Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center

Five tips from federal innovation entrepreneurs

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Using “lightening round” presentations, nearly a dozen presenters shared their stories. Andy Feldman from the Department of Education, who coordinated the event, noted that the goal wasn’t innovation for innovation’s sake, but rather to use innovation as a tool to tackle mission-related performance challenges: “We’re here to focus innovation on our agencies’ biggest challenges and opportunities.” Delegated Deputy Secretary of Education John King also welcomed attendees, urging them to put ideas into action.

conceptAs if to reinforce these messages, the same morning at a meeting of the President’s Management Council, deputy secretaries discussed way to expand the use of evidence, evaluation, and innovation in their agencies.  Several White House policy councils participated in the meeting, asking agencies to “articulate their strategy to advance the use of evidence in decision making . . . as a part of their budget submissions, due to OMB on September 14, 2015.”

Keep reading this article at: http://www.govexec.com/excellence/promising-practices/2015/07/five-tips-federal-innovation-entrepreneurs/118269

Advanced Technology Development Center strengthens support to technology startups

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To help meet the growing demand for support to Georgia technology entrepreneurs and startup companies, Georgia Tech is strengthening and realigning resources in its Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC), a technology accelerator that has assisted entrepreneurs for more than 30 years.

ATDC will expand its staff of technology catalysts and entrepreneurs-in-residence, add new facilities to support specialized startups, and expand office and incubator space at its headquarters in midtown Atlanta’s Technology Square. The expansion will involve hiring new personnel and refocusing responsibilities for some existing positions.

“Entrepreneurial companies are the largest source of new jobs and new economic activity in today’s changing economy,” said Georgia Tech President G.P. “Bud” Peterson. “As part of our historic economic development mission, Georgia Tech has focused on innovation, entrepreneurship, and new business startups. We’re pleased to respond to the growing need for services that will help boost the economy and create jobs in our city, state, region, and nation.”

ATDC helps Georgia entrepreneurs launch and build successful technology companies by providing coaching, connection and community-building services. Founded in 1980, ATDC has helped create thousands of jobs and millions of dollars in tax revenues by graduating more than 140 companies, which together have raised more than a billion dollars in outside financing. During 2012, ATDC assisted 322 technology companies, currently houses more than 40 startup companies in its incubator facilities, and plans to graduate five additional companies in at its annual Startup Showcase in April.

“Entrepreneurs and the fast-growth companies they create are vitally important to the future of Atlanta’s economy,” said Sam Williams, president of the Metro Atlanta Chamber. “For decades, Georgia Tech has been the focal point for launching and building technology-based companies in Atlanta, and we’re pleased to see this renewed emphasis on growing startups based on science and technology innovation.”

ATDC currently has three facilities: two in Atlanta – its headquarters plus a satellite life-sciences facility on the Georgia Tech campus – and one as part of Georgia Tech facilities in Savannah. Multiple new satellite facilities are planned in Atlanta to provide space for startups with specialized needs, such as microelectronics fabrication, medical device development, advanced manufacturing and sustainable energy.

ATDC serves Georgia technology entrepreneurs, regardless of whether they have a connection to Georgia Tech. However, intellectual property arising from Georgia Tech’s $655 million-per-year research program has driven many recent startup companies, including photovoltaic manufacturer Suniva and medical device developer CardioMEMS.

Georgia Tech’s nationally-recognized VentureLab program focuses on commercializing the results of research activities, and will benefit from the expansion of the ATDC. Related programs for startups include Flashpoint, a program that educates company leaders in startup discovery, and the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) I-Corps, which teaches NSF-supported researchers to identify commercial opportunities and test their viability using scientific principles.

“Georgia Tech wants to see that our research with clear market potential gets to companies that will commercialize it,” said Stephen E. Cross, Georgia Tech’s executive vice president for research. “We want to fully support the creation of spinoff companies based on our research results as well as companies originating in Georgia’s growing community of entrepreneurs. Altogether, VentureLab, Flashpoint and I-Corps provide a comprehensive commercialization assistance program that is the best in the nation and already launches more than 20 startups per year into ATDC.”

