The University of Michigan at Ann Arbor is a major research institution, ranked among the top five nationally in spending, according to NSF statistics. Yet in today's economy, having funding and prestige is not enough: the future lies in getting research out into the world, and increasingly the way to do this is through strong entrepreneurship. To build those science marketing skills, UM has developed a Master's degree program in Entrepreneurial Education that combines coursework from the business and engineering schools to teach creative young business-scientists how to "give their inventions legs."
Program head Thomas Zurbuchen talked about the popular degree course in an interview with WKAR radio host Mark Bashore last month. He noted, first of all, that this isn't an MBA program, which trains managers. "Entrepreneurship," Zurbuchen explained, "is a different animal." The skills needed to launch a business and keep it going through that critical, exploratory start-up phase are unique. Moreover, they are often better suited to a different sort of person from the management professional, and a person with different goals. The emergence of this new business type would seem to be a product of the economic crisis of 2008, which has re-written the rules of business.
Zurbuchen identifies two key attitudes that his post-boom Entrepreneurial Education students possess that differentiate them from more traditional business students:
- Their attitude towards risk
- Their desire to make an impact on the world
It's far easier to go out on a limb, take a chance, and risk it all when there is no comfortable, established, risk-free alternative waiting at the end of your college education. It's perhaps also more imperative to do something meaningful when you've seen the world in the raw, un-glossed by apparent economic prosperity.
Fortunately, venture capital is taking a notable interest in the "innovation economy driven by clean tech, life sciences, and entrepreneurship" of the former Motor State. According to the Michigan Venture Capital Association (MVCA) annual report being released April 25 (and announced by PRNewswire):
- $735 Million has been invested in over 120 deals since 2006, marking a 40% growth from the first half of the decade
- There has been a 60% growth in the number of venture capital firms in the state
- There are nearly 80 venture-backed companies located in Michigan
- The combined capital under management is $2.6B (a 206% increase since 2006)
MVCA's 30th annual Michigan Growth Capital Symposium is coming up May 10-11 in Ann Arbor. In this coveted venue for local startups presenting their research and business plans to attentive venture capitalists, one might expect to encounter graduates of U Michigan's Entrepreneurial Education Master's program taking their inventions into the marketing arena. They might even have their start-up lab housed at the University's Venture Accelerator on the new North Campus Research Complex. (See tomorrow's blog for more on this new UM research facilities development.)
Opportunities for scientists to network and learn about research solutions and for suppliers of life science laboratory tools in Michigan continue to grow with the state's burgeoning investment landscape. Network with science researchers and industry professionals in person at a Biotechnology Calendar BioResearch Product Faire™ Event on either the University of Michigan or Michigan State campus this July:
- University of Michigan BioResearch Product Faire™ July 14, 2011 on the Ann Arbor campus
- Michigan State BioResearch Product Faire™ Front Line Event on the East Lansing campus July 13, 2011
[All images courtesy of the University of Michigan]
