This Partnerships for Innovation (PFI) project will support the Innovation Acceleration Partnership (IAP), which will build a replicable model of innovation and education with the researcher as collaborator rather than turning researcher into entrepreneur. IAP eliminates four roadblocks--lack of time, education and learning, social networks, and publication delays--that are major barriers to translational research, patenting, entrepreneurial team recruiting, new company formation, and funding. IAP uses a team of scientific post doctoral fellows with exposure to technology transfer and commercialization in the regions from which they are recruited to support researchers during the critical period of idea evolution. The Fellows' job will be to complete activities that the researchers may not have the time, inclination, or expertise to do. In the process, they will educate these researchers and increase their understanding of future invention disclosure and translational research. IAP engages the region's most experienced and proven leaders who know how to create a dynamic innovation environment with broad support. This leadership team has recruited seven universities, developed a plan to connect 10 pieces of established infrastructure, created the potential for collaboration with 16 industry partners, and gained support from 12 public and government members. The leadership team and the fellows will be supported by an advisory board comprised of entrepreneurs, members of industry, service providers, and investors. Six new tools have been developed to support this effort and simplify replication. Formal classroom training, peer teaching, social networks, mentoring, and free market feedback will be used.
NSF-PFI resource adequacy and value will be validated by contributions from industry, ensuring the sustainability and expansion of IAP. Only 30% of IAP's total five year cost will come from NSF. IAP will create a sustainable innovative commercialization structure in the St. Louis region. Teaching, training and learning occur in four ways with IAP: 1) Fellows complete rigorous curricular training; 2) the six tools support peer teaching and IAP replication; 3) frequent mentoring sessions, advisory board sessions, and industry meetings create social interactions and knowledge sharing; and 4) IAP will intersect students, underrepresented groups, industry, and university co-curricular programs so learning is shared. The very nature of the program breaks down the barriers to entry based on gender, ethnicity, and geography. It will provide experiences and role models for underrepresented populations not currently involved in science and innovation. IAP results and methods will be disseminated broadly. IAP will be offered to other regions in the country, particularly those less entrepreneurially mature. The success of the program will come from the basic premise that including everyone only serves to guarantee greater outcomes for all.
Partners include Washington University (lead institution), University of Missouri-Rolla, University of Illinois Edwardsville, St. Louis Arch Angels, Nidus Center for Scientific Enterprise, Prolog Ventures, Lopata Flegel & Company, Pfizer, Missouri Venture Forum, Rivervest, Biogenerator, Kauffman Foundation, St. Louis County Economic Council, and St. Louis RGCA.
Washington University’s Skandalaris Center and the St. Louis entrepreneur support community created an ecosystem of collaboration and understanding that accelerated commercialization. Start up activity increased in both the biotech and the technology sectors and is now blossoming in other areas. National experts comment that StL created a fast growing entrepreneurial culture that is gaining momentum including attracting entrepreneurs and funding from outside the region. We discovered that entrepreneur activity increases when communities and universities energize social networks that foster entrepreneurial collaborations and relationships. We also discovered that social networks increase returns from expensive economic development investments. Economic development efforts often fall short and produce few results when they fail to concurrently develop low cost, entrepreneur-led peer groups that accelerate entrepreneurial learning and intention. An entrepreneurial culture happens when a community learns together, supporting one another across six phases of entrepreneurial activity (Invention, Idea, Entrepreneur Development, Market Validation, Funding, Growth). We also realized that region and university leaders who focus primarily on economic development goals (jobs, funding, specific industry clusters) have a bias towards picking and supporting only "High Potential Ventures". This policy stifles entrepreneurial activity because it judges unproven ideas too critically before they are tested. This approach constrains entrepreneurial learning and activity by discouraging first time entrepreneur acceptance and development. In effect, it stops entrepreneurs who might uncover ventures that would become economically important and potentially "High Potential" before they get started. The result is a regional entrepreneurial culture that is stagnant, stifled, and never develops.
