Senior Staff Retreat

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Research and Business Development Office

• Senior Staff Retreat
• Friday 10 November 2006
• Knowledge Transfer and Business Engagement
• Janice Pittis and James Callaghan

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What is Knowledge Transfer?

• Core activities of the University
• Creation of Knowledge - Research
• Dissemination of Knowledge - Teaching - Peer
  Groups - Business and the wider community
• Knowledge Transfer encompasses a broad range of
  activities that benefit the world outside HEIs
  and result in direct and indirect economic
  benefit to the UK

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Examples of Knowledge Transfer Activities
KT programmes e.g. KTP
Collaborations Partnerships
Contract Research
Collaborative Research
Spin-outs and Start-ups
Student Placements
Entrepreneurship programmes
Public lectures, Media, Exhibitions
Analytical Services
Facilities Resources
Consultancy
Licensing IPR
CPD/ Short courses
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Research Councils and Knowledge Transfer

• Main roles
• Funding research of world class excellence
• Delivering economic impact of funded research
• Two roles are interrelated and not in conflict
• Each Council has goals for increasing rate of KT
• Goals are an integral part of performance
  management system for RCs (and performance
  against goals influence spending review)

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Higher Education Innovation Fund

• Three rounds of HEIF so far
• HEIF 1 (capacity building) Essex awarded 596k
  over three years
• HEIF 2 (increasing capability) Essex awarded
  2.072m over two years (870k for RBDO)
• HEIF 3 (supporting range of KT activities which
  result in direct and indirect economic benefit to
  UK) allocated 1.73m over two years (815k for
  RBDO)
• HEIF 3 collaborative award of 4.63m Essex
  leading national consortium to enhance support
  for enterprise
• Performance measured annually via HE-BCI Survey

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KT Metrics The 94 Group
Income () per academic 2003-04
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RBDOs Knowledge Transfer Activities

• HEIF 3 Institutional Plan, approved by HEFCE,
  focuses on the Universitys three Strategic Aims
• Exploiting the Universitys Intellectual
  Assets
• Contributing to Economic and Social Prosperity
  in the Region
• Promoting Enterprise and Innovation

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Examples of Key KT Activities at Essex

• Knowledge Transfer Partnerships
• Securing and Exploiting IP
• Consultancy
• Entrepreneurship programme

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KTP Programme partnership between
Graduateworks on the project for 1-3 years
Companya specific business need
Strategic Project
University provides knowledge, expertise
supervision
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KTP Mission

• To strengthen the competitiveness and wealth
  creation of the UK by the stimulation of
  innovation in industry through collaborative
  partnerships between the science, engineering and
  technology base and industry

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KT Partnership Sponsors

• Arts and Humanities Research Council
• Biotechnology Biological Sciences Research
  Council
• Department for Environment, Food and Rural
  Affairs
• Department of Health
• Department of Trade Industry
• Engineering Physical Sciences Research Council
• Economic Social Research Council
• European Social Fund
• Invest Northern Ireland
• Natural Environment Research Council
• One North East
• Particle Physics Astronomy Research Council
• Scottish Executive
• South East England Development Agency
• The Northern Way
• Welsh Assembly Government

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Objectives of every KT Partnership

• Facilitate the transfer of knowledge and the
  spread of technical and business skills through
  an innovation project
• Provide company-based training for graduates in
  order to enhance their business and specialist
  skills
• Stimulate and enhance business relevant research
  and training undertaken by the knowledge base

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University Benefits

• Understanding of industrial requirements and
  commercial imperatives
• Staff development, with opportunities to increase
  the number of staff
• Student placements
• Student projects
• Publishing academic papers
• New teaching material

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Programmes can cover any important aspect of the
business

• Developing new products
• Introducing new technology
• Improving marketing
• Making business operate more efficiently
• Introducing new computer systems
• Implementing new management processes

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Current KTPs

• A Recipe For Success, Ipswich (second KTP)
• eBusiness solutions
• 2 year project
• Value 100k
• Devlin Electronics, Basingstoke
• RF Design and Development
• 3 year project
• Value 156k
• Sanctuary Social Care Ltd, Ipswich
• Intelligent Care Homes
• 3 year project
• Value 192k

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Securing and Exploiting IP

• What is IP?
• Reviewing the Universitys intellectual property,
  looking for industrially relevant and
  commercially exploitable work
• Supporting, facilitating and guiding people
  through the processes involved in identifying,
  evaluating and protecting their ideas
• Disseminating appropriate policies e.g.
  Invention Disclosure, IPR etc
• Identifying potential business opportunities
• Seeking routes to commercialisation, including
  the identification of potential partners and/or
  investors, and prepare appropriate business plans
  and funding proposals

