How to Establish and Develop a Knowledge Transfer Centre. User Guide.

How to Establish and Develop a Knowledge Transfer Centre? Project co-financed by the European Union under the European Social Fund

USER GUIDE

How to Establish and Develop a Knowledge Transfer Centre? User guide Patrycja Antosz, Jan Strycharz, Seweryn Krupnik, Dariusz Szklarczyk

Project co-financed by the European Union under the European Social Fund

Authors: Patrycja Antosz, Jan Strycharz, Seweryn Krupnik, Dariusz Szklarczyk Consultation: prof. Jarosław Górniak

Table of contents INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER CENTRE (KTC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Center for Evaluation and Analysis of Public Policies

Vision and mission . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Jagiellonian University

KTC activity characteristics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Brief summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

STAGE 1: PREPARATION FOR ESTABLISHING A KTC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 From an idea to a business plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 Draining your ideas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Analysis of immediate and more remote environment of the KTC . . . . . . . . 18 Brokering and human resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 SPIN — Model of innovation transfer in Małopolska The Marshall’s Office of Małopolskie Voivodship Department of Regional Policy

www.spin.malopolska.pl Free copy

Change management — preparation for difficult negotiations . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Summary — developing a business plan and moving to the next stage . . . . . 29 Risks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

STAGE 2: Start-up — Creating Organisational Structure . . . . . 32 Goals and indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Key actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 Risks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

ISBN 978-83-64155-98-7 Cracow 2015

STAGE 3: Testing and sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 Goals and indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Key actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 Risks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56



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CONCLUSION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 APPENDICES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 Appendix 1. Broker’s competency profile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 Appendix 2. Competition notice . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Appendix 3. Job interview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Appendix 4. Raising competencies — exemplary plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Appendix 5. Organisational Structure of the Knowledge Transfer Centre . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Appendix 6. Information on “Spin — Model of Innovation Transfer in Małopolska” . . . . . . . 69 Appendix 7. Schedule of establishing and developing a Knowledge Transfer Centre (in weeks) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 Appendix 8. Sample sources of financing the operations of the Knowledge Transfer Centre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

GLOSSARY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 LISTS OF TABLES AND FIGURES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Introduction You are reading this guide because you are interested in cooperation between science and business, and you would like to find out how to create a unit that could develop such cooperation at your university. We have written this guide based on experiences and in-depth analyses concerning specific cases of establishing and developing Knowledge Transfer Centres (KTC) collected over several years. In addition, we also invited specialists in different areas to support us with their advice. We were writing the guide as if we were the target readers: clearly and concretely. You are at the beginning of your journey. Your goal is an excellently operating KTC, and, more precisely, a well-organised KTC that has a competent Team and is able to share their skills, maintain relationships with key entities in a given area and, most importantly, implement projects for (or with) companies or other interested units.

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To this end, you’ll need to complete three stages discussed in detail in this guide, namely: 1) preparation, 2) start-up, 3) testing and sales. During preparation, you will develop a project and a detailed plan of operations for your KTC. At the end of the start-up phase, the organisation is already in place, with a team of people, and it is placed within the structures of a university (or other types of scientific units). Testing and sales is a stage where you check how companies respond to your KTC’s offers and modify its activities. It is also time for organisational development. In particular chapters of this guide we describe all the above stages. For each of them we focused on three key issues. Firstly, we focused on what we want to achieve — we presented the goals and indicators of success. Secondly, we focused on actions that should be carried out at a given stage along with instructions on how to sufficiently execute them. Thirdly, we described some difficulties (risks) that we may encounter and the ways of dealing with them.

Introduction

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Preparation • Design and plan your KTC

Start-up • Create an organization

Testing and sales • Check what works • Develop the KTC

Figure 1. Stages of establishing and developing a KTC Source: own.

You can use this guide in two ways, depending on certain conditions. When external financing for establishing and developing your KTC is provided you can follow the guide to the letter. Alternatively, when you are proceeding without external financing, each proposed stage will probably take more time and you will have to resign from some actions recommended here. However, the goal will still be within reach.

The guide is most useful to managers of Knowledge Transfer Centres. To hold this position, it is necessary to have specific competencies (see Appendix 3 Job interview, Appendix 5 Organisational structure of Knowledge Transfer Centre) and a great deal of time. From our experience the manager should possess working knowledge of a given scientific discipline and experience related to project management and cooperation with companies. If that’s not you, consider finding someone who is right for the job.

Knowledge Transfer Centre (KTC) Vision and mission This guide presents a precise vision of supporting innovations. A key element of this vision is an idea of a Knowledge Transfer Centre (KTC) — a unit created within a university. This Centre should be perceived as an interface between scientific resources of a given scientific

environment (e.g. a specific faculty or department) and companies operating on the market; this interface focuses on a specific specialisation and tightens its relationship with a selected industry. The table below contains examples of four Knowledge Transfer Centres created in Małopolska during the pilot phase of the SPIN project implementation.

Table 1. Knowledge Transfer Centres in Małopolska Małopolska Centre of Biotechnology (MCB) http://www.mcb.uj.edu.pl/en_GB/

Małopolska Centre of Energy-saving Buildings (MCEB) www.mcbe.pl

Małopolska Centre for Translational Medicine (MCTM) www.momt.uj.edu.pl

Centre of Intelligent IT Systems (CIIS) isi.agh.edu.pl/centrum_isi

Specialises in searching for possibilities to use biotechnology in production processes Specialises in technologies supporting energy-savingbuilding

Seeks new diagnostic technologies and medicinal products

Specialises in the application of computer science for building intelligent power infrastructure

Source: own.