The ATDC expansion will be accomplished by reallocating existing Georgia Tech resources without additional state funding, and will be completed by the end of the fiscal year on June 30, said Stephen Fleming, a Georgia Tech vice president and general manager of the Enterprise Innovation Institute (EI2), the parent organization to both ATDC and VentureLab.

“This revitalization and expansion of ATDC will allow us to play an even larger role in catalyzing the innovation and creativity of Georgia entrepreneurs as they build new companies, new jobs and new economic activity,” said Fleming. “The new economy is demanding a different type of support for entrepreneurs, and we’re proud to respond to this challenge.”

In all, ATDC expects to hire six additional entrepreneurs-in-residence (EIRs) and catalysts who will be focused on supporting the growth of technology entrepreneurs and startup companies. ATDC catalysts are full-time staff members who support companies and manage the programs of the incubator. ATDC EIRs are experienced entrepreneurs who work part-time for limited periods of time assisting startup companies by sharing their long-term experience.

In addition, five existing EI2 employees will be reassigned to support the development of startup companies. ATDC is currently interviewing candidates for its general manager, who will oversee the planned growth. Fleming expects to name the new general manager during the second quarter of 2013. EI2 also recently hired a new principal for VentureLab.

“ATDC has been the center of Georgia’s technology community for more than three decades, and it has served as a model for what states and universities can do to help grow a dynamic community of startups,” said Fleming. “We’re confident that this expansion will position ATDC to help move Georgia forward, building on the strong community of technology entrepreneurs we already have.”

Alternative Media Access Center joins EI2; serves persons with disabilities

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The Alternative Media Access Center (AMAC), which provides textbook support services for persons with disabilities, has become the newest unit of Georgia Tech’s Enterprise Innovation Institute (EI2). Formerly based at the University of Georgia in Athens, AMAC recently completed its move to Atlanta, opening a facility on the southwest side of the Georgia Tech campus.

Funded in 2007 with $600,000 from the University System of Georgia Board of Regents and membership fees from participating institutions, AMAC initially served the 35 Board of Regents higher education institutions. Since then, its mission has expanded to include all types of post-secondary institutions, K-12 educational settings, government agencies and even corporate clients. According to Christopher Lee, AMAC director, the timing, circumstances and resources were right for a move to Atlanta.

“Our member institutions pay membership fees for alternative media production, student tracking, access to assistive technology, training and technical support,” he explained. “UGA incubated us and supported us; they really were a good place for us to start. But as we’ve grown and been charged with generating revenue, it does kind of change our mission a little bit. We needed an environment that was highly entrepreneurial, so EI2 stood out.”

EI2 provides integrated support to entrepreneurs and early-stage companies in Georgia, helping companies with business planning, team-building and making connections to the people and resources necessary for success. Programs include the Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC), a nationally-known science and technology incubator. Since its founding in 1980, ATDC has graduated more than 120 companies, which together have raised more than $1 billion in outside financing.

Because AMAC essentially serves as a small manufacturer of accessible media formats for those with print disabilities, Lee was also interested in EI2’s manufacturing expertise. Through its Georgia Manufacturing Extension Partnership program, EI2 assisted nearly 2,000 Georgia companies last year, helping them reduce operating costs by more than $17 million and improve sales by more than $110 million.

Among its services, AMAC converts standard textbooks to formats usable by persons with disabilities. When books arrive, their spines are removed and pages are run through a high-speed scanner. The scans are then converted into a format that has been requested by the institution serving the students, whether it is an accessible PDF, an MP3 or hard-copy or electronic Braille.

“Our mission is to serve these students through a manufacturing process providing them with not only the textbook, but also the adapted software,” Lee said. “We provide a specialized software package that the students download along with their content and they intertwine for a holistic approach.”

Since its establishment in 2007, AMAC has experienced significant and steady growth. Requests for services increased 135 percent in the program’s second year, resulting in increased file production revenue. To date the AMAC production and fulfillment model has resulted in a cost savings of nearly $2 million to its members and institutional cost savings has lead to a doubling of membership.