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RBDO Commercialisation Process
PHASE 1
PHASE 2
PHASE 3

• Prospecting
• Disclosures
• Internal networking
• IP audits
• Grant tracking
• Need pull

License
Prospecting
Bus. Case
Scoping
Other
D2
D1
D3
Start-up

• Scope of the opportunity
• Initial commercial appraisal
• Preliminary technical/IP appraisal
• Interpret technical featuresgtbenefits
• Data sources (low cost/public)
• Nerac
• Available market data reports
• Network contacts

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Consultancy

• The provision of expert advice to external
  clients by University staff for payment
• An important channel for transfer of the
  Universitys knowledge and expertise to the
  public, business and voluntary sectors, and to
  the wider community
• It can be a useful early step in the development
  of productive, long term relationships

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Consultancy 2

• Prior to 2005/06 income from Outside Paid Work,
  including consultancy via the University, was, on
  average, lt 80k p.a.
• Between 1998 and 2004, rates charged for Outside
  Paid Work varied from 2000 to 90 per day
• University and academic consultants exposed to
  unknown risks
• Consultancy income is one measure of KT activity
  used by HEFCE to allocate HEIF funds

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Draft Consultancy Policy

• The University supports and promotes consultancy
  to disseminate knowledge.
• New draft policy seeks to
• Clarify consultancy channels University
  Consultancy and Private Consultancy
• Provide a package of admin support
  negotiation of fees, contract preparation,
  handling invoices and payments, provision of
  professional indemnity and public liability
  insurance
• Maximise benefits for individuals and the
  University
• Minimise risks to individuals and the University

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Draft Consultancy Policy 2

• Will be posted on RBDO website and all staff
  invited to comment
• Revised Policy will be submitted to Council for
  approval in December
• If approved, policy will be implemented in
  January 2007 and all staff notified of new
  procedures by Personnel and RBDO
• All forms and information on procedures will be
  available on RBDO website

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Entrepreneurship

• Entrepreneurship Framework developed by SEB in
  2005
• RBDO contributes to Framework via the delivery of
  extra-curricular programmes for students, staff
  and the local community
• Provide links to related external programmes
  (e.g. i10 Innovators, NCGE Flying Start
  rallies, CfEL Enterprisers programme)

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Spirit of Enterprise Programme

• Launched in 2004/05
• 3rd programme started on 17 October 2006
• Events Meet the Entrepreneurs and hear their
  stories
• Workshops networking, creative thinking,
  pitching ideas, IPR, market research
• Business Ideas Competition
• Inspired students to set up Essex
  Entrepreneurship Society
• NCGE funding regional student interns to provide
  links between national organisations and
  individual HEIs - Essex invited to host the
  student intern for the east of England
• Plans to set up a hatchery for students wishing
  to start up their own businesses

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The Present
The Future?
Research
Research
Teaching
Peer Groups
Teaching
KT
Peer Groups
KT
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What does this mean for you?

• Greater emphasis on economic impact of research
  by Research Councils how will your department
  react to this?
• What can your department do to exploit
  opportunities to diversify research funding
  streams, e.g. Industry/business support for
  research grants?
• What is the level of awareness of IP issues in
  your department?
• Links with business, entrepreneurial skills
  development, employability student recruitment.
  Can your department offer these benefits?
• How high is your departments research profile
  outside the academic community?
• Engagement with business, developing
  partnerships etc is not relevant to my research.
  Discuss!

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• Validate business case
• Commissioned market reports
• Establish IP estate
• Priority patent applications
• Know-how
• Outline commercial case
• Indicative route to exploitation
• Pathfinder / pre-seed bids
• Department buy in
• Initial due-diligence
• Assign IP to WTL
• Risks conflicts

• License
• Active marketing
• Manage IP strategy/assets
• Term and contract negotiations
• Evaluation/option arrangements
• Leveraged collaborations

RBDO Commercialisation Process

• Prospecting
• Disclosures
• Internal networking
• IP audits
• Grant tracking
• Need pull

Iceni
HEIF
Phase 3 License
IGF?
Post review
Prospecting
Phase 2 Bus. Case
Phase 1 Scoping
D1
D2
D3
Phase 4 Start-up
Comm. Grp.
BDM

• Scope of the opportunity
• Initial commercial appraisal
• Preliminary technical/IP appraisal
• Interpret technical featuresgtbenefits
• Reproducibility Robustness?
• Data sources (low cost/public)
• Nerac
• Available market data reports
• Network contacts

• Start-up
• Commercial strategy
• Business plan
• Investor pitches
• Term contract negotiations
• Due diligence preparation
• Incorporate
• Manage IP strategy/assets

SPOIAG