A successful university economic development strategy must include collaboration between industry and faculty, but many faculty lack experience in corporate relations and are unaware of university resources available to help them develop industry collaborations. At Kansas State University, staff members from research, economic development, and corporate relations support units collaborated to present the Working with Industry Boot Camp, a series of training sessions providing faculty with tools to help establish industrial collaborations and develop strong strategic partnerships. In this session, members of the Boot Camp planning team will describe the workshops, lessons learned, and plans for follow-up training. Richard Potter, Director, Office of Corporate Engagement Rebecca Robinson, Director of Economic Development Kansas State University Institute for Commercialization

1. Working With Industry
Boot Camp for Faculty
Rebecca Robinson & Richard Potter
Kansas State University

2. K-State Office of Corporate Engagement
Visionary Plan
By 2025, Kansas State University
will be recognized as one of the
nation's Top 50 Public Research
Universities.
Common theme in college and departmental 2025 Action Plans:
INCREASE INDUSTRY ENGAGEMENT

3. K-State Office of Corporate Engagement
Identifying, establishing and maintaining
long-term strategic relationships with
industry and corporations is essential to
achieving K-State’s 2025 goals and outcomes.

4. K-State Office of Corporate Engagement
The Partnership Continuum (courtesy UIDP: www.uidp.org)

5. K-State Office of Corporate Engagement
Corporate Engagement 2025 Action Plan
• Key activities and outcomes include
– Internal orientation, training, and outreach programs
– Catalog/knowledge base of university assets, services,
and opportunities of interest to industry

6. Planning (and Implementation) Committee
• Paul Lowe, Assistant Vice President/Director, Pre-Award Services
• Katie Small, Manager, Contract Negotiations, Pre-Award Services
• Mary Lou Marino, Development Director, Research & Sponsored
Programs
• Mitzi Richards, Senior Director, Corporate & Foundation Relations,
K-State Foundation
• Rebecca Robinson, Economic Development Director, K-State Institute
for Commercialization
• Ken Williams, Licensing Director, K-State Institute for Commercialization
• Richard Potter, Director of Corporate Engagement

8. Syllabus

9. How Does Economic Development Fit?
• Land grant mission
• Faculty are instrumental in University based Economic
Development
• Co-location can significantly
enhance faculty engagement
with industry

10. Boot Camp Sessions
ORIENTATION: Why Industry-University Partnerships Are
Important for K-State
• President of Kansas State University
• President of the KSU Foundation
• Vice President for Research

11. Boot Camp Sessions
KICKOFF: KSURF? KSU-IC? IP? PI? PAS? DOD? Making Sense of
K-State’s Alphabet Soup
• Panel: PreAward Services, KSU Research Foundation, KSU
Institute for Commercialization, KSU Foundation Corporate
Relations, Office of Corporate Engagement
• Moderator: Tony Boccanfuso, Exec.
Director, University-Industry
Demonstration Partnership

12. Boot Camp Sessions
Making the Connection: I’m Invited to the Dance, But I Don’t
Have a Dance Partner (Part I)
• Tony Boccanfuso, Executive
Director, University-Industry
Demonstration Partnership
• Faculty Panel: Chemical
Engineering, Grain Science &
Industry, Veterinary
Diagnostic Lab

13. Boot Camp Sessions
• KSU Communications & Marketing
• KSU Corporate Engagement &
Corporate Relations
• KSU Institute for Commercialization
• Knowledge Based Economic
Development
Making the Connection: I’m Invited to the Dance, But I Don’t
Have a Dance Partner (Part II)

14. Boot Camp Sessions
• Industry Representative:
Director of Academic
Technology Licensing,
Monsanto
• PreAward Services: budgets,
contracts, & statements of
work (oh my!)
How To Formalize The Relationship

15. Boot Camp Sessions
Managing Expectations & the Relationship
• Industry Representative: Director of Strategic Alliances, Zoetis
• Contractual Considerations: KSU PreAward Services
• Faculty panel: Psychological
Sciences, Diagnostic Medicine
& Pathology, Electrical &
Computer Engineering

16. Boot Camp Sessions
Developing and Managing the Outputs of Your Project
• Stewarding the Relationship:
associate vice president for
research
• Best Practices for Managing
Outputs: director of licensing,
KSU Institute for
Commercialization

17. “We’ll be happy if 50 people show up.”
• Initial registration: 97 faculty and staff
• By 3rd session, participation settled in at ~35
(plus live-stream, online viewers)
• Research Facilities and Resources Showcase: 155
How did we do?

