Leading and Sustaining Your Research Program - 2015

I. Your Research Program/Your Business Model

Feasibility Business Model Business Plan Exercises

II. Communicating Your Research

Pitches and Pitch “Competition” Storytelling and Messaging

III. Managing Your Research Team

Decision Theory Leadership Teamwork

IV. From Research to Industry

Marketing Economic Impact Resources (IGEM, Tech Transfer, etc.)

College of Business and Economics

• • • • • Accounting (B.S. & M.A.) Economics Finance Information Systems Management & Human Resources • • • • Marketing Operations Management Executive MBA Entrepreneurship

Experiential Education Focus Entrepreneurship as Signature Program

George Tanner, Director

The Mission of Idaho Entrepreneurs …is to support and build an entrepreneurial culture at the University of Idaho to expand opportunity. (Campus-wide focus) … to facilitate student, faculty, and staff new venture exploration and create a more entrepreneurial state and University of Idaho.

… to help commercialize University of Idaho Intellectual Property

• Startups • Innovation • Outreach (BTE, Extension, Legal Clinic, Incubators, …) • Tech Transfer

Idaho Entrepreneurs Successes

• • • • Competition as a Startup Funding Source • $200,000 in 2014-15 • • Top Honors at 3 Venues in 2014 and 2015 Multiple Startups IGEM/Grants/Partnerships Enterprise Entrepreneurs: (Altered Ego, Hellhake, Vivid Roots, MotoTrax) Innovative Ventures: (Tisquantam Fertilizer, Fast Fermentation, MJ3, Rubicon, BioCement, TimeStage, …)

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TesNFI JZr-U

Goal: Convert Innovation to Economic Value

• Team Building: Bringing Ideas and Entrepreneurs Together • Competition: to hone skills, build networks, develop ideas into business models into business plans, and secure seed funding for startups • Grant Funding for some, bootstrapping for others, Vandal Venture Fund & Idaho Entrepreneurs Gap Fund for tech/science ideas

2015-2016

• • •

Idaho Entrepreneurs’ Speaker Series The Idaho Pitch Business Plan Competitions

• Ideation Events: Science, Engineering, Natural Resources, … • Outreach: More robust outreach in multiple directions, Think Space / Innovation Lab

Idaho Entrepreneurs is

all

about experiential education, getting students out of the classroom and faculty/staff out of their comfort zones into the real world where they can develop and test their own ideas and business models. Our focus is on Launch!

Biz for Scientists 2015

• •

My Agenda

• • • Why?

Feasibility Business Models Business Plans Storytelling: Pitching an Idea

• • • • • • •

Can Science & Business Co-exist?

Scientists deal in logic, detail, and accuracy.

Entrepreneurs bluster, exaggerate, push boundaries, and really believe the future they ’ re pitching will happen (soon!) Scientists are comfortable talking about technology trends but try not to exaggerate and rely on a scientific basis for their statements. You ’ re more conservative than E ’ s are!

Entrepreneurs communicate their future with ‘ users ’ and consumers in mind. An E ’

s perception is an E

’

s reality!

Scientists do not feel comfortable talking about ‘ users ’ . They are thinking about the concrete, the science, the results. Entrepreneurs have emotional attachment to their ventures and can go down very unproductive pathways!

Scientists have emotional attachment to their areas of interest and can go down very unproductive pathways!

• Is it surprising then that these two worldviews sometimes clash? •

Can

the Scientist and the Entrepreneur accept that they are different and value each other ’ s contribution?

• Can a scientist become a business person, become an entrepreneur?

What you do

• • You guys do research and discovery in your labs that proves something, that solves a problem, and hopefully changes the state of science or engineering or technology, and moves things forward –

maybe even to a commercial application!

• The rationale for scientists thinking about business is well-founded and has been going on for a long time.

Rationale for Biz for Scientists

• At a recent conference at Univ. of Edinburgh, 50 MS & PhD ’ s learned how to develop their biotech ideas into businesses – and this is going on all over the place.