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Knowledge Transfer Centre (KTC)

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As you can see, Knowledge Transfer Centres specialise in specific industries. Most importantly, the final shape of a KTC largely depends on your vision, ideas and your creativity. Remember that your university presumably has a so-called intermediate unit, e.g. Technology Transfer Centre (TTC). Your task is not to copy its competencies, but to create a Centre specialised in a specific field, which can get actively involved in the business life of the sector of your interest. In a sense, the Knowledge Transfer Centre copies actions of a TTC — it pursues a mission consisting in using education to invent products/services that can be applied in business. The start-up and development of activities of a KTC is a difficult task. You must know that, on the whole, universities do not enjoy a good reputation among entrepreneurs as far as performing joint ventures is concerned. Entrepreneurs often point to the fact that universities operate too slowly, that it is difficult to find specialists, and that contact itself is troublesome and hardly user-friendly. Your task is to build a unit that will facilitate communication between scientists-specialists and companies on the road to innovation much like the graphical user interface (GUI) has facilitated computer operation for ordinary people. Nowadays, we do not need to be programmers to use computers and we do not have to enter specialised commands, but simply click appropriate “buttons”.

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The main point is that the entrepreneur should not have to know scientific jargon or be knowledgeable about university structures to be able to use scientific potential that may support the development of their company. A Knowledge Transfer Centre is to be a kind of a “translator” — it is to “translate”/explain the needs of business (specific industry) and fulfil them within the competencies it specialises in.

KTC activity characteristics In this guide we will show you how to approach the creation/establishment of a Knowledge Transfer Centre to increase its chance of success. This success should be understood as the conversion of knowledge to financial value. This approach should help you arrange the activities related to establishing and running the Centre. Adopting such approach defines the function and activities that should be implemented within the Centre. The Centre should not focus on the development of science per se — in principle, it should not undertake research described as “pure science”. The Centre should not strive to build and strengthen its position in the scientific community; instead, the management of the unit should be focused on finding its position in the so-called value chains whose end is always a product (goods or services) provided to the socalled final client (company) for money.

Box 1. Example of a Knowledge Transfer Centre offer The Knowledge Transfer Centre at the Krakow University of Technology was established in the course of the implementation of the SPIN project; it was named Małopolska Centre of Energy-saving Buildings (MCEB). The Centre has developed the concept of Energy-Saving Certificate and released it on the market. The main recipients of their product are developers who invest in energy efficiency of their buildings and want to persuade their clients that it is not just a marketing trick. An independent research unit granting the Certificate allows developers to build trust with their prospective clients with greater ease. In this way, MCEB adds some value to the chain of production and distribution of energy-saving buildings.

Certainly, it does not mean that a Centre should not pursue research projects at all. However, each decision on implementing pure research projects should be linked to the strategy of strengthening its position in a given chain of economic flows. We are mentioning this fact at the very beginning because experience from the previous activities aiming at knowledge commercialisation showed that directions of research were — for understandable reasons — more natural for scientists. However, if scientists want to engage in knowledge commercialisation, they should know that this direction is a great threat to achieving economic effects that are strongly connected to sales effects.

It is extremely important to change the point of view and not seek ways to add new information to the global pool of scientific knowledge (pure science), but to use existing knowledge of specific commercial practices in production, distribution and consumption of goods (applied research). A goal defined in this way clearly shows that a well-operating Knowledge Transfer Centre is a unit that actively and regularly raises funds from two sources: 1)  direct sales of goods and/or services and 2) external financing for the implementation of research and development projects (see Fig. 2).

Knowledge Transfer Centre (KTC)

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Basic funding sources for KTC

Table 2. Examples of commercialisation of KTC activities — examples from the pilot programme Knowledge Transfer Centre

Direct sales of goods and/or services

* These projects should address specific informational (or technological) needs of an existing company or another entity related to the chains of economic value. In Poland, the main source of raising this type of funds is the National Centre for Research and Development (NCBiR). Detailed information about open tenders for research and development activities is published on the website of NCBiR (http://www.ncbr.gov.pl/en/). There are also other external sources of financing research and development projects – these can be private sponsors, foundations specialising in specific areas, but also international programmes such as, e.g. a European Commission programme, „Horizon 2020” (see Appendix 8). Monitoring grant possibilities should become an element of the Centre’s operational strategy if you focus on external financing for research. If you want to learn about the possibilities of financing that were available in the years 2007– 2013, you can familiarize yourself with the information included in the inLab manual (p. 90, available on: http://www. inlab.byd.pl/index.php?id=2). The sources of financing listed in this document may be used as inspiration as to where to seek funds in the future.

Effective fundraising will prove that a KTC not only has a scientific value, but maybe most importantly, is valuable to companies and other entities which will voluntarily allocate their resources to co-operate with the Centre. If companies voluntarily and regularly invest their limited resources in cooperation with a given KTC, it can be assumed that this cooperation will translate into their market value. A KTC’s primarily function is increasing competitiveness, effectiveness and profitability of companies with which it cooperates. In other words, a KTC is to become a Business-to-Business institution, i.e. generate and provide value to other businesses. The main way of helping companies is to offer a service known as technological audit. It consists of analysing mehods of

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Małopolska Centre of Biotechnology (MCB)

A research centre dealing with nutrigenomics was established within the MCB; Nutrigemonics is a study of relations between the type of genotype of a specific person and their ability to digest specific foods. The Centre started cooperation with a company that offers dietetic advice. Nutritionists working for this company can recommend nutrigenomic tests, thanks to which they will be able to give better advice to their patients with regard to healthy nourishment. These tests are made by MCB for monetary gratification.

