Opportunity Recognition (OR)" Innovation and Entrepreneurship (I&E) course of EIT Digital Doctoral School
Language: English
When: 22nd - 26th February 2016
Where: CLC Madrid-IMDEA Software Institute. Campus of Montegancedo, UPM
Objectives
The objective of this "Opportunity Recognition" (OR) seminar is to offer to 1st or 2nd year doctoral candidates the necessary background and skills to develop a business idea on the basis of the results obtained or forecasted for their doctoral thesis. This by:
- Taking participants through an opportunity recognition, initial concept (product, service) design and business modelling process.
- Putting participants in a position to identify value elements in research and relate them to innovation and business solutions answering customer/society/industry problems/needs.
More specifically, several objectives and topics will be covered during the OR seminar:
- To know better the structure of the ICT market and services in Europe and elsewhere.
- To understand why, when, and how the results from the doctoral thesis may be protected and exploited.
- To understand the funding needs (from venture capital firms or from corporate funds) for developing and launching a new ICT product or service in a technology-based start-up.
- To assess the tools for technology watch and diffusion related to the technologies used in the development of the thesis.
- To describe the key components of a business model and the way that the thesis could fit in.
Furthermore, two additional goals will be covered and motivated during the course:
- To meet faculty members, invited experts, and doctoral candidates to be able to exchange ideas about the seminar’s topics to complement and enrich their own views.
- To know how thesis are being framed in international R&D projects carried out by the UPM.
Learning outcomes
Main outcome of the seminar is to raise the students' awareness on the innovation potential of their doctoral research for future ICT products and services.
More specifically, at the end of the seminar, students will have the ability to:
- Identify and analyse digitization trends and their impact on an industry to recognize and assess business opportunities;
- Recognize business opportunities by adopting a customer/user-centric perspective;
- Apply business modelling (BMC) and fundamental business planning skills (value, costs/revenues analysis, market analysis);
- Conduct a market analysis (including market demand, customer expectations, and customer value);
- Explain the business development process at early stage;
- Identify value elements in research and technology and relate them to innovation and business solutions answering customer problems/needs;
- Understand the fundamentals of new product/service development stages and processes;
- Take into account a technology transfer or open innovation scenario in a business development project;
- Demonstrate oral presentation skills.
Method
Participants will engage the participants in team collaboration and knowledge sharing. Groups of participants will work on a specific idea for product or service case inspired by entrepreneurs or derived from their own scientific work. It will take them from the opportunity recognition to the business modelling stage. This case study will be complemented with testimonials from entrepreneurs on their business creation experience and with lectures from experts. It will be concluded by a formal presentation in front of a jury, which will stimulate their ability to communicate in a synthetic way the result of their work.
Pre and post assignments
To facilitate the full understanding of the addressed issues, doctoral candidates should complete a set of pre-assignments and post-assignments on innovation, entrepreneurship and EIT Digital. Their description and deadlines can be found here and in the program. They should be sent to gonzalo.leon@upm.es in the indicated dates.
The successful completion of the course’s activities and individual assignments will imply to receive an official diploma issued by the UPM and EIT Digital.
Programme
The (preliminary) programme is available as PDF, download here.
Who can participate
All doctoral students at the partnering universities of EIT Digital and UPM PhD students interested in EIT Digital. For list of university partners, please visit: www.doctoralschool.eitdigital.eu/about-us/partners/
NOTE: number of available places is limited to a maximum of 25. A selection process of the applicants will be performed according to their alignment with EIT Digital and their CV.
Registration
Download the registration form here. It has to be sent to the following address: dtc-madrid@eitdigital.eu.
Attendance is free of chare, including coffee breaks and buffet-lunches.
Travel and accomodation on participant expenses.
Venue
The seminar will take place in:
EIT Digital co-location centre
IMDEA Software Institute
Campus Montegancedo
28223 Pozuelo de Alarcón (Madrid)
Detailed information on how to reach the IMDEA Software Institute can be found at:
www.software.imdea.org/contact_and_directions/directions.html
Contact information
Should you have any questions about the event, please send an e-mail to I&E Coordinator Prof. Gonzalo León or to DTC Lead Susana Eiroa.
E-mail: gonzalo.leon@eitdigital.eu
Phone: +34 91 101 22 02
E-mail: susana.eiroa@imdea.org
Phone: +34 91 101 2202 ext 4231