• Lean Startup / Business Models / Guided Academic Entrepreneurship / BTE • many examples of similar things…

• NSF funds 18,000 scientists and $7B/yr. but most of the research stays in the lab. • NSF I-Corps is attempting to change that by fostering entrepreneurship that will lead to the commercialization of technology that has been supported previously by NSF funded research.

(maybe not the most efficient way to do it but it

’

s a start)

• • • • • • Does Business & Entrepreneurship threaten The University of Idaho ’ s Core Values? E-ship can reinforce a university's mission and strengths. Turning a research breakthrough into a business is a classic exercise in cross-disciplinary thinking and collaboration--exactly the values that great research universities support. E-ship requires subjecting ideas to rigorous challenge and being open to ideas even if they are disruptive. (Sounds like Science, huh!) A purely academic institution is always at risk of becoming too rigid, too dedicated to protecting the status quo rather than making new discoveries that contribute to the public good.

Entrepreneurship requires people to champion crazy ideas and to keep innovating ahead of the competition. Entrepreneurs aren't searching for ultimate truths like you are, but they bring an openness to new ideas and the market brings a unique intellectual rigor to testing the validity of ideas.

To go a step farther,

• Universities are struggling with funding from the public sector, • Increased pressure to manage operating expenses, • so they are seeking additional commercial applications from science Shriner (nd)

Forms of Research

Basic Research Applied Research Development for Productive Applications University Research Commercialization Some organizations are trying to fill this gap

Influencing the Process of Product Innovation • Business, Intellectual Property, Licensing, and Entrepreneurship are hard!

• Knowledge Gaps • Market Uncertainty • Issues of Feasibility

Feasibility

• Too often, we launch new ideas without thinking through what our market is.

• Preparing a feasibility study helps determine if there is sufficient demand

and

profit potential.

Overview of a Feasibility Study

• • • • • Description of the project (and problem it solves) Market feasibility Technical feasibility Financial/Economic feasibility Org/Managerial feasibility • Results / Conclusion / Next Steps www2.ca.uky.edu/cmspubsclass/files/adreum/marketanalysis.pp

t

Feasibility Study  Business Model  Business Plan A feasibility study is NOT a business plan.

• Feasibility is an investigating function – –

“Is this idea/innovation/product/company viable?”

• A Business Plan is a planning function to take the proposal from ‘Idea2Reality’ –

“How do we do this?”

• A Business Model is something different from both; – it’s the rationale for “how do we create and capture

value?”

A Feasibility Study leads to Business Model development which

may

lead to a Business Plan.

But it all starts with an Idea!

www2.ca.uky.edu/cmspubsclass/files/adreum/marketanalysis.pp

t

Where do good ideas come from?

Dylan

’

s Idea

–

The Pain

–

Who has the Pain?

–

The Solution: TekMarch

•

But what about the market, the competition, the key resources and activities, costs, partners, …???

Ideation Exercise • A lot of good ideas come from an irritation. Think about a problem, a pain that bothers you or something you study or think about that affects people or the environment.

1. Describe the pain, the problem.

2. Who has the problem?

3. Do you have a solution?

Once we have an idea …

• Is it viable? • Is it feasible?

• If so, is there a business model that works in the marketplace where investment and sales are the currency. But even before that, we need to think about

why!

Simon Sinek

’

s Golden Circle

Searching for a Business Model

• Three Examples: – RoboTrax – BioCement Technologies – TimeStage

Getting from Idea to Business Model

Defining Your Business Model

When management-types ask …

"So what's your business model?"

they really want an answer to a much more direct and basic question:

"How do you plan to make money?"

Behind that question is a bunch of others • • • • • • • • Who's your target customer?

What customer problem do you solve?

What value does your business deliver?

How will you reach, acquire, and keep customers?

How will you define and differentiate your offering, your value proposition?

How will you generate revenue?

What's your cost structure?

What's your profit margin?

