Transforming Research into Profitability

SURF-IT students have labored in their mentors’ labs this summer, learning the finer points of hands-on research along the way. But at Tuesday’s SURF-IT summer seminar, they got a lesson in real-world economics from entrepreneur Jeff Greenberg, who discussed ways to prepare that research for commercialization.

Greenberg, a UCI alumnus who serves as the university’s entrepreneur-in-residence, works with researchers to turn good ideas into successful businesses.

He shared important aspects of the process with the would-be entrepreneurs. First, he told them, develop a business plan and be market driven. “Don’t make what’s cool; make what people will buy,” he said. “You have to change the way you think and a business plan is a good place to put all your ideas down.”

The business plan should include an executive summary, team biographies, product description (including IP), market and competitive research, a “go-to-market” plan and financial analysis. It’s an important document to show potential investors and a good repository for information, he said.

Greenberg emphasized the importance of protecting intellectual property from competitors. He introduced the future entrepreneurs to the university’s Office of Technology Alliances, urging them to file records of invention and to consider patent protection. “Most things invented on campus are owned by the university,” he said. “If you don’t fill out the forms for OTA, your inventions won’t be protected.”

In addition, he told the students, because the U.S. awards patents on a first-to-invent basis, they should maintain dated lab notebooks as proof their work’s timeline. “Better yet, email it to someone so there’s a more formal record.”

When they’re ready to produce a product, he said, inventors should identify a “pain point,” a societal problem a product could solve, taking into account interoperability and the competitive environment. “What it comes down to is determining a sustainable competitive advantage,” he stated. “This involves knowing what the market wants, what today’s technology is capable of delivering and what you can uniquely deliver better than anybody else.”

Another key point in managing companies: build a diverse advisory board, management team and board of directors. “Seek people of varied backgrounds. If you’re an engineer, don’t build a company with all engineers. If you’re a psychologist, don’t build a company with only psychologists. Get people who are different from you.”
 
Social networking platforms are a good place to start. “Find people through Facebook, Linked In, Twitter and the UCI Alumni Association,” he urged. “Use networks to find the resources you need, whether it’s human resources or other kinds.”

Greenberg acquainted the audience with a host of local business and funding organizations that can help new businesses take root. These include the Irvine Incubation Center, TechPortal, Digital Media Center, Tri-Tech Small Business Development Center, Tech Coast Venture Network, OCTANe, the Beall Center and the Tech Coast Angels.

Also on the to-do list for new businesses: develop comprehensive shareholder agreements, understand funding requirements and opportunities, run a lean operation and create effective sales and marketing tactics. “The sales and marketing strategy is just as important to the success of a technology product as the technology itself,” Greenberg said. “It’s very well known in the investment community that a brilliant businessperson can make a good business out of a mediocre idea but the most brilliant of ideas can be completely destroyed by inept management.”

To see PowerPoint presentation, click here

-- Anna Lynn Spitzer