Women Innovators Conference - Registration Deadline Approaching, Panelists Announced

Just a few days to registration deadline! Innovation By Design Wednesday, November 13, 2019 McNamara Alumni Center 12:30-6:00 p.m.   Register today for the fourth annual Women Innovators Conference, a professional development summit for female students and professionals to connect the dots between ideas and impact. Featuring workshops, panels and talks from women leaders in the sciences, engineering, business, design and the arts. Free for students, $10-faculty & staff, $25-general admission. Refreshments included! Announcing this year's panelists and facilitators: Applied Design Thinking – Interactive workshop Facilitators:    Elli Rader, West Monroe Partners Diana Flotten, West Monroe Partners Translation: Insight to Real Life Innovation – Panelists discuss translating discoveries and inventions to products and services Facilitator: Jacqueline Mejia, UMN Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences Panelists: Kristin Jacobsen, 3M Pinar Karaca Mandic, UMN Medical Industry Leadership Institute Lyndsey Calvin, Ascension Medical Devices Mary Jo Baarsch, Gaviidae Consulting Zigzag: Innovation Career Paths – Panelists share their varied journeys to becoming high-impact innovators Facilitator:   Lauren Pradhan, UMN Holmes Center for Entrepreneurship and Grow North Panelists: Lindsey Hillsheim, Cray Inc  Michelle Tran Maryns, We Sparkle Heidi Hau, Rebiotix Elisha Friesema, EMF Consulting and Synerfuse Amanda Heyman, Lunar Startups and Starting 11  Click Here for Info & Registration Opening Session: Innovation at the Speed of Laughter A lively, fun-filled workshop on the innovation mindset facilitated by Margi Simmons, Director of Applied Improvisation at the Brave New Workshop. More and better ideas, more collaboration and progress, less fear and status quo: that's what the BNW stands for. Keynote Speaker: Innovation that Transforms Lives A talk by Angie Conley, Founder, President, & CEO of Abilitech Medical. Abilitech has been named a Top 20 healthcare startup, was a Tekne Award Finalist, and was the grand prize winner of the 2019 MN Cup. Angie is listed as an inventor on two PCT patents.

Women Innovators Conference Nov 13: Innovation by Design

Innovation By Design

Women Innovators Conference

Nov 13 12:30-6:00

McNamara Center

University of Minnesota

Register HERE

Please join us at the fourth annual Women Innovators Conference, a professional development summit for female students and professionals to connect the dots between ideas and impact.

Featuring workshops, panels and talks from women leaders
in the sciences, engineering, business, design and the arts.

Free for students, $10-faculty & staff, $25-general admission. Refreshments included.

Opening Session:

Innovation at the Speed of Laughter

Margi Simmons, Applied Improvisation Director, Brave New Workshop

Breakouts:

• Applied Design Thinking workshop 
• Translation: Insight to Real Life Innovation panel
• Zigzag: Innovation Career Paths panel

Closing Session: 

Innovation to Transform Lives

Angie Conley, Founder, President, and CEO of Abilitech Medical, winner of the 2019 MN Cup

Register HERE

Innovation Value Proposition Design Workshops

From research to real-world impact….. Explore market and commercialization opportunities for your innovation. Register by clicking HERE.

This program is especially relevant to graduate students, postdocs, research staff and faculty interested in exploring the market potential of innovations emerging from their research. Also good preparation for SBIR/STTR grant proposals. Four-part series on the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus. Topics include Product-Market Fit, Customer Discovery, Commercialization Pathway, Market Assessment. Sessions includes one-on-one advice from industry experts and entrepreneurs. $3,000 customer research grants available for UMN-affiliated participants. Successful completion by UMN-based teams can qualify for nomination to NSF I-Corps National Teams with $50,000 grant. FREE to current university students, staff and faculty.  $999 for nonacademic participants.  Register by clicking HERE.

• Medical: 1-4 pm Oct 16, Oct 23, Nov 6, Nov 20. Taught by Martha Sewall, medical innovation consultant and former exec at Smiths Medical, who has launched >15 medical products.