In addition to the AMAC project, Lee oversees the Access Text Network, a venture that operates as a conduit between the publishing world and post-secondary institutions’ disability programs. Founded and supported by the Association of American Publishers and higher education textbook publishers, Access Text will serve as the national nucleus for post-secondary distribution of approved alternative textbook file exchanges, training and technical support.

“Access Text is developing a national system that tracks historical data, so an institution can see how many times a title has been requested, in what format it was requested and how long it took for the files to be delivered. That information can be used to improve the request response time, ensuring more timely access to students requiring alternative formats,” Lee noted.

Since Access Text launched last November, nearly a quarter of the nation’s higher education institutions have signed up to participate and Lee’s staff of nearly 20 persons has fielded more than 17,000 requests. The need is great: approximately 15 million children, adolescents and adults in the United States have learning disabilities.

“Nationwide, it’s a huge area that needs to be addressed. We’re seeing an increase in the population of people with disabilities – the elderly, returning veterans – and we’re going to need AMAC and Access Text,” said Lee, who was diagnosed with dyslexia as a child. “There’s a national movement toward publishers creating this content, so we’re really on the cusp of helping define the issues with publishers and disability groups. There really aren’t any organizations similar to AMAC out there that are as holistic as we are.”

By joining EI2, AMAC will be able to better bring together the manufacturing, entrepreneurial and student pieces of the puzzle while drawing on the wealth of expertise within the organization. Stephen Fleming, vice president and executive director of EI2, says that AMAC will be a boon for Georgia Tech and EI2.

“AMAC not only brings extensive knowledge around accessibility issues for students with disabilities, but also has a national presence with its prestigious Access Text program,” noted Fleming. “Georgia Tech and the Enterprise Innovation Institute are proud to have AMAC join our team.”

About Enterprise Innovation Institute:

The Georgia Tech Enterprise Innovation Institute helps companies, entrepreneurs, economic developers and communities improve their competitiveness through the application of science, technology and innovation. It is one of the most comprehensive university-based programs of business and industry assistance, technology commercialization and economic development in the nation.

Research News & Publications Office

Enterprise Innovation Institute

Georgia Institute of Technology

75 Fifth Street, N.W., Suite 314

Atlanta, Georgia 30308 USA

Media Relations Contacts: Nancy Fullbright (912-963-2509); E-mail: (nancy.fullbright@innovate.gatech.edu) or John Toon (404-894-6986); E-mail (john.toon@innovate.gatech.edu).

Writer: Nancy Fullbright, Sept. 2, 2010

Peterson joins National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship

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U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke has named Georgia Tech President Bud Peterson to the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship this week. The group will develop policies that foster entrepreneurship and identifying new ways to take great ideas from the lab to the marketplace to drive economic growth and create jobs.

Secretary Locke hosted an innovation forum on July 15 at the Georgia Tech’s Global Learning Center along with the Commerce Department’s Office of Innovation and Entrepreneurship at the Economic Development Administration. The forum engaged university leaders and key stakeholders in discussion on the role of universities in innovation, economic development, job creation and commercialization of federally funded research

“America’s innovation engine is not as efficient or as effective as it needs to be, and we are not creating as many jobs as we should,” Locke said. “We must get better at connecting the great ideas to the great company builders. The National Advisory Council will help the administration develop a broader strategy to spur innovation and enable entrepreneurs to develop breakthrough technologies and dynamic companies, and to create jobs all across America.

“I want to extend my gratitude to the leaders selected to The National Advisory Council. Their work will be a key component of America’s economic recovery.”

Throughout U.S. history, basic research in public and private sector research labs has spawned new technologies and inventions that led to new businesses. And those entrepreneurial businesses have been important drivers of job creation. Firms less than five years old have accounted for nearly all net new jobs in America over the last 30 years. Yet, as a share of gross domestic product, American federal investment in the physical sciences and engineering research has dropped by half since 1970.

The National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship will help build on this aggressive agenda. Members of the council include serial entrepreneurs, university presidents, investors and non-profit leaders. Steve Case, Mary Sue Coleman, and Desh Deshpande will serve as co-chairs.

— Posted July 16, 2010

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