Mike CantelloBusiness Development Officer

University of Salford

Spin-Out Enterprises:

Long-Term Support and

the Challenge of Sustainability

Spin-Outs - Sustainable Long-Term Support

This presentation will focus on the

“how to” approach to supporting spin-outs:

providing long-term support finding the resources

Spin-Outs - Sustainable Long-Term Support

This presentation will focus on the

“how to” approach to incubating spin-outs:

providing long-term support finding the resources

Based on the Salford experience, and .…..

Spin-Outs - Sustainable Long-Term Support

This presentation will focus on the

“how to” approach to incubating spin-outs:

providing long-term support finding the resources

Based on the Salford experience, and .…..our work with the other Greater Manchester universities

Spin-Outs - Sustainable Long-Term Support

The Greater Manchester experience:

A wide-ranging multi-faceted approach to

supporting enterprise that…….

……..embraces different types of spin-outs.

Can we construct a definition of spin-outs that describes and measures our ground-breaking approach?

UK HEIs - The Enterprise Agenda

HEIs and incubation - a strong relationship

A relationship with a track record A new imperative - emulating the US

responding to the UK Government’s strategy ……...

UK HEIs - The Enterprise Agenda

The UK Government’s strategy ……...

HEIs as prime movers in technology and SME-led growth, encouraged through:

the new regional development agencies targeted funding (Higher Education Funding Council)

culture change in academia

UK HEIs - The Enterprise Agenda

UK Government

UK HEIs

Regional Development

Agencies

HigherEducationFundingCouncil

UK HEIs - The Enterprise Agenda

The UK HEIs - meeting the enterprise challenge ……….

UKBI AURIL UNICO University Challenge Science Enterprise Challenge

The Salford Enterprise Agenda

How are we at Salford meeting the challenge?

The four key issues …………..

The Salford Enterprise Agenda

Technological change - the four key issues:

Labour market changes The socio-economic hinterland Lifelong learning Higher education - content and delivery

The Salford Enterprise Agenda

We are addressing these issues on two fronts:

(1) The geographical front: Regional level: NW HEIs - RDA formal linkages Sub-regional level: GM HEIs, development agencies, utilities Local level: the local authority, urban regeneration, social

inclusion

The Salford Enterprise Agenda

(2) The organisational front:

embedding enterprise through ………...

faculty and school restructuring Academic Enterprise - the “third arm” New University company Formal links with other GM HEIs

Salford:Enterprise in Practice

What are we actually doing in Salford?

Building on our history of spin-out incubation Our new approach - the wider agenda New definitions of spin-out

Salford:Enterprise in Practice

Spin-out definitions:

staff or student + IPR staff or student - no IPR university external service provider university IPR exploitation vehicle business park/incubation unit tenants university licensee

ex members of university company

Salford:Enterprise in Practice

Examples of spin-out support mechanisms:

working closely with Faculties equity and management support Technology House Incubation Unit The University Business Park

and, in the future ……..

The Incubation Partnership (GM HEIs)

The Incubation Partnership

The Incubation Partnership

creating a sustainable resource for long-term

spin-out support - its members: Manchester Victoria University Manchester Metropolitan University University of Manchester Institute of Science and

Technology (UMIST) University of Salford

The Incubation Partnership

Their roles………...

Manchester Victoria University:

the incubation process ideas generation company formation

The Incubation Partnership

Their roles ………..

University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology:

external resources - finance, including seedcorn funds professional services, legal, financial, patents etc

The Incubation Partnership

Their roles …………...

Manchester Metropolitan University:

training and short courses incubation support professions resource brokering

The Incubation Partnership

Their roles ………………

University of Salford:

broad-band information network -

delivery and linkages to the sub-region and ….

eventually…... the North-West region

The Incubation Partnership

Some key issues:

The need for structured “joined-up” funding - critical mass and credibility

The need for human resource management and training

Individual incubation roles -the need for ongoing mentoring and close support

The Route to SustainableSupport?

The Incubation Partnership - the right route?

HEIs and Spin-outs……..

…...the limitations of doing it alone:

The constraints of academia and the JIT factor limits and constraints on resources

There is an obvious need to share expertise …and

enlist external resources

Conclusion

Perhaps there is a need to define both the meaning and role of spin-outs in the context of this wider HEI involvement in technology-driven growth.

To do so, we must accept that:

spin-outs come in different forms we need quantity as well as quality they are not the only motor for technology transfer and

enterprise formation

END