Description
During this outline about entrepreneurship in residence program.
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Entrepreneurship in Residence Program
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN RESIDENCE PROGRAM ................................................................... 3
1.1 What? ........................................................................................................................................ 3
1.1.1 Definition ............................................................................................................................... 3
1.1.2 Part in Practice ....................................................................................................................... 4
1.2 When? ........................................................................................................................................ 5
1.2.1 Timing .................................................................................................................................... 5
1.3 Who? .......................................................................................................................................... 6
1.3.1 Stakeholders ........................................................................................................................... 6
1.4 Where? ...................................................................................................................................... 7
1.4.1 Location ................................................................................................................................. 7
1.5 Pro's & Cons ............................................................................................................................. 7
1.6 Why? .......................................................................................................................................... 7
1.6.1 Rationale: Why was this established? .................................................................................... 7
1.6.2 Impact .................................................................................................................................... 8
1.7 Outcome? .................................................................................................................................. 8
1.8 Lessons Learned? ..................................................................................................................... 8
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Entrepreneurship in Residence Program
Introduction
A lot of technically talented people are interested in inventing new and exciting technologies, but drop
out at the point of commercialisation. This presents a problem to many Technology Transfer Officers.
Why is it that researchers rarely find their way to the technology transfer office, and what can be done
about it? Or how can researchers be motivated to communicate the details of their invention and
involve technology transfers early in the process? There are two potential reasons that researchers stay
in their labs when they’ve come up with a brilliant idea instead of going to a technology transfer
officer. The first is that they are simply not aware of the transfer opportunities, or do not realise that
their invention is of commercial interest. TTOs can try and overcome this by promoting awareness of
the technology transfer process, for instance by organizing information events. The second reason is
that researchers might lack motivation to engage with technology transfer offices. Behind this may be
the fact that starting a new company can be seen as being risky, and very different to academic work.
However, TTOs can motivate researchers to become more entrepreneurially minded by ensuring that
academic inventors will receive support throughout the start-up process. Since a strong management
team is a key element of successful start-up companies, knowing you will be part of one can be a
strong motivator. At Imperial Innovations (UK), complementary teams are put together depending on
the needs and stage of the company. One initiative used to provide strong management teams is the
Entrepreneurs-In-Residence’ programme.
1.1 WHAT?
1.1.1 Definition
The idea of an Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR) originally comes from the venture capital
industry. It is a position or title typically held by an experience entrepreneur or business
professional. Entrepreneurs in Residence are very experienced in a particular area, and their
expertise is very valuable to venture capital firms, universities or other organisations that wish
to develop activities in that area, offering insight into the landscape, new trends, networks and
future direction. This sort of information is of crucial important for spin-out companies trying
to enter into a particular area.
Given the experience of these entrepreneurs or business professionals, the EIR role is often
designed to fulfil one of three primary functions: 1) to launch a new entrepreneurial venture,
often with the backing of the parent firm or organisation. In this case, the entrepreneur or
business professional often becomes the CEO of the company; 2) to assist in the evaluation of
potential investments where the entrepreneur has a particular expertise: this is of interest to the
technology transfer office as they may gain insight into the conditions influencing their
potential investment in that area. It is also of interest to the entrepreneur or business
professional in that it allows them to gain an overview of the different projects that are
currently running within the technology transfer office and to make a more informed decision
when joining a start-up; 3) to provide functional expertise to assist with an existing
investment. After creation, start-ups often ask for additional advice and/or financial support
from the technology transfer office. The expertise and advice of an entrepreneur or business
professional can be very helpful in assessing this need. The ultimate goal within Imperial
Innovations is to ensure that new formed technology companies have access to good
management who can take it forward.
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1.1.2 Part in Practice
The EIR programme is all about finding the right people and placing them at the right place at
the right time. The first requirement is by the far the most important one, as the Entrepreneurs-
in-Residence will themselves make or break the success of the EIR programme. Therefore, the
first critical task in setting up the programme is to attract the right people.
Step 1: Finding the right people
Who should we look for?