• Science & Engineering: 1-4 pm Oct 17, Oct 24, Nov 7, Nov 21. Taught by Dale Nugent, engineering innovation consultant and Technology Marketing Manager and Venture Executive at UMN Technology Commercialization office. He has also mentored in two NSF I-Corps National Teams cohorts.

• Agriculture, Food & Environment: 9 am-noon Oct 18, Oct 25, Nov 8, Nov 22. Taught by Carla Pavone, Program Director of MIN-Corps and Associate Director of the Holmes Center for Entrepreneurship. 

Strategy Clinic: Pitching 101

How to make a compelling case.
September 10 5:30-7:30 pm
University of Minnesota East Bank Campus
Free to students, staff & faculty, $10 for nonacademic participants 

Register HERE

Pitching is always hard, especially for ground-breaking or complex business concepts.  The shorter & easier the pitch is to understand, the harder it is develop. But simplicity, clarity & emotional connection are all necessary when presenting your concept to potential investors & partners. This session will review a broad range of pitch types from the one-minute pitch at the MN Cup Final Awards event to in-depth presentations to potential investors. Compelling "hooks" to grab audience attention Visuals and slide design The goals, styles and structures of different types of pitches The classic 10-slide investor pitch Handling audience questions Dos and don'ts Strategy Clinics are Back! With the new school year, MIN-Corps Strategy Clinics are back in session! For University of Minnesota and Twin Cities innovators working on science and technology startups.  All programs take place on the UMN East Bank campus, 5:30-7:30. Box meals are provided.  Future topics in 2019: Startup Financials: October 4 Marketing & Customer Development:November 12 Investor Terms & Expectations: December 3 Jointly facilitated by MIN-Corps and  the UMN TechComm Venture Center.

Summer Innovation Commercialization Programs - MIN-Corps and Partners

Value Proposition Design Workshops MIN-Corps Value Proposition Design Workshops  help STEM grad students, post-docs, research staff and faculty explore the commercialization potential of specific innovations, typically out of University labs. The program also benefits firms applying for SBIR/STTR grants. Four hands-on sessions, all 1-4 pm:   June 20: ​Product-Market Fit June 27: Customer Discovery July 11: Commercialization Pathway  July 25: Market Assessment Led by Carla Pavone, MBA, PhD, Program Director – MIN-Corps  Advice from industry experts & entrepreneurs  $3,000 MIN-Corps customer research grants available for academic teams Successful completion by academic teams can qualify for nomination to NSF I-Corps Teams with $50,000 grant Free to UMN employees,students,startups $999 for external companies   Register Here!

Payers and Healthcare Economics - June 19 3:30-5:30: DIscussion with Lewis Sandy, EVP for Clinical Advancement at UnitedHealth Group, and Maren Forsgren, Director at Xcenda. Register here.   UMN/VA Medical Device Showcase - June 26 5:00-7:00: Adaptive devices from the VA's Multidisciplinary Adaptive Design & Engineering (VA-MADE) Center. Register here. SBIR/STTR Proposal Preparation: Free workshops led by expert Pat Dillon, director of MN-SBIR about applying for federal small business innovation research grants. Info and registration here, August 13 9-noon: Agriculture August 13 1-4: Energy September 10 9-5: Health & Human Services September 24 9-5: Defense

Galliea Demo Day - Customer Feedback in Action

Galilea Technologies, an emerging startup founded by three University of Minnesota students in the STARTUP: Development and Testing course, premiered the Galilea Chair at their Demo Day on May 14th at the University Recreation and Wellness Center. The Galilea Chair enables wheelchair users to navigate using simple head tilts and thinking of their intended direction by leveraging a brain-signal sensing headband and cutting edge robotics and brain-computer interface technology. 

The Demo Day had over 50 attendants and included wheelchair users, disability specialists, and other interested stakeholders. Attendees were invited to demo the Galilea Chair and use head orientation to navigate their wheelchair. Other demos were featured such as controlling a virtual wheelchair with head orientation and controlling the motion of a virtual cube by using thoughts alone. The feedback we got from users was very helpful and insightful as we move forward.

