Entrepreneurship 101

On December the 1st, the Technology Commercialization Club hosted a successful Entrepreneurship Workshop for Postdoctoral Fellows (PDFs) at the University of Alberta. With Dr. Peter Hackett mediating the discussion, more than 60 PDFs from across campus came out to answer two very important questions:

1. What do PDFs want to learn about entrepreneurship and commercializing technologies?
2. How do PDFs want to learn about entrepreneurship and commercializing technologies?

Following the discussion, a panel of high-ranking, entrepreneurial-oriented individuals chimed in on what they felt were the critical concerns voiced by the Postdocs in attendance. Panelists were:

• Dr. Gary Albach, President & CEO, Alberta Innovates - Technology Futures 
• Dr. Jacques Magnan, President & CEO, Alberta Innovates – Health Solutions
• Dr. Mike Lounsbury, Associate Dean (Research), Alberta School of Business 
• Dr. Marie D’Iorio, Director General (Acting), National Institute of Nanotechnology 
• Dr. Cornelia Kreplin, Executive Director, Alberta Innovates – Bio Solutions
• Mr. Mike Cabigon, President & Managing Partner, Foundation Equity

Thanks to everyone that came together to make this event a success, including: the Technology Commercialization Center, the Alberta School of Business, and the Postdoctoral Fellows Association at the University of Alberta.

To access Peter Hackett’s brief overview of the issues related to entrepreneurial skills training and development for advanced science students, click here. Click here to access a summary of our discussion from the December 1 NINT meeting and a list of entrepreneurial resources. If you’d like to get updates or attend future events, please sign up to the TechComm Club listserv.

Peter Hackett (shown above) currently an Executive Professor at the Alberta School of Business and Fellow at the National Institute for Nanotechnology, is helping to lead the charge on Entrepreneurship 101 - our effort to develop programmatic entrepreneurial skills development and outreach to science postdoctoral students across campus. Peter was formerly the President and CEO of the Alberta Ingenuity Fund. Prior to that, he was Vice-President (Research) at the National Research Council of Canada. He has been Director General at two NRC Institutes - the Steacie Institute for Molecular Sciences, and the Institute for National Measurement Standards - and an Adjunct Professor in the Chemistry Departments of the University of Saskatchewan and the University of Toronto. He is a chemical physicist with over 200 publications and ten patents in the areas of photochemistry, the use of lasers in chemistry, and nanotechnology.

We are delighted to have Peter's sage assistance on this initiative. Below you may find links to videos of Peter discussing various issues related to innovation and technology commercialization.


MAKING A SCIENCE ENTREPRENEUR CSPC 2010:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNhW0ErMXNA&feature=related  


NANOTECHNOLOGY:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20i3_ik29rA&feature=related


MOVING FROM AN EXTRACTIVE TO A CREATIVE ECONOMY:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQydMY33pOs&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1c5NkXI1HA&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8T9OzDjHec&feature=related


HEAT SEEKING MISSILE FOR MEDIOCRITY:

http://vimeo.com/7808332