Centre of Intelligent IT Systems (CIIS)

CIIS prepared several studies describing so-called model solutions for external clients. The point was to accurately describe a specific solution to an energy problem of a given company or commune. As a result of this specification, the recipient could negotiate conditions of this solution with prospective contractors. The recipient gained specialised knowledge about their needs with regard to energy solutions.

Małopolska Centre for Translational Medicine (MCMT)

MCMT has started cooperation with BRASTER, whose goal is to find an innovative method of diagnosing breast cancer. The company prepared research procedures (for example testing diagnostic devices) executed by MCMT specialists,. The project is financed by the National Centre for Research and Development.

External funding for research and development projects*

Figure 2. Basic sources of KTC financing

running a business — mostly production processes — in terms of possible improvements to technologies used in a given company. Scientists trained in a given field and familiar with a specific industry can assess whether the applied production practices are optimal and propose solutions whose implementation will lead to savings and greater production effectiveness. Another important service provided by a KTC is matching companies and scientists in order to execute commissioned works or apply jointly for external funds for research and development activities. Knowledge Transfer Centres established under the SPIN project implemented different ideas for commercialisation — some examples are shown in the table below (see table 2).

Method of commercialisation and monetisation of KTC’s research potential

Source: own.

Brief summary Establishing and developing a Knowledge Transfer Centre is an ambitious and multifaceted task. Ideas for commercialisation are very rapidly verified by the market and must be constantly modified and improved. Especially in the initial stage it is worth remembering that the number of interactions — contacts — with the business sector, on the basis of which various kinds of research services (audits or analyses) are performed, is very important. Time will tell what strengths your Centre has.

We are mentioning this fact because in the following parts we will try to show you, step by step, how to establish and develop a KTC. The first stage is expressly focused on developing the vision of commercialisation in a given industry. Although this vision is crucial, it is also important to analyse the situation constantly and, if necessary, react accordingly and promptly to changing business needs.

Knowledge Transfer Centre (KTC)

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Start-up Preparation

Clearly specified vision of a business based on a specific offer directed to a specific group of recipients. The plan of business implementation (business plan) is also in place, with specific goals and milestones included in the implementation schedule. There is only an initial idea for a market offer. Recipents are defined in a general manner. No team has assumed the responsibility for executing the idea. Therefore, no key competencies are necessary for idea execution.

Source: http://www.startupcommons.org/startup-key-stages.html.

Testing and sales

Stable growth is noticeable, while the project’s profitability level increases. As a result, the company gains stability and its brand is consolidated. Increase in the number of clients is dynamic. At the same time, the offer is standardised enough that it enables business scaling. There is a team of individuals who have competencies necessary to implement the business plan. The offer is precise and prepared for implementation. Stable funding is ensured for the startup period.

Sales bring effects. First clients appear, bringing financial revenues. The client base grows, thanks to which the project aims to achieve a breakeven point.

Establishing Scaling Commitment Concepting

However, before creating a business plan with a specific budget, we need to go through a so-called ideation phase. Ideation is described as a condition in which the originator has a very initial and unspecified idea of a business offer. These are initial intuitions relating to the way we could earn income. However, at this stage there is no staff that would assume the commitment to develop a business. For this reason, it is not possi-

Ideation

Establishing a Knowledge Transfer Centre is similar to establishing a company. Knowledge about bringing to life and developing new companies (socalled start-ups) has been enriched recently, which allows us to distinguish specific stages of establishing a business organisation (see table 3). At this point, we should remember that these stages are extended over time — from preliminary and initial thoughts/ideas (commonly referred to as intuitions), to the form of a specific organisation whose functioning involves real individuals. Therefore, in order to create an organisation, these initial intuitions must be particularised and embedded in a specific context — they must be clear, communicable and translatable into goals and actions. Otherwise, they

Startup

From an idea to a business plan

In Table 3, we presented 6 business development phases. At the stage of preparation, the first two are important: ideation and concepting. We may even say that the end of concepting means the end of preparations — now we have a clearly specified business vision, which is then included in specific goals, operations schedule and budget. The owner (or owners) of the idea may then move on to building a team and inviting other people to assume specific responsibilities resulting from the operational plan, i.e. business plan.

Pre-startup

How do we want to achieve this?

will never materialise and will forever remain mere ideas.

Table 3. Stages of starting up a business

What do we want to achieve? The purpose of this stage is to prepare and implement a detailed concept of your KTC.

Validation

Growth

Stage 1: Preparation for establishing a KTC

Stage 1: Preparation for establishing a KTC

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ble to talk about the structure of a team with adequate competencies to change a given idea into business. At this stage it is not worth planning implementation activities — since nobody knows what the business offer will be. Moreover, nobody knows what actions should be implemented so that the offer is fully described and communicated to potential clients. Summing up, at the initial stages of thinking about building a Knowledge Transfer Centre, reliable conceptual work should be performed, which will result in the modification of preliminary thoughts into a specific business plan with de-

tailed goals and activities for the whole period of implementation of the new KTC in the economic ecosystem. Stage 1 of our project — preparation for establishing a Knowledge Transfer Centre — lasts 4 months and is supposed to create a situation where people responsible for establishing a KTC have a specific business plan containing a detailed description of the offer, budget and schedule (see Box 2). On the basis of the prepared document, it will be easier to persuade competent regional and university authorities or private investors to provide financial support for the KTC.

