education provider to a knowledge hub that is expected to take on community leadership and engage in community partnerships that offer unique services of benefit to local communities. Despite the growing number of university-led community initiatives, the complexities of offering alternate services that trnly improve community well-being impede the success of many such initiatives. Applying a transformative service approach, we present a conceptual framework for designing new L.A.B (Learning about Business) type services by regional universities to deliver a unique value proposition to local communities for sustainable well-being outcomes.