18. • Not a traditional part of their “day-job”
• Faculty provide high-quality economic development
attraction prospects
• Economic development relies on strong relationships
• Companies are interested in leveraging faculty innovation,
talent & training
Why Train Faculty?

19. How Your Research
Relationships Relate to
Economic Development

20. Mission: To create and
actively support a
thriving entrepreneurial
environment for
knowledge-based
businesses.
KNOWLEDGE BASED ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, LLC

21. • Opportunities for Growth
– Talent/workforce
– Innovation/research
– Facilities and infrastructure
• Quality of Life
• Friends of K-State or Alumni
• Cluster Development
WHY COMPANIES LOCATE IN MHK

22. • Face-to-Face relationship w/ partners
• Research support
• Consulting opportunities
• Employment opportunities for students
• Closer relationship w/ industry partners
WHAT THIS MEANS FOR FACULTY

23. Company locates near KSU,
initiates sponsored research,
hires interns & graduates and
THE COMPANY GROWS & adds
jobs!
Support for
Research/Labs &
Jobs for Students
(Faculty)
Job Creation &
Local Investment
(Community)
Access to
Research, Talent &
Facilities
(Companies)
WIN-WIN-WIN SITUATIONS

24. Coordination &
hosting of visits
Community tours
& information
Location
identification
Assistance with
State/Local
incentives
processes
Access to
workforce
Project
management for
KSU relationship
RESOURCES & SERVICES

25. A company is interested in locating
near KSU, but doesn’t currently have
a relationship with the university
A faculty member has a relationship
with a company that would be a
good local fit
A company is interested in
expanding their relationship with
KSU
A company has interest in being near
the university, but is not interested
in a formal relationship
ACTION:
- Identify KSU collaborators
-Explore partnerships
- Identify incentives/motivations for company attraction
- Facilitate relocation or expansion
SCENARIOS

26. • Awareness of economic development activities
• New relationships with faculty
• New prospect leads
Economic Development Outcomes

27. Research Facilities & Resources Showcase
• Not part of original
Boot Camp series
• Incentivized
participation
• 57 booths; 155
attendees
• Foundation for online,
searchable research
facilities database

28. Best Practices
Devil In The Details
• Always provide food
(and adult beverages
when appropriate)
• Live-stream video
• Solicit feedback

29. Best Practices
Devil In The Details
• Quality counts
(materials, A/V,
presenters)
• Archive materials,
provide easy,
online access

30. Best Practices
Marketing is key
• Utilize listservs, bulletin boards,
campus news, departmental
meetings
• Partner with administration to
encourage faculty to attend
• Target key faculty

31. Leverage Social Media

32. Solicit Feedback
• More interactive, hands-on workshops
• Strong interest in industry and successful faculty speakers
• Wasn’t as relevant for staff (our target: faculty members)

33. Our Next Steps
• 2015 hands-on workshops
– October: Build Your Brand
– November: Navigating
Intellectual Property
• Repeat original Working
With Industry Boot Camp,
Spring 2016

34. Our Next Steps
Research Facilities Showcases
• February: Manhattan Campus,
select industry invitation,
spotlight new Office Park
• May: Olathe Campus, serving
greater Kansas City metro,
broader industry invitation

35. How To Get Started at Your University
• Identify pain points at your university
• Bring together key players
• Develop a task force
• Get buy-in from campus leadership
• Develop a syllabus; plug in university
and industry experts
• Begin marketing early

36. Questions?
Rebecca Robinson
Director of Economic Development
KSU Institute for Commercialization
2005 Research Park Circle
Manhattan, KS 66502
785.532.3955 | spexarth@ksu.edu
www.pickmanhattan.com
Richard Potter
Director of Corporate Engagement
2005 Research Park Circle
Manhattan, KS 66502
785.532.1840 | rmpotter@ksu.edu
www.k-state.edu/corporate
@kstatecorporate