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Celebrating 15 Years
| Content Provider | Semantic Scholar |
|---|---|
| Author | Robins, Perry |
| Copyright Year | 1990 |
| Abstract | Fifteen years ago, the University of Pittsburgh formalized its technology commercialization efforts with the establishment of the Office of Technology Management (OTM). That year, OTM convinced research faculty members to submit 46 invention disclosures for commercial consideration of their innovations—a humble beginning, perhaps, for a university that since has emerged internationally as a research powerhouse. But it was just a beginning. Thanks to several evolutions of infrastructure development, customer service and marketing strategies, lots of educational programs, and a changing academic culture, Pitt Innovators since then have submitted another 2,276 invention disclosures, received 441 U.S. patents for their innovations, and helped OTM to launch 80 new companies. I would describe our efforts to lay the groundwork for successful technology commercialization at Pitt—and the Pitt community's change in culture to embrace such efforts—as nothing short of transformational. But, from our perspective, we're really just getting started. I'll never forget 2006, for instance, when we jumped from 165 invention disclosures submitted the previous year to 246—a huge milestone in our transformation. To us, that demonstrated a dramatic new level of success in our efforts to actively engage more Pitt researchers in the technology commercialization process. That also meant lots of additional innovations to cultivate and mold into licensable technologies and start-up companies— exciting for us, but full of new challenges. And it has meant continued infrastructure building to support such growth, whether via new employees, improved vetting processes, or even more aggressive partnership development activities. Our goal ahead is to surpass 300 invention disclosures a year as well as to continue our growth in licensing and start-up activities. As you will read in this annual report, we continue to introduce new programs and strategies to elevate the success of the University's technology transfer endeavor, from interactive events and a new mentoring program to an expanded Partner with Pitt campaign and commercialization guide. You will read, for example, about our new executive in residence program, which has allowed us to strengthen our start-up venture opportunities in the areas of computer software development and medical devices. We also highlight some of our most ardent commercial-ization supporters—veteran Pitt Innovators who are dedicating considerable time to cultivating innovations from their research and sharing their enthusiasm with others. But I also hope to convey that 15 years in commercialization terms represents a very short period when it comes to the actual process of |
| Starting Page | 222 |
| Ending Page | 222 |
| Page Count | 1 |
| File Format | PDF HTM / HTML |
| DOI | 10.1111/j.1524-4725.1990.tb03955.x |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | http://innovation.pitt.edu/sites/default/files/OTMPDFs/2011%20OTM%20Annual%20Report-Final.pdf |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | https://www.hr.cornell.edu/life/celebrating/service_recognition/15_years.pdf |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1524-4725.1990.tb03955.x |
| Volume Number | 16 |
| Language | English |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