The Entrepreneurs-In-Residence are people with domain specific experience in a particular
sector, e.g. ICT. They are good strategic thinkers with a corporate background at a senior level
and/or have start-up experience. Usually they are embedded in an extended network of
industrial contacts as a result of their successful career. At a certain point in their life, these
people decide they would like to engage in a different opportunity and begin to look for a new
challenge: becoming an entrepreneur-in-residence allows them to fulfil an executive role in a
start-up or a position as executive chair of a start-up.
Where can we find them?
The pool at Imperial Innovations currently comprises five members. Different channels are
used to attract these individuals. An important starting point is raising awareness of the
Entrepreneurs-in-Residence programme and engaging with potential members of the pool of
Entrepreneurs-in-Residence. Attending events is a good way to do this: Technology Transfer
Officers at Imperial Innovations frequently attend targeted and/or themed events, choosing
conferences based on technical relevance and the list of attendees. If they can identify ‘big
names’ at events based on interesting and relevant topics, they ensure Imperial Innovations
attends. For instance, events organised by the London Technology Network are very much
appreciated by Imperial Innovations, but other conferences around specific themes are
certainly of interest to its Technology Transfer Offices.
A second way to engage with interesting contacts is though the various networks that Imperial
Innovations belongs to, some of which are: BVCA, UNICO and the London Technology
Network. UNICO is the UK’s leading representative body of professionals realising the
potential of universities; BVCA is the industry body and public policy advocate for the private
equity and venture capital industry in the UK. Their members come from venture capital,
through mid-market, to private equity/large buy-out houses from all over Britain; The London
Technology Network promotes innovative collaborations and helps to stimulate technology-
intensive innovations between universities and businesses in London. Members of staff at
Imperial Innovations can also draw on their extensive networks of industrial contacts, and the
Investment and New Ventures teams maintain an excellent network of business professionals
from the investment and venture capital industries.
A third approach is to use the services of professional headhunting agencies. When Imperial
Innovations is looking for specific experience, skills or knowledge in a domain unknown to its
TTOs, they will employ the services of executive search consultants. This is a more expensive
approach but has proved highly efficient for a number of start-ups.
Finally, it is possible to engage with potential future EiRs by screening the CVs that are
submitted speculatively as a result of Imperial Innovations well-known reputation. It is
important to understand that Imperial Innovations recognises how important it is that members
of the Entrepreneurs-in-Residence programme are of the very highest quality, and that it
invests a great deal of time and effort raising awareness of the programme and finding
appropriate candidates on this basis.
Step 2: Placing them at the right place
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EIRs spend more or less one year on consulting various start-up companies in the Imperial
Incubator and assessing the potential of technologies disclosed to Imperial Innovations. In
general, they have two options after that: 1) they continue to add value across the portfolio, for
instance by giving advice to different spin-offs; or 2) they choose to take on a full time
placement in a newly formed venture.
Example:
The first Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (2006) were Daniel Green and Peter Beynon.
Daniel first joined the New Ventures team of Imperial Innovations to support the development
of different life science propositions. One of the business propositions he elected and
continued to work on was Bioceramic Therapeutics Ltd (now RepRegen). He chose to focus
on this particular company and became its CEO. Peter Beynon initially joined to evaluate
opportunities which came through from commercialisation contracts and incubators. During
this time he identified EVO Electric as a promising business to lead and build, and took up the
role of CEO in that company.
Step 3: Do it at the right time
A start-up venture team has different requirements according to the development stage the
company is in. In the early stage – before the company has attracted external funding – the
technology still needs a lot of development in order to make it market proof. The technical
risk may still be very high. Therefore, the team needs highly qualified technical personnel to
minimize this risk. There is no real need for executive staff at this point. Furthermore, as
Research & Development costs mount, there is often no money left to pay them. One way to
overcome this problem is by implementing a so-called ‘entrepreneurial chair’ whose central
task would be to refine the business plan. An entrepreneurial chair is a temporary substitute or
an affordable alternative for an official CEO and perfectly fits the profile of an entrepreneur-
in-residence. Only once external funding is needed does it make sense to invest in an
experienced CEO and appoint them to approach potential investors.
Example:
John Beadle was the third Entrepreneur-in-Residence, joining the programme in 2008. He was
appointed to work alongside early stage companies that were being incubated with a view to
taking on the CEO position within one of the businesses. In 2009, John become CEO of
Myotec Therapeutics, a company which had by then existed for two years but which did not
require an official CEO until that point.