Business Models Defined

A

business model

describes the rationale of how an organization creates, delivers, and captures value.

What is the business model for your lab?

Visualizing Your Business Model

I. Customer Segments

•

For whom are we creating value?

•

Who are our most important customers?

• • •

I. Customer Segments

Customers are the heart of any business model. Without profitable customers, you won ’ t survive for long. An organization must make a conscious decision about which segments to serve and which to ignore. Once this decision is made, a business model can be designed around a strong understanding of specific customer needs.

• • • • •

Types of Customer Segments

Mass Market: Business models focused on mass markets don ’ t distinguish between

Customer Segments

.

Niche Market: Business Models targeting niche markets cater to specific, specialized

Customer Segments

.

Segmented: problems. Some business models differentiate between market segments with slightly different needs and

Diversified:

An organization with a diversified business model serves two unrelated

Customer Segments

different needs and problems. with very

Multi-sided Platforms

(or multi-sided markets): Some organizations serve two or more interdependent

Customer Segments

.

Your Key Customer

•

Who is your key

‘

customer

’

?

•

Can you imagine others up or downstream from your primary

‘

customer

’

?

• • •

II. Value Propositions

What value do we deliver to the customer?

Which one of our customer ’ s problems or needs are we solving?

What bundles of products/services do we offer to each

Customer Segment

?

Value Propositions

(cont.) • • • Each

Value Proposition

consists of a selected bundle of products and/or services that caters to the requirements of a specific

Customer Segment

. In this sense, the customers.

Value Proposition

is an aggregation of benefits that a company offers Some

value propositions

may be innovative and represent a new or disruptive offer. Others may be similar to existing market offers, but with added features and attributes.

• • • • •

Value Propositions

Newness – Cell Phones or ‘ethical investment funds’ Performance – Computers or Cars ‘ Getting the job done ’ – Rolls Royce airplane engines Design – Fashion, consumer products, or architecture Brand or Status – Rolex or latest snowboard gear • • • • • Price – Southwest Air or ‘freemiums’ Cost Reduction Risk Reduction – Warranties, 3 rd Parties. … Accessibility – NetJets selling ‘time-share’ planes Convenience / Usability – Apple sharing music across devices

Example: TekMarch Value Proposition

TekMarch is an innovative solution to a problem with marching band music. Our product allows musicians to load parade and show music into their cellphones through our app and then link it to the TekMarch digital screen custom-mounted on their instruments.

With TekMarch, the music is always in your pocket, always easily accessible -- but the real value-added is TekMarch ’ s ability to

hear

and keep up with the music, eliminating the need to ever flip a page.

TekMarch keeps players on the beat!

Your Value Proposition

•

What is your value proposition for your lab or research?

•

What is the

‘

bundle

’

of benefits you offer to your customers?

III. Channels

• • • The

Channels

building block describes how a company communicates with and reaches its

Customer Segments

to deliver a

Value Proposition

. Communication, distribution, and sales

Channels

comprise a company ’ s interface with customers.

Channels

are customer touch points that play an important role in the customer experience.

Your Channels?

•

How do you communicate your product/results to your customer segments to show that you deliver your value proposition?

•

What are your touch points, your interface with

‘

customers

’

?

IV. Customer Relationships

• • • What type of relationship does each of our

Customer Segments

expect us to establish and maintain with them?

How costly are they?

How are they integrated with the rest of our business model?

Categories of Customer Relationships • • • • • • Personal Assistance: human interaction via point of sale, call centers, email, … Dedicated Personal Assistance: customer rep assigned specifically to a customer.

Self-service: no direct relationship. Company provides the means for customers to help themselves.

Automated Service: more sophisticated form of self serve; automated services tailored to individuals.

Communities: many firms utilize user communities to help each other, interact, and expand knowledge base.

Co-creation: Many now go beyond the traditional customer-vendor relationship to co-create value with customers. Amazon invites customer reviews; others invite customers to design products; youtube solicits content.