Galilea Technologies would like to give its deepest gratitude to Phil Soran for his mentorship and support, Robbi Haase for volunteering as an ATP (assistive technology professional) onsite, Neal Binsfeld and the DRC (disability resource center) for their immense logistical assistance, and Carla Pavone and the MIN-CORPS STARTUP course for providing the funding for this event.

Summer Value Proposition Design Workshops - Registration Open

From lab to real-world impact….

Explore commercialization opportunities for your innovation.

Four-part series, each session 1pm-4pm:

• June 20: Product-Market Fit
• June 27: Customer Discovery 
• July 11: Commercialization Pathway 
• July 25: Market Assessment

• Led by Carla Pavone, MBA, PhD, Program Director – MIN-Corps 

• Advice from industry experts & entrepreneurs 

• $3,000 customer research grants available

• Successful completion can qualify for nomination to NSF I-Corps National Teams with $50,000 grant

Free to University of Minnesota students, research staff & faculty.  

Registration info at https://z.umn.edu/MIN-CorpsValueProp

MIN-Corps Spotlight: Mark Mulvahill Is Transforming the Handling Process of Biofilms

Mark’s passion for his technology and work is contagious. Throughout our interview, it didn’t take long to realize that he and his team have tapped into something special. Stratix Labs is a manufacturer of specialized microbiology products related to biofilms for the life science, pharmaceutical, and disinfectant markets. Stratix Labs' research tools are transforming the way companies handle their biofilms.

Stratix Labs NSF I-Corps team

Did you take the MIN-Corps Startup course?

Yes, I did. I have a mix of science and business backgrounds and graduated from the full-time Carlson MBA program in 2017. While I was at Carlson, I took the Startup course. Also, through Carla Pavone we applied and were accepted to the national stage NSF I-Corps program. We finished the program in March and are excited by the potential for our technology to solve real unmet needs.

Tell me about your journey both personally and academically that led you to Stratix Labs

My background is in biology and chemistry. I did some research in antimicrobial drug discovery. Including a stint here at the Center for Drug Design at UMN in Christine Salomon’s lab. I always knew that I wanted to get more into the business side of science but didn’t know when. I did end up getting a master’s in chemistry, but I then decided to jump to the full-time Carlson MBA program. I was able to build experience in evaluating the commercial potential of new technologies and also in intellectual property strategy through a prior venture, which have been a big help with getting Stratix Labs off the ground.

The resources I was able to get through the MIN-Corps program, especially the seminar series and the startup class, were really helpful. Then where we really started taking it to the next level was when we teamed up with my previous professor Christine Salomon and our industry mentor Mary Jo Baarsch and we applied to the NSF I-Corps program. The NSF I-Corps program has been a game-changing opportunity, enabling us to understand our market, product market fit, providing a lot of clarity and direction on how we should move forward.

Tell me about Stratix Labs

Biofilms are these communities of bacteria that behave totally different than single cell bacteria. When you’re trying to come up with new antimicrobials, whether it is a disinfectant or drug, it’s really important to study the pathogens as biofilms and not single cell bacteria. Biofilms are how the bacteria actually exist. The problem is that growing biofilms is complex. They’re difficult to grow, there are issues with variability, and it takes a long time. All of these factors make this time consuming and resource intensive. The tech we’re developing enables us to grow and preserve biofilm samples so that they are stable, well-characterized and ready to go for testing right off the shelf. Right now companies spend 3-4 days growing these biofilms and but only spend a few hours doing analysis, almost all the difficulty is in growing them.

So rather than spending all week growing the biofilms, researchers at companies can take our product right off the shelf first thing in the morning, within 20 minutes they can run their tests, and they’ll have their answers by lunch time. Eliminating 99% of their prep time and accelerating their R&D. What we’ve done to date is develop the foundational technology that allows us to preserve biofilms. Now we’re trying to apply it to specific bacterial biofilms that are of interest to these companies.

How are you able to eliminate this time constraint?

We are taking on the growth time for them. We grow the biofilms how they want it. We preserve it for them so that they don’t have to use their resources and allow them to get right to the testing.