1.2 WHEN?
1.2.1 Timing
The EIR’s Program is organized on a continuous basis. It was launched at Imperial
Innovations in 2006: David Bowman, Peter Beynon and Daniel Green were asked to join the
pool of Entrepreneurs-in-Residence. Within two years three other experienced entrepreneurs
appeared on the stage: John Beadle, Nick Brooks and John Hamlin. Imperial Innovations is
planning on continuing the program and expects to attract more and more people as the
current Entrepreneurs-in-Residence have a network of their own and these networks can also
be used to identify and select potentially interesting new members of the EIR-Program.
ICBS Entrepreneurship in Residence Program Page 6 of 8
1.3 WHO?
1.3.1 Stakeholders
The different stakeholders within the EIR programme are (1) the researchers, (2) the industrial
partners, (3) the Technology Transfer Officers, (4) Commercial Services, (5) the New
Ventures team, (6) external consultants, and (7) the Entrepreneurs-in-Residence themselves.
(1) The researchers can benefit from the programme, as the EIRs are a valuable asset for the
start-up team. They can upscale the venture by convincing investors, create interesting
business opportunities and attract other highly qualified team members. In addition, they
can serve as a coach for the ‘inexperienced’ researchers. Researchers are technically well-
equipped and may be excellent managers, but can often lack commercial skills and market
awareness. By working closely together with highly experienced (serial) entrepreneurs,
they can learn from an expert in the matter
(2) Industrial partners are an important stakeholder because they can deliver ‘the input for the
programme’, referring to the entrepreneurs themselves. Besides, Imperial Innovations puts
a lot of emphasis on its industrial network as it strives for a market-led approach: at
Imperial Innovations an invention is not strictly valued for its technological newness, but
also for its economic potential. Researchers are motivated t think about potential
commercial applications throughout the entire development process.
(3) The Technology Transfer Officers (TTOs) are always on the look-out for new
Entrepreneurs-in Residence. Both continuously invest in building up a large network and
expanding it. There is a passive and an active way to do so. The passive approach is to
screen the CVs coming in on a daily basis. The active approach entails scouring events
(e.g. London Technology) – TTOs screen the attendance list of potentially interesting
events and then visit those events which attract the most influential people –, screening
current and previous partnerships/collaborations and internally organized programs, such
as the IED-Program.
(4) Idem for Commercial Services: an internal service which investigates the market potential
of new incoming project/idea proposals, gives advice with respect to commercialization
and helps finding customers.
(5) The New Ventures team is responsible for running the Entrepreneurs-in-Residence
programme, and an EIR will sit within the New Ventures Team, using their resources and
assessing opportunities identified within the New Ventures team
(6) When Imperial Innovations is looking for an Entrepreneur-in-Residence with specific
experience, skills or knowledge in a domain relatively unknown internally, then they turn
to executive search firms such as Lancor.
(7) The entrepreneurs themselves are crucial for the programme, as it cannot continue to exist
without them. These EIRs are typically looking for a new professional challenge after a
successful career of founding companies and/or guiding the start-up and growth process of
new ventures.
How many resources does an institute need to organize, install and maintain such a
programme? The most time, money and energy consuming part is the quest for entrepreneurs.
This is the responsibility of the New Ventures team at Imperial Innovations, but members of
the Technology Transfer and Commercial Services team have an input into the programme
too. Each member of these teams has an extensive network of industrial contacts from which
Entrepreneurs-in-Residence can be drawn.
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1.4 WHERE?
1.4.1 Location
The EIR programme is organised internally at Imperial Innovations, but the underlying
rationale is embedded in all the internal departments – technology transfer, commercial
services and the new ventures team. The EIRs can come from everywhere, but since they are
expected to spend a lot of time with the different spin-outs or one in particular, it seems
logical to look for entrepreneurs in the United Kingdom or internal entrepreneurs willing to
live and work in the UK and especially in London. The fact that Imperial Innovations is
located in the heart of London helps to attract EIRs as they see London as a vibrant place to
live and work.