Box 2. Business plan for KTC

General definition of business plan

Business plan is a description of the future of your company. This is a document that says what you intend to achieve and how you wish to achieve it. Business plans are strategic documents. They clearly describe your initial situation and specify the resources you have and possibilities you can use. A business plan also shows where you want to be in the future after the plan’s implementation (usually within three to five years). Moreover, it shows actions that will lead you there. [prepared on the basis of: businessplan, Entrepreneur.com, available at: http://www.entrepreneur.com/businessplan/index.html (29.04.2015)]

Business plan elements recommended for a KTC project

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Element

Description

1. Description of a preliminary business model — idea for a venture

The structure of the initial idea for a business model may be the one presented in Table 4. The key elements of the business concept are the shape of the offer and the characteristics of its recipients. It is important to adjust these two elements to one another because the target group has a specific problem or need which the offer is supposed to satisfy directly.

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2. Analysis of resources (knowledge, staff, equipment and technologies) found in close proximity

This analysis is supposed to lead to selection of resources thanks to which the business offer will be prepared after taking appropriate actions.

3. Market analysis – potential recipients and competition

Market analysis should also bring knowledge about competition, potential clients and target markets. It may also be a source of inspiration as to what offer should be created, how marketing and sales activities should be conducted, etc.

4. SWOT analysis

SWOT analysis focuses on weaknesses and strengths of the planned project resulting from internal conditions, as well as opportunities and threats generated by the external environment of a given organisation. It is supposed to help you understand the risks and devise a risk management strategy.

5. Description of staff to form the KTC and staff recruitment process

Description of staff should contain a clear definition of positions that should be created in order to carry out activities leading to knowledge commercialisation. The definition should include duties and functions of each position and include the characteristics of the ideal psychological types of employees who would perform these functions. This element of a business plan should also contain a description of staff recruitment process that would increase the likelihood of manning positions with appropriate individuals.

6. Schedule

Schedule should present actions necessary to establish and develop a KTC at every stage. These actions should be presented on a timeline so that every action has an appropriate time for its implementation.

7. Budget

The budget should contain possibly detailed calculations of financial costs attributed to executed activities .

If you need to increase your knowledge about goals and principles of creating business plans, we recommend that you take up free e-training available on the websites of the Polish Agency for Enterprise Development: https://www.akademiaparp.gov.pl/szkolenie-biznesowe/A2B/informacje.html Source: own.

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Draining your ideas Any actions planned at the stage of preparation are arranged so as to ensure their usefulness to you in achieving your goal — namely, the preparation of a business plan. We advise you to start with specifying your vision. If you are familiar with the idea of science commercialisation, you must have some initial ideas (intuitions) as to what knowledge may be transferred to economy. At the first stage of designing the vision of your Knowledge Transfer Centre, it is important to try to capture these ideas

in a manner, which will describe the initial business model of such an organisation. Thinking in categories of a business model will force you to answer specific questions related to the mechanics of the organisation you want to call into being. On the one hand, this exercise will reveal your way of thinking about the KTC and its potential for generating revenues, and it will establish the starting point for working with this vision. On the other hand, it will show you some information gaps you will be able to fill in the course of conceptualizing and working on the business plan.

Table 4. Business model elements Building block

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Description

1. Customer segments

Every organisation is working for a specific customer segment (target group). For instance, in the case of a private company, we are talking about customers, whereas in the case of a foundation we are talking about beneficiaries. Someone always benefits from operations of a given entity. The needs of customer segments are the reason for the existence of an organisation; therefore it is the most important element of a business model.

2. Value propositions

Value proposition should be understood as a concept of an offer addressed to a customer segment. The offer is nothing more than goods or services — their provision to the recipient is a result of entering into a relationship whose goal is to achieve value. The efficacy of this treatment is verified by the recipient’s satisfaction. This element of a business model forces you to reflect on what exactly is offered to which group of people and why; the answer to these questions allows you to verify the grounds for the concept of a given organisation.

3. Channels

This element of a business model draws attention to three functions of the channels used to reach the customer segment: communication, distribution and sales. The communication channel involves raising awareness and allowing the customer to develop an opinion on the value proposition. The distribution channel draws attention to the need to deliver the offer “to the hands of” the customer, and the sales channel refers directly to the circumstances of making a transaction. Each of these functions is related to specific actions whose identification is important to understand the organisation and to specify which tasks will have to be implemented so that the organisation becomes effective.

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Building block

Description

4. Customer relationships

It is also important that the organisation wants to build relations with the customer segment. At this point, reference is made to any actions which are not directly focused on the purposes implemented by the above “channels”. This building block contains issues related to creating a brand or a certain desired image. These issues are particularly important for a new organisation that has to enter awareness of potential customers.

5. Revenue streams

To ensure survival, an organisation must generate revenue. There are many possible sources of income. It is important to emphasise that not all elements of the offer have to be monetised — not all elements that offer value to the recipient must be payable. Here Google is a good example — from the wide range of the products offered by this company, only advertising space in the form of AdWords and AdSense services is monetised, whereas other services, such as Google search engine, Google Chrome, maps, e-mail, Google documents and many others are provided free of charge. Their objective is to attract users whose presence is desirable to potential advertisers.

6. Key activities

Key activities are all activities that are absolutely necessary for the implementation of all of the above building blocks of a business model.