Your Relationships

• • • •

You identified your customers but what kind of relationships do you maintain with them? How do you communicate with them? How much information / product do they want? How close do they want to be? High touch or more distant relationship?

V. Revenue Streams

• • • • • For what value are our customers really willing to pay?

For what do they currently pay?

How are they currently paying?

How would they prefer to pay?

How much does each

Revenue Stream

contribute to overall revenues?

Your Revenue Streams

• • •

What are your revenue streams? One or multiple streams? How secure are they? How do you find new ones? And what will they need to give you more funds? How do you

‘

prove

’

they should invest more in your operation?

•

VI. Key Resources

The

Key Resources

building block describes the most important assets required to make a business model work. Every business requires

Key Resources

. They are what we have to

have

. • They allow an enterprise to create and offer a

value proposition

, reach markets, maintain relationships with

Customer Segments

and earn revenues.

Key Resources

(cont.) • • •

Key resources

can be physical, financial, intellectual, or human.

Key Resources

can be owned, leased, or acquired from key partners. Different

Key Resources

are needed depending on the type of business model.

Your Key Resources

•

What are the key resources in your operation?

–

Physical

–

Financial

–

Intellectual

–

Human

VII. Key Activities

• The

do Key Activities

building block describes the most important things a company must to make its business model work. •

Key Activities

revenues. are required to create and deliver a Value Proposition, reach markets, maintain Customer Relationships, and earn

•

Key Activities

(cont.)

Key Activities

are different for different business model types. – For software maker Microsoft,

Key Activities

include software development.

– For Walmart,

Key Activities

include supply chain management. – For consultant McKinsey,

Key Activities

include problem solving.

Your Key Activities

•

What are the key activities in your lab/research/teaching? What is it you do?

VIII. Key Partnerships

• The

Key Partnerships

building block describes the network of suppliers and partners that make the business model work. • Companies increasingly create alliances to optimize their business models, reduce risk, or acquire resources.

Your Key Partners

• •

Who are your partners? Who do you need to make your research go? Who supports your lab, your teaching, your research? Who is critical to getting the funding, the support, who runs interference, who will take the blame and give you the credit, … ?

IX. Cost Structure

• • • The

Cost Structure

describes all costs incurred to operate a business model.

Creating and delivering value, maintaining

Customer Relationships

, and generating revenue all drive costs. What are the most important costs in your business model? – These costs can be calculated relatively easily after defining

Key Resources

,

Key Activities

, and

Key Partnerships

.

Your Costs

•

What are your key cost drivers?

• •

Can you manage them, minimize costs, partner for some of them, co opt for them, … Do you have control over your costs?

Your Business Model Canvas

• Take an idea/problem and build a business model canvas. • www.canvanizer.com

Prototyping

Navigating Your Environment

Proving It

Knox Asthma Canvas

• http://www.slideshare.net/sblank/knox final-presentation

Telling Your Story

It

’

s all about the story

• • How do you turn your idea into a story telling session? Nothing is more boring than all facts and figures. – Conference presentations – TimeStage • A recent example: Grid Defender

Your Canvas

• Tell your story!

Pitching an Idea (NanoTubes)

The Elevator Pitch

The Idaho Pitch

http://www.uidaho.edu/cbe/e xperientiallearning/entreprene urship-program/elevator-pitch competition

7 Elements of an Entrepreneur ’ s Pitch

7 Elements of an Entrepreneur ’ s Pitch 1. Pain Statement 2. Who has the Pain? (Target Market) 3. How do you solve it? (Product/Service/Technology) 4. Who does it now? (Competition) 5. How will you make money? (Bus Model) 6. What resources do you want?

7. How do you create value? (what do you return?)

•

Your Pitch

Using the seven steps, create a pitch for your business idea.

Summary Business Plan

1. Executive Summary 2. Market/Industry Analysis 3. Product/Service Description 4. Revenue/Business Model 5. Competition 6. Management Team 7. Financials

An entrepreneur is someone who has more ideas than resources!