1.5 PRO'S & CONS
• Pro’s
Imperial Innovations implemented the EIR programme a few years ago. It’s particularly
interesting because the programme is about using existing resources – connections/relations –
to improve business. It’s a fairly ‘simple’ way to address a common problem within TTOs:
finding the right people to take a business forward. Entrepreneurs-in-Residence offer excellent
commercial experience and market knowledge, which is immensely valuable to TTOs. By
creating a pool of people who have such attributes and involving them in the technology
transfer process, a business oriented approach is possible. EIRs are very enthusiastic people,
willing to devote a lot of energy into guiding the creation of spin-out companies around a
diverse area of technologies. The EIR programme is also a major benefit for the spin-out
companies, as it allows them to consult highly experienced people at low cost.
• Cons
The biggest strength of this best practice – using existing networks – can also be its biggest
weakness. Imperial Innovations has a strong reputation. For younger institutes with a limited
budget, it might take a lot of time, effort and money to build up an extensive network.
Moreover, the interaction between the business world and universities is significantly different
in the UK compared to continental Europe, as in the UK, the industry is much more involved
in academia, supporting creating of a large network. A good interaction with industry is
essential to building an Entrepreneurs-in-Residence programme.
1.6 WHY?
1.6.1 Rationale: Why was this established?
Whenever a valuable technology leads to a new start-up at Imperial Innovations, the file is
handed to a dedicated ‘New Ventures’ team. One of the various tasks of this team is to put a
management team in place. First, they will ask several strategic questions such as ‘what type
of person is needed to take the company forward’ and ‘which milestones will the company
need to achieve’? In general, a start-up venture team has specific requirements e.g. investors
need to be convinced of the business idea; the technology needs to be translated into market
needs; a customer base needs to be developed, etc. In other words, the team needs someone
with commercial skills and market insight, someone who has the right connections and rich
ICBS Entrepreneurship in Residence Program Page 8 of 8
experience, next to the technical people. The inventor is often very experienced on the
technical side and may be an excellent manager, but will seldom have good market knowledge
or commercial expertise. This is a common problem within Technology Transfer, especially
from universities. That is why the Entrepreneurs-in-Residence programme was set up. The
New Ventures team has to try to marry very high level executive experience with really
interesting technology, and the can use the pool of EIRs to find these complementary skills.
1.6.2 Impact
The EIR programme has been very successful so far, in the sense that both Imperial
Innovations and the EIRs seem to have gained something out of it. Figures about the
performance of the new ventures with EIRs as CEO can serve as a proxy for their success of
the programme. One particular example is Bioceramic Therapeutics (now RepRegen), with
EIR Daniel Green as CEO. Daniel was invited to assess Innovations’ technology portfolio to
select something that would make a particularly good start-up. Daniel Green stated: “The
challenge in starting a company from academia is not how good the science is but whether or
not the science is commercial. We need to put together science that will appeal to investors
rather than necessarily winning Nobel prizes.” He selected technology that could form the
basis of a company specialising in “smart material that help the body repair itself”.
Bioceramic Therapeutics was founded as a small laboratory and office in the Imperial
Incubator. Within nine months of formation, the company had raised £1.04 million and has
since gone on to raise a total of £2.2 million. Daniel Green succeeded in drawing money to the
company as well as drawing highly qualified people to the board. Daniel Green has since been
replaced as CEO of BCT (now RepRegen) by Ian Brown.
The EIRs themselves agree that the programme has given them the new challenge they were
looking for. Overall, although the programme is still in its infancy, as the EIR was appointed
in 2006 and the pool exists of only a small number, there have been no disappointments so far.
1.7 OUTCOME?
The programme hasn’t caused any unpleasant side effects so far. A pleasant consequence –
but not entirely unexpected – is the fact that the programme reinforces the programme.
Essentially what this means is that the more EIRs Imperial Innovations can attract, the more
successful it will be, the more widely the programme will be known within industry and the
larger Innovations’ network will become. Imperial Innovations declared in its annual report its
intention to continue the programme.
1.8 LESSONS LEARNED?
In hindsight, Imperial Innovations would have probably started the programme sooner. The
programme has exceeded its expectations, so it will definitely be extended in the future. The
most important recommendation for other Technology Transfer Offices would be to build up a
large network and keep close links with industry. The EIR programme is just one way to
ensure a market input. Other initiatives to install a market led approach should be encouraged
as well.
doc_779167338.pdf
During this outline about entrepreneurship in residence program.