7. Key resources

This element draws attention to all resources without which it would be impossible to implement a business model. It should be emphasised that these resources can be both tangible and intangible. It may be added that organisations that define knowledge as a key resource will be potentially more open to establishing contacts with the world of science because their representatives will already understand the potential added value of this cooperation. At the same time, they will have higher requirements with regard to the offered product.

8. Key partnerships

In order to implement some offers, an organisation must often initiate cooperation with other entities. Key partners include partners without whom this model cannot be implemented — they are absolutely necessary. One example may be iTunes store, which offers music in a digital form. iTunes’ key partners are phonographic publishers. iTunes does not produce music — it is only an agent — and therefore, the whole reason for its existence is based on the assumption that music publishers will provide music in a digital form so that it can be comprised in the offer of iTunes platform.

9. Cost structure

This building block of a business model focuses on costs related to acquiring key resources, key partners and pursuing key activities. A business model does not ask about accurate calculations, but deals with the estimation of what will generate the largest costs of organisation’s functioning.

Source: own on the basis of Osterwalder (Helion 2012).

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A paper by A. Osterwalder entitled “Business Model Generation: A Handbook for Visionaries” (Helion 2012) may lay groundwork for precise conceptualisation of development vision of a Knowledge Transfer Centre. This publication presents one of the currently popular methods of working on specifying the vision of a new organisation whose goal is to achieve the break-even point as fast as possible. The presented business model divides the mechanics of operations of an organisation into 9 building blocks, whose accurate rethinking increases the chance of understanding the principles and logic behind the functioning of the developed project. Above we present a table containing a description of these 9 elements (see Table 4). We recommend that work on the development of the first concept of a business model be performed in the course of specially organised workshops delivered by a by a trained professional. Work with a specialist in business modeling can help “gain some distance” and increase knowledge about certain concepts or business categories which will also be helpful at further stages of your KTC development.

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It is recommended for the workshops to be organised in the first week of the preparation stage.

Analysis of immediate and more remote environment of the KTC Building the initial version of the business model for the Knowledge Transfer Centre will motivate you to determine the offer as well as establish interested target groups. This is a key market relation; products should be adjusted to the needs and possibilities of their recipients. This relation is called “product/ market fit” in the business jargon and its good understanding is crucial for success. It is worth remembering that the first concept of a business model is only the initial concept that should be subject to further treatment — it is a kind of hypothesis based on your knowledge and some presumptions. In the course of creating the business model information gaps will undoubtedly appear. They which should be filled during conceptualizing.

Box 3. Product/market fit The term „product/market fit” was first used by M. Anderseen, an entrepreneur and investor operating in the high-tech industry in the Silicon Valley. Product/market fit means that our product (good or service) fulfills specific functions that are clear and desired by a specific group of recipients. As a result, the value of our product is generally comprehensible and results from a simple fact that taking advantage of an offer solves a specific problem or satisfies a specific need. Anderseen claims that reaching an appropriate market with the product is the key to success. In any other case, even great people with their magnificent products - as Anderseen puts it - will not develop the project because there is no demand or customers do not understand what „magnificence” the offer consists of. Source: M. Adnerseen, Product/Market Fit, available at: http://web.stanford.edu/class/ee204/ProductMarketFit. html (28.04.2015).

Therefore, we recommend that you start a systematic process of collecting additional information, and that this process be directed both ways: firstly, accurate mapping of potential for commercialisation in your immediate university environment; secondly, deepened analysis of the market for which you wish to develop your offer.

Immediate environment Analysis of commercialisation potential applies to resources that are available at the university and that may be used to create the market offer. Certainly, you have initial knowledge about individuals at the university who are working in the field of your interest. However, as shown by experiences drawn from the SPIN pilot project in Małopolska, this knowledge is almost never complete. Collecting information about your environment increases the chance of noticing interesting individuals or technologies of which existence or activities you did not know before. Therefore, we recommend that you plan a research procedure that will

allow you to obtain answers to 3 basic questions: 1. What specific research directions are implemented in the field you selected for commercialisation, and which of them are close to business practices? 2. Which scientists in your environment have experience in cooperation with businesses and what did this cooperation concern? 3. What type of infrastructure — equipment, laboratories, and readily-available technologies — is available in your immediate environment? Obtaining answers to the above questions should enable you to map information in three resource areas. As a result, you will be able to create a more precise concept of an offer for the designed Knowledge Transfer Centre — in terms of knowledge, people, equipment and technologies. These three areas are the basis of every project related to knowledge commercialisation.

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Table 5. Basic resources for a Knowledge Transfer Centre

Knowledge

Knowledge is an intangible resource usually defined as information on a given subject. It can be detached from specific people, e.g. research findings that are provided in scientific publications. This knowledge may be useful in the process of commercialisation, though it is necessary to remember that what sells is usually a service created with the use of “pure knowledge” rather than “pure knowledge” itself.

People

Some knowledge will be personal — this is the so-called tacit knowledge, it cannot be directly verbalised or written down. It results from experiences of individuals. For instance, knowledge on how to cooperate with businesses may be preserved in the form of recommendations. However, a person with experience in this cooperation will also be able to use these recommendations in practice. Therefore, it is important to map individuals who have knowledge, experience and competencies that are key for establishing a KTC.

Equipment and technologies

This may be specialist research equipment or technologies that can be commercialised by selling them directly or granting licenses for their use.

Source: own.

When looking for relevant commercialisation potential in your environment, remember that not all knowledge and not each technology is suitable for commer-

cialisation. To define the degree of readiness of a given implementation, a special index, called was developed. Its description is presented below (see Box 4).