Do you know when you’ll release it to the public?

We hope to have our first product on the market by early 2020.

Have you encountered anything particularly challenging with Stratix Labs or entrepreneurship in general and how did you overcome that?

Ambiguity – There are a million different paths we can go and it’s up to us to determine what path works and what path is the best use of our resources and time.

MIN-Corps and I-Corps taught us to be sure that we’re not developing a technology and then trying to find a problem to solve with it. We want to make sure that we start with the customer’s problem.

Do you have any plans for the future?

We plan on using our foundational technology to develop research tool products for many different areas where biofilms are important. Our first focus is on research tools used in the development of commercial disinfectants for food and beverage processing and healthcare settings. We’ll then expand to other areas after that.

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Walleye Tank Life Science Pitch Competition May 3 - View, Meet and Mingle with Entrepreneurs and Investors

Walleye Tank Spring Opener 2019  A pitch competition for Minnesota’s most intriguing life science startups. 2-5 pm May 3, 2019 Carlson School of Management, 321 19th Avenue S, Minneapolis   Register Here Walleye Tank is a pitch competition for emerging and established medical and life science companies.  The 2019 Spring Opener showcases Minnesota’s most intriguing health care startups, powered by ground-breaking innovations of the Mayo Clinic, the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota health care ecosystem. Program Hosts: Steve Ekker, Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and Director of the Office of Entrepreneurship at the Mayo Clinic. John Stavig, Professional Director of the Carlson School of Management Holmes Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Minnesota. Opening Remarks  Steve Grove, Commissioner of the State of Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development. Competition Divisions: Junior Anglers : Entrepreneurs in the early stages of business development.  Mid-level Reelers: Incorporated companies in the early stages of fundraising.  Professionals: Established life-science businesses with active sales and that typically have completed at least one round of fundraising.  Reception: Meet and mingle with investors, medical entrepreneurs and industry executives. The 2019 Walleye Tank Spring Opener is a joint initiative of the Mayo Clinic Office of Entrepreneurship and the Carlson School of Management Holmes Center for Entrepreneurship.  This program is free and open to the public. Register Here

Emerging Opportunities Forum: Crowdfunding Strategies & Opportunities

Emerging Opportunities Forum: Crowdfunding Strategies & Opportunities

Crowdfunding is a potentially valuable and multi-faceted tool for many startups. This panel session will look beyond the hype to hear from leading researchers, attorneys and entrepreneurs discussing opportunities available for entrepreneurs to test market acceptance, create awareness, fund initial production runs or potentially to raise equity/debt capital.

Panelists:

Gordon Burtch is a professor at the Carlson School and an expert in the areas of crowdfunding, crowdsourcing, social media and word of mouth. His work relies primarily on econometrics and randomized field experiments.

Zach Robins is an experienced startup attorney who cofounded MNVest.org and was instrumental in leading legislative lobbying efforts that legalized equity crowdfunding in Minnesota.

Chris Svensrud & Jason Drew are cofounders of Mogotani Fast, which works with a broad range of leading companies to design and develop products for the outdoors. Their 2018 Indiegogo campaign for the world's most compact foldable hammock raised $520,000 to fund initial production.

Jennifer Amys is a principal with Funds411, a funding platform where anyone can raise equity or debt capital.

Join us to learn from our panel about how to navigate this challenging topic.

Date And Time

Tue, April 23, 2019

4:00 PM – 5:30 PM CDT

REGISTER HERE

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Organizer Image

Organizer MIN-Corps/Holmes Center For Entrepreneurship

Organizer of Emerging Opportunities Forum: Crowdfunding Strategies & Opportunities

With support from the National Science Foundation, MIN-Corps is a joint initiative of the College of Science and Engineering, the Office for Technology Commercialization, and the Carlson School of Management Holmes Center for Entrepreneurship. Our mission is to accelerate technology commercialization across the University of Minnesota.

MIN-Corps also collaborates with MIN-REACH, the NIH-funded Research Evaluation And Commercialization Hub at the University of Minnesota, to provide commercialization skills development for medical and health care researchers.