ICBS Entrepreneurship in Residence Program Page 1 of 8
Entrepreneurship in Residence Program
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN RESIDENCE PROGRAM ................................................................... 3
1.1 What? ........................................................................................................................................ 3
1.1.1 Definition ............................................................................................................................... 3
1.1.2 Part in Practice ....................................................................................................................... 4
1.2 When? ........................................................................................................................................ 5
1.2.1 Timing .................................................................................................................................... 5
1.3 Who? .......................................................................................................................................... 6
1.3.1 Stakeholders ........................................................................................................................... 6
1.4 Where? ...................................................................................................................................... 7
1.4.1 Location ................................................................................................................................. 7
1.5 Pro's & Cons ............................................................................................................................. 7
1.6 Why? .......................................................................................................................................... 7
1.6.1 Rationale: Why was this established? .................................................................................... 7
1.6.2 Impact .................................................................................................................................... 8
1.7 Outcome? .................................................................................................................................. 8
1.8 Lessons Learned? ..................................................................................................................... 8
ICBS Entrepreneurship in Residence Program Page 3 of 8
Entrepreneurship in Residence Program
Introduction
A lot of technically talented people are interested in inventing new and exciting technologies, but drop
out at the point of commercialisation. This presents a problem to many Technology Transfer Officers.
Why is it that researchers rarely find their way to the technology transfer office, and what can be done
about it? Or how can researchers be motivated to communicate the details of their invention and
involve technology transfers early in the process? There are two potential reasons that researchers stay
in their labs when they’ve come up with a brilliant idea instead of going to a technology transfer
officer. The first is that they are simply not aware of the transfer opportunities, or do not realise that
their invention is of commercial interest. TTOs can try and overcome this by promoting awareness of
the technology transfer process, for instance by organizing information events. The second reason is
that researchers might lack motivation to engage with technology transfer offices. Behind this may be
the fact that starting a new company can be seen as being risky, and very different to academic work.
However, TTOs can motivate researchers to become more entrepreneurially minded by ensuring that
academic inventors will receive support throughout the start-up process. Since a strong management
team is a key element of successful start-up companies, knowing you will be part of one can be a
strong motivator. At Imperial Innovations (UK), complementary teams are put together depending on
the needs and stage of the company. One initiative used to provide strong management teams is the
Entrepreneurs-In-Residence’ programme.
1.1 WHAT?
1.1.1 Definition
The idea of an Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR) originally comes from the venture capital
industry. It is a position or title typically held by an experience entrepreneur or business
professional. Entrepreneurs in Residence are very experienced in a particular area, and their
expertise is very valuable to venture capital firms, universities or other organisations that wish
to develop activities in that area, offering insight into the landscape, new trends, networks and
future direction. This sort of information is of crucial important for spin-out companies trying
to enter into a particular area.
Given the experience of these entrepreneurs or business professionals, the EIR role is often
designed to fulfil one of three primary functions: 1) to launch a new entrepreneurial venture,
often with the backing of the parent firm or organisation. In this case, the entrepreneur or
business professional often becomes the CEO of the company; 2) to assist in the evaluation of
potential investments where the entrepreneur has a particular expertise: this is of interest to the
technology transfer office as they may gain insight into the conditions influencing their
potential investment in that area. It is also of interest to the entrepreneur or business
professional in that it allows them to gain an overview of the different projects that are
currently running within the technology transfer office and to make a more informed decision
when joining a start-up; 3) to provide functional expertise to assist with an existing
investment. After creation, start-ups often ask for additional advice and/or financial support
from the technology transfer office. The expertise and advice of an entrepreneur or business
professional can be very helpful in assessing this need. The ultimate goal within Imperial
Innovations is to ensure that new formed technology companies have access to good
management who can take it forward.
ICBS Entrepreneurship in Residence Program Page 4 of 8
1.1.2 Part in Practice
The EIR programme is all about finding the right people and placing them at the right place at
the right time. The first requirement is by the far the most important one, as the Entrepreneurs-
in-Residence will themselves make or break the success of the EIR programme. Therefore, the
first critical task in setting up the programme is to attract the right people.
Step 1: Finding the right people
Who should we look for?
The Entrepreneurs-In-Residence are people with domain specific experience in a particular
sector, e.g. ICT. They are good strategic thinkers with a corporate background at a senior level
and/or have start-up experience. Usually they are embedded in an extended network of
industrial contacts as a result of their successful career. At a certain point in their life, these
people decide they would like to engage in a different opportunity and begin to look for a new
challenge: becoming an entrepreneur-in-residence allows them to fulfil an executive role in a
start-up or a position as executive chair of a start-up.
Where can we find them?
The pool at Imperial Innovations currently comprises five members. Different channels are
used to attract these individuals. An important starting point is raising awareness of the
Entrepreneurs-in-Residence programme and engaging with potential members of the pool of
Entrepreneurs-in-Residence. Attending events is a good way to do this: Technology Transfer
Officers at Imperial Innovations frequently attend targeted and/or themed events, choosing
conferences based on technical relevance and the list of attendees. If they can identify ‘big
names’ at events based on interesting and relevant topics, they ensure Imperial Innovations
attends. For instance, events organised by the London Technology Network are very much
appreciated by Imperial Innovations, but other conferences around specific themes are
certainly of interest to its Technology Transfer Offices.
A second way to engage with interesting contacts is though the various networks that Imperial
Innovations belongs to, some of which are: BVCA, UNICO and the London Technology
Network. UNICO is the UK’s leading representative body of professionals realising the
potential of universities; BVCA is the industry body and public policy advocate for the private
equity and venture capital industry in the UK. Their members come from venture capital,
through mid-market, to private equity/large buy-out houses from all over Britain; The London
Technology Network promotes innovative collaborations and helps to stimulate technology-
intensive innovations between universities and businesses in London. Members of staff at
Imperial Innovations can also draw on their extensive networks of industrial contacts, and the
Investment and New Ventures teams maintain an excellent network of business professionals
from the investment and venture capital industries.
A third approach is to use the services of professional headhunting agencies. When Imperial
Innovations is looking for specific experience, skills or knowledge in a domain unknown to its
TTOs, they will employ the services of executive search consultants. This is a more expensive
approach but has proved highly efficient for a number of start-ups.
Finally, it is possible to engage with potential future EiRs by screening the CVs that are
submitted speculatively as a result of Imperial Innovations well-known reputation. It is
important to understand that Imperial Innovations recognises how important it is that members
of the Entrepreneurs-in-Residence programme are of the very highest quality, and that it
invests a great deal of time and effort raising awareness of the programme and finding
appropriate candidates on this basis.
Step 2: Placing them at the right place
ICBS Entrepreneurship in Residence Program Page 5 of 8
EIRs spend more or less one year on consulting various start-up companies in the Imperial
Incubator and assessing the potential of technologies disclosed to Imperial Innovations. In
general, they have two options after that: 1) they continue to add value across the portfolio, for
instance by giving advice to different spin-offs; or 2) they choose to take on a full time
placement in a newly formed venture.
Example:
The first Entrepreneurs-in-Residence (2006) were Daniel Green and Peter Beynon.
Daniel first joined the New Ventures team of Imperial Innovations to support the development
of different life science propositions. One of the business propositions he elected and
continued to work on was Bioceramic Therapeutics Ltd (now RepRegen). He chose to focus
on this particular company and became its CEO. Peter Beynon initially joined to evaluate
opportunities which came through from commercialisation contracts and incubators. During
this time he identified EVO Electric as a promising business to lead and build, and took up the
role of CEO in that company.
Step 3: Do it at the right time
A start-up venture team has different requirements according to the development stage the
company is in. In the early stage – before the company has attracted external funding – the
technology still needs a lot of development in order to make it market proof. The technical
risk may still be very high. Therefore, the team needs highly qualified technical personnel to
minimize this risk. There is no real need for executive staff at this point. Furthermore, as
Research & Development costs mount, there is often no money left to pay them. One way to
overcome this problem is by implementing a so-called ‘entrepreneurial chair’ whose central
task would be to refine the business plan. An entrepreneurial chair is a temporary substitute or
an affordable alternative for an official CEO and perfectly fits the profile of an entrepreneur-
in-residence. Only once external funding is needed does it make sense to invest in an
experienced CEO and appoint them to approach potential investors.