Box 4. Technological readiness levels Definition Technology Readiness Levels (TRLs) are a way of describing technological maturity and a tool for comparing the progress of work on different technologies. This methodology was first applied in R&D projects implemented by NASA and the US defence industry. It states that the maturity of technologies is described from the phase of conceptualizing of a specific solution (TRL 1) until the stage of maturity (TRL 9) when, as a result of scientific research and development, this concept assumes the form of a technological solution that can be applied in practice, e.g. in the form of market production initiation. The National Centre for Research and Development co-finances projects according to the TRL logic — the goal of most programmes is the refinement of technology in a way that allows its use in real conditions (i.e. to reach TRL 9).

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Levels — assignment of a given of technology to a specific level determines its proximity to market practices Basic research >> 1. Basic principles of a given phenomenon have been observed 2. Technology concept has been defined 3. It has been confirmed analytically and experimentally 4. It has been verified in laboratory conditions 5. It has been verified in an environment similar to the actual one 6. Demonstrations have been conducted in conditions similar to actual ones 7. Demonstrations have been conducted in operational conditions 8. Tests and demonstrations of the final version of technology have been completed 9. Production on the industrial scale has been launched >> Market Source: The National Centre for Research and Development, available at: http://www.ncbir.pl/aktualnosci/ art,2313,poziomy-gotowosci-technologicznej.html (6.05.2015).

You must remember that allocation of technology to appropriate readiness levels is correlated with the current market needs. Therefore, in order to skilfully assess implementation potential of the resources in your close proximity, you have to look at them from the point of view of the business environment analysis.

Business environment As we have mentioned previously, the success of a commercialisation venture depends on the so-called product/market fit. In order to use mapped resources skilfully to create an appropriate offer, the market should be thoroughly examined. To this end, we recommend that in addition to collecting data on resources available at the university you should also collect information about the market on which you would like to compete. You can do it single-handedly, although it is recommended to have relevant experts conduct the analysis, as the task in ques-

tion combines business analytics and the so-called open-source intelligence. If you are establishing your KTC within a project implemented by public authorities, this type of analytical support will probably be at your disposal. If, however, you accept the challenge of unassisted research, you will have to rely on companies conducting market research and providing consulting services that operate in your environment. When ordering this type of task, you should remember that it has to lead to your understanding of what is in the current state of the market in your field, particularly: • What bidders operate on the market? What is their offer? How is it sold? What is the financial standing of these entities? What is the geographical scope of their operations? • What recipients operate on the market? What is the profile of their opera-

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tions? What do they produce and sell to their customers? How do they use commercialised knowledge to improve their operations? What is the market situation of these entities? What is the situation of markets on which they operate? Thanks to market analysis you will obtain information about the method of creating economic value in the field you are interested in. In other words, you will gain knowledge with regard to financial flows between different actors of this market. This knowledge is important because with specified resources you will be faced with the task of “injecting” your offer into these flows. The second advantage of market analysis is the possibility of becoming familiar with other business practices. Some of them can help you improve the vision of the functioning of your Knowledge Transfer Centre specified in the initial business model. In addition, we suggest that you use market analysis to create a database containing a list of entities you will invite for the opening of the Centre (at the beginning of the testing stage), making them aware of your offer.

Extending previous activities over time So far we have recommended three basic activities: 1. Preparation of a preliminary business model of the Knowledge Transfer Centre.

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2. Research of the close environment resources. 3. Market analysis. Knowledge received during the execution of these activities will help you understand what your Knowledge Transfer Centre should be to increase its chances for success. Your initial vision will “clash” with knowledge about what you really have and what the market is ready for, i.e. the company. My initial vision

Table 6. General schedule of the preparation stage of establishing a KTC — p. 1 Week

1

2…

…12

13…

…16

Development of a business model of the KTC Development of research concept that maps resources for the KTC Execution of resource-mapping research for the KTC Development of research concept for market analysis Market analysis

My resources Final vision Market

Figure 3. KTC vision v. reality Source: own.

We recommend that you develop an initial vision of your KTC with the use of a business model template in the first week of the preparation stage. Having completed this task, preferably in the second week of the preparation stage, you should start preparing the research concept to map resources and analyse the market. This research should be continued for the next 10 weeks so that a new vision of the KTC is developed in the 12th week, and a complete business plan of the implementation of this vision in the world of actual economic flows is developed between the 13th and 16th week.

Development of a new vision of the KTC Development of a complete business plan (vision, schedule, budget, SWOT, planned achievements) Source: own.

Brokering and human resources As suggested above, between the third and the twelfth week of the preparation stage you will have time to take additional actions. During that time, you may be involved in mapping your academic environment’s commercialisation potential. However, these activities will not deplete your time resources. For this reason, we recommend that in the third week you begin taking actions which help you determine the staff you will need to hire to implement your vision. At this stage, you do not have full knowledge about the precise vision of your KTC yet, and thus we recommend that in

the third and fourth week you undergo training in innovation brokering as well as recruitment and human resources management.