Example:
John Beadle was the third Entrepreneur-in-Residence, joining the programme in 2008. He was
appointed to work alongside early stage companies that were being incubated with a view to
taking on the CEO position within one of the businesses. In 2009, John become CEO of
Myotec Therapeutics, a company which had by then existed for two years but which did not
require an official CEO until that point.
1.2 WHEN?
1.2.1 Timing
The EIR’s Program is organized on a continuous basis. It was launched at Imperial
Innovations in 2006: David Bowman, Peter Beynon and Daniel Green were asked to join the
pool of Entrepreneurs-in-Residence. Within two years three other experienced entrepreneurs
appeared on the stage: John Beadle, Nick Brooks and John Hamlin. Imperial Innovations is
planning on continuing the program and expects to attract more and more people as the
current Entrepreneurs-in-Residence have a network of their own and these networks can also
be used to identify and select potentially interesting new members of the EIR-Program.
ICBS Entrepreneurship in Residence Program Page 6 of 8
1.3 WHO?
1.3.1 Stakeholders
The different stakeholders within the EIR programme are (1) the researchers, (2) the industrial
partners, (3) the Technology Transfer Officers, (4) Commercial Services, (5) the New
Ventures team, (6) external consultants, and (7) the Entrepreneurs-in-Residence themselves.
(1) The researchers can benefit from the programme, as the EIRs are a valuable asset for the
start-up team. They can upscale the venture by convincing investors, create interesting
business opportunities and attract other highly qualified team members. In addition, they
can serve as a coach for the ‘inexperienced’ researchers. Researchers are technically well-
equipped and may be excellent managers, but can often lack commercial skills and market
awareness. By working closely together with highly experienced (serial) entrepreneurs,
they can learn from an expert in the matter
(2) Industrial partners are an important stakeholder because they can deliver ‘the input for the
programme’, referring to the entrepreneurs themselves. Besides, Imperial Innovations puts
a lot of emphasis on its industrial network as it strives for a market-led approach: at
Imperial Innovations an invention is not strictly valued for its technological newness, but
also for its economic potential. Researchers are motivated t think about potential
commercial applications throughout the entire development process.
(3) The Technology Transfer Officers (TTOs) are always on the look-out for new
Entrepreneurs-in Residence. Both continuously invest in building up a large network and
expanding it. There is a passive and an active way to do so. The passive approach is to
screen the CVs coming in on a daily basis. The active approach entails scouring events
(e.g. London Technology) – TTOs screen the attendance list of potentially interesting
events and then visit those events which attract the most influential people –, screening
current and previous partnerships/collaborations and internally organized programs, such
as the IED-Program.
(4) Idem for Commercial Services: an internal service which investigates the market potential
of new incoming project/idea proposals, gives advice with respect to commercialization
and helps finding customers.
(5) The New Ventures team is responsible for running the Entrepreneurs-in-Residence
programme, and an EIR will sit within the New Ventures Team, using their resources and
assessing opportunities identified within the New Ventures team
(6) When Imperial Innovations is looking for an Entrepreneur-in-Residence with specific
experience, skills or knowledge in a domain relatively unknown internally, then they turn
to executive search firms such as Lancor.
(7) The entrepreneurs themselves are crucial for the programme, as it cannot continue to exist
without them. These EIRs are typically looking for a new professional challenge after a
successful career of founding companies and/or guiding the start-up and growth process of
new ventures.
How many resources does an institute need to organize, install and maintain such a
programme? The most time, money and energy consuming part is the quest for entrepreneurs.
This is the responsibility of the New Ventures team at Imperial Innovations, but members of
the Technology Transfer and Commercial Services team have an input into the programme
too. Each member of these teams has an extensive network of industrial contacts from which
Entrepreneurs-in-Residence can be drawn.
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1.4 WHERE?
1.4.1 Location
The EIR programme is organised internally at Imperial Innovations, but the underlying
rationale is embedded in all the internal departments – technology transfer, commercial
services and the new ventures team. The EIRs can come from everywhere, but since they are
expected to spend a lot of time with the different spin-outs or one in particular, it seems
logical to look for entrepreneurs in the United Kingdom or internal entrepreneurs willing to
live and work in the UK and especially in London. The fact that Imperial Innovations is
located in the heart of London helps to attract EIRs as they see London as a vibrant place to
live and work.
1.5 PRO'S & CONS
• Pro’s
Imperial Innovations implemented the EIR programme a few years ago. It’s particularly
interesting because the programme is about using existing resources – connections/relations –
to improve business. It’s a fairly ‘simple’ way to address a common problem within TTOs:
finding the right people to take a business forward. Entrepreneurs-in-Residence offer excellent
commercial experience and market knowledge, which is immensely valuable to TTOs. By
creating a pool of people who have such attributes and involving them in the technology
transfer process, a business oriented approach is possible. EIRs are very enthusiastic people,
willing to devote a lot of energy into guiding the creation of spin-out companies around a
diverse area of technologies. The EIR programme is also a major benefit for the spin-out
companies, as it allows them to consult highly experienced people at low cost.
• Cons
The biggest strength of this best practice – using existing networks – can also be its biggest
weakness. Imperial Innovations has a strong reputation. For younger institutes with a limited
budget, it might take a lot of time, effort and money to build up an extensive network.
Moreover, the interaction between the business world and universities is significantly different
in the UK compared to continental Europe, as in the UK, the industry is much more involved
in academia, supporting creating of a large network. A good interaction with industry is
essential to building an Entrepreneurs-in-Residence programme.
1.6 WHY?
1.6.1 Rationale: Why was this established?
Whenever a valuable technology leads to a new start-up at Imperial Innovations, the file is
handed to a dedicated ‘New Ventures’ team. One of the various tasks of this team is to put a
management team in place. First, they will ask several strategic questions such as ‘what type
of person is needed to take the company forward’ and ‘which milestones will the company
need to achieve’? In general, a start-up venture team has specific requirements e.g. investors
need to be convinced of the business idea; the technology needs to be translated into market
needs; a customer base needs to be developed, etc. In other words, the team needs someone
with commercial skills and market insight, someone who has the right connections and rich
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experience, next to the technical people. The inventor is often very experienced on the
technical side and may be an excellent manager, but will seldom have good market knowledge
or commercial expertise. This is a common problem within Technology Transfer, especially
from universities. That is why the Entrepreneurs-in-Residence programme was set up. The
New Ventures team has to try to marry very high level executive experience with really
interesting technology, and the can use the pool of EIRs to find these complementary skills.
1.6.2 Impact
The EIR programme has been very successful so far, in the sense that both Imperial
Innovations and the EIRs seem to have gained something out of it. Figures about the
performance of the new ventures with EIRs as CEO can serve as a proxy for their success of
the programme. One particular example is Bioceramic Therapeutics (now RepRegen), with
EIR Daniel Green as CEO. Daniel was invited to assess Innovations’ technology portfolio to
select something that would make a particularly good start-up. Daniel Green stated: “The
challenge in starting a company from academia is not how good the science is but whether or
not the science is commercial. We need to put together science that will appeal to investors
rather than necessarily winning Nobel prizes.” He selected technology that could form the
basis of a company specialising in “smart material that help the body repair itself”.
Bioceramic Therapeutics was founded as a small laboratory and office in the Imperial
Incubator. Within nine months of formation, the company had raised £1.04 million and has
since gone on to raise a total of £2.2 million. Daniel Green succeeded in drawing money to the
company as well as drawing highly qualified people to the board. Daniel Green has since been
replaced as CEO of BCT (now RepRegen) by Ian Brown.
The EIRs themselves agree that the programme has given them the new challenge they were
looking for. Overall, although the programme is still in its infancy, as the EIR was appointed
in 2006 and the pool exists of only a small number, there have been no disappointments so far.
1.7 OUTCOME?
The programme hasn’t caused any unpleasant side effects so far. A pleasant consequence –
but not entirely unexpected – is the fact that the programme reinforces the programme.
Essentially what this means is that the more EIRs Imperial Innovations can attract, the more
successful it will be, the more widely the programme will be known within industry and the
larger Innovations’ network will become. Imperial Innovations declared in its annual report its
intention to continue the programme.
1.8 LESSONS LEARNED?
In hindsight, Imperial Innovations would have probably started the programme sooner. The
programme has exceeded its expectations, so it will definitely be extended in the future. The
most important recommendation for other Technology Transfer Offices would be to build up a
large network and keep close links with industry. The EIR programme is just one way to
ensure a market input. Other initiatives to install a market led approach should be encouraged
as well.
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