Brokering Brokering is a central concept of knowledge transfer. Broker is a person who seeks opportunities for commercialisation and leads to their monetisation. It is not a regular seller, but someone with an exceptional set of skills that allows noticing specific possibilities. Their flexibility is exceptionally important because products that a KTC has at its disposal are often not standardised. For instance, research services can be “tailored” to the needs at hand; the broker in a KTC is responsible

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for noticing market needs whose satisfaction is within the possibilities of a given KTC. Apart from exceptional skills of understanding and “feeling” the market, the broker should have deep knowledge about resources of a given Centre as well as understand its character. As it is shown by previous experience in establishing KTC’s, the mere process of bringing a contract between KTC and the recipient (customer) to conclusion may be long-lasting. A broker also takes care of this process, maintaining the commitment of the parties to a potential ­transaction. We recommend that the third week of the preparation stage be dedicated to obtaining knowledge about what good brokering is. If you participate in the project organised by regional authorities, you will probably have an opportunity to benefit from relevant training. However, if you are developing the KTC on your own or without institutional support, we recommend that you find appropriate people who will be able to share their experiences in brokering.

Recruitment and human resources management Deepening the issues concerned with brokering will allow you to understand which co-workers and key competencies you need to develop so that your Centre is successful. Needless to say, individuals with other, more standard skills are also necessary. Therefore, we recommend that you supplement knowledge about brokering with knowledge of more technical aspects of employee recruitment and human resources management. It is necessary to remember that by wanting to create Knowledge Transfer Centres, you are facing a challenge of starting up an organisation whose basic resources are people and their knowledge. For this reason, we encourage you to learn principles that will help you understand who you are looking for and how to carry out recruitment to maximise the probability of finding relevant co-workers. To this end, the fourth week of the preparation stage should be dedicated to enriching your knowledge on various aspects concerning recruitment and human resources management (see Table 7).

Table 7. Aspects of knowledge concerning human resources management and recruitment Aspect

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Brief description

1. Job analysis

Through good analysis you learn which functions should be performed by a person holding a given position and how it is connected with other positions in the organisation.

2. Determination of psychological characteristics of ideal candidates

Job analysis makes it possible to understand what types of personality or traits are important for satisfactory fulfilment of responsibilities in a given position. As a result, you can define psychological types of ideal candidates for a given position.

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Aspect

Brief description

3. Recruitment and tender organisation principles

The recruitment process can be conducted in many ways. Exploring recruitment tools will allow you to understand which of them are adequate based on the type of position that you want to staff.

4. Promotion and strategic placement of announcements

Appropriate placement of announcements will allow you to reach candidates who are actually interested in a given job.

5. Document verification criteria

Analysing possible criteria for the evaluation of candidates’ documents will allow you to assume adequate priorities thanks to which you will focus on what is most important for a given position.

6. Psychological tools for candidate assessment

One of the recruitment stages is usually a direct meeting with a candidate in a form of an interview or various workshop activities. Exploring psychological candidate assessment tools will allow you to evaluate such meetings and increase opportunities to identify those candidates whose psychological profiles are most adequate to given positions.

7. Innovative diagnostic techniques (cases, games, NLP techniques)

Exploring various innovative methods of candidate evaluation may positively affect your recruitment.

8. Assessment Centre

Presently, one of the most popular recruitment tools is the so-called assessment centre, which is a multi-dimensional tool based on tasks and surveillance of candidates in action.

9. Analysis and description of the recruitment process results

By supplementing this aspect of knowledge you will learn how to arrange information about candidates gathered in the recruitment process and describe it so that its analysis is not difficult.

Source: Own on the basis of http://akademiaru.pl/szkolenia-hr/rekrutacja-i-selekcja-pracownikow/.

Gaining knowledge in the aspects given in Table 7 will allow you to design and carry out recruitment at the startup stage in a manner which will ensure better chances of success than ad hoc actions. The mere project of the recruitment process should already be prepared at the preparation stage and should be included in the plan of your KTC’s operation along with a description of pro-

files of candidates you are looking for. To this end, we recommend that, after updating the vision of the Centre, you start describing profiles of your future co-workers, along with the definition of the scopes of their responsibilities. After defining your HR needs, draw up the recruitment process with active support of an HR professional.

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Table 8. General schedule of the preparation stage of establishing a KTC — p. 2 Week

…3

4…

…13

14

15…

Increasing knowledge about brokering (possibly training) Increasing knowledge about recruitment and human resource management (possibly training) Preparing competency profiles of future co-workers Preparing a detailed recruitment concept with promotional strategy Placing the recruitment strategy in the business plan of the KTC

Analysis of the system of needs and interests forming the university’s daily life will allow you to prepare tools which will

Source: own.

Change management — preparation for difficult negotiations The last primary element of the preparation stage is the improvement of your own competencies in the field of change management and preparation of a map of stakeholders and communication strategy, which will help you embed the Centre within the structure of university. Good training in change management may prove to be very significant in the context of the future success of your KTC. You must remember that you are going to introduce a new unit to traditional academic structures. This type of unit creates new possibilities, but many people from your immediate environment will consider it a risk for the following reasons:

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them of the kind of support the KTC will need and the issues that it can pursue independently. 3. The essence of the KTC consists in the additional involvement of scientists. It means that they will have less time to conduct purely scientific operations — and it may be perceived as a threat to their superiors. Therefore, while getting to know the scientists, it is worth familiarising yourself with the existing university structures where the scientists operate every day.

1. The university certainly already has some organisational units that, to some extent, execute actions involving or concerning knowledge transfer. Individuals who are involved in their work can perceive the newly developed KTC as competition. It is worth meeting such individuals in advance to determine fields of synergy, namely such areas of activity where your Centre and the already existing units may supplement and support each other. 2. Some university employees may feel anxious about new, ­ additional commitments in connection with ­ bringing the KTC to life. In particular, individuals working in administration can perceive it as a form of pressure to change their old work habits. It is worth communicating with these individuals in advance and informing

help you approach this problem proactively in advance. The idea of a KTC is the change that it is to bring in economic structures. Considering the dynamic change of today’s market situation, a KTC should be a very flexible unit, able to adapt to new circumstances relatively quickly. In this context, it should be said that what you are faced with is a task of developing methods not so much of change management as of management within change. This is a challenge that you can prepare for in advance by building your competencies through adequate training (preferably in the 5th week of the preparation stage).

Box 5. Goals of training aimed at building potential to manage change and manage within change 1. Exploring methods of coping with reluctance towards the introduced changes 2. Developing skills to work with a team within change 3. Increasing awareness of your style of responding to conflicts 4. Exploring and testing tools of effective communication in conflicts 5. Improving skills of effective negotiation 6. Increasing knowledge about the nature of a relation 7. Developing skills to build sustainable relations 8. Developing skills to persuade, speak the language of values and exert influence Source: own on the basis of the curriculum of a postgraduate course called “Culture Leaders Academy”, implemented by the Cracow University of Economics.

Participation in this training will allow you to accept the challenge of creating a map of stakeholders — important individuals and entities in your close environment — and specifying which of them are needed for the success of the KTC. At this stage, we also advise you to start creating a Centre Council, consisting of

selected stakeholders with knowledge which will be helpful in establishing the Centre. When creating the Council, choose individuals from the close environment of the Centre and ask them to participate in creating the KTC. Remember that the Council is to serve as an advisory body (e.g. specifying directions of development). Apart from representatives of the

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academic circle, the Council should also consist of business representatives from the concerned industry (you will learn about them thanks to the analysis of the business environment) and representatives of public administration interested in the commercialisation of scientific knowledge. A complementary element with respect to analysis of stakeholders is a deepened analysis of legal and institutional constraints that may result from university regulations or even the Law on Higher Education itself. The activities of the KTC must be conducted in accordance with administrative procedures that bind a university. The academic senate (or, in the case of non-public universities, an appropriate body indicated in their statutes), may autonomously introduce detailed regulations regarding a commercialisation policy. Regulations which are of particular interest include: 1. Regulations regarding the protection and management of intellectual property (copyright and neighbouring rights as well as industrial property rights). 2. Regulations on the commercialisation of intellectual property and profit distribution (remuneration for creators, use of property of the university and provision of scientific and research services). 3. Regulations on the performance of work commissioned by external entities.

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All these documents should be available in the unit involved in technology transfer or in the academic entrepreneurship incubator. It is also worth becoming familiar with the Law on Higher Education, which, after the amendment of 2014, also contains provisions concerning the binding principles of direct and indirect commercialisation (in particular Chapter 3, “University’s Organisation”). However, if the parent university has not prepared regulations in this respect, it is required to determine the principles of the KTC’s operation in direct negotiations with competent authorities. Additionally, it is necessary to arrange appropriate administrative facilities allowing you to obtain resources at the testing and sale stage, which may entail filling in relevant forms or opening a bank account for the KTC.

with the support of adequately prepared professionals. Also, at this conceptualizing stage, it is worth recognising needs with respect to IT infrastructure of the Centre. Adequately prepared IT support may considerably improve the management of all processes within an organisation. Therefore, it is worth consulting a specialist who would help you learn about systems available on the market — both payable and free of charge. Then, you would

be able to make a decision as to which IT tools you would like to use in developing the Centre and — at the stage of the start-up — start them and carry out appropriate training for all personnel. We also recommend that you pay special attention to the analysis of customer relationship management (CRM) systems; analysis of other cases of scientific knowledge commercialisation shows that adequately selected and implemented CRM systems may significantly improve the operation of your KTC.

Table 9. General schedule of the preparation stage of establishing a KTC — p. 3 Week

…5

6

7…

Training in change management and management within change Preparing the map of KTC stakeholders Appointing the Centre Council

We advise you to conduct the analysis of stakeholders and the analysis of legal and institutional constraints simultaneously because you will often encounter resistance generated by regulatory restrictions — learning about them will allow you to decide where changes are possible and prepare for difficult negotiations with authorities or administrative personnel of the university. This way, you will be able to design your communication strategy in advance, allowing for limited time resources. It will also allow you to create a wide coalition supporting your KTC. We also recommend that both the map of stakeholders and the communication strategy be created

Analysing legal and institutional constraints to the functioning of the KTC as part of university Consulting an IT specialist Developing a communication strategy focused on the creation of a wide coalition supporting the KTC Source: own.

Summary — developing a business plan and moving to the next stage As we can see, at the preparation stage, the executed actions mainly allow a very detailed preparation of the concept of the KTC. Therefore, the preparation stage is analogous to the stages of ideation and conceptutalizing in the typol-

ogy of developing a business venture, described in Table 3. The result of this stage should be a clear concept that will be described in the form of a business plan, in accordance with the guidelines presented in Box 2. This business plan may become an important argument in applying for funds for the implementation of the KTC. At the same time, it is a specific project whose execution can be

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started on a regular basis, at the start-up stage of the KTC. The effects of your actions in the discussed stage can be depicted in the form of a list of products. It will facilitate further actions and moving to the next Analysis of the resources of the close academic environment of the KTC Analysis of the target market for the KTC

stage. Altogether, these products will be a resource on the basis of which you will be building and developing the concept of the KTC. These products are connected with one another in a logical manner (see Diagram 1).

Business model for the KTC in the form of a recommended business model template

Competency profiles for KTC staff

Research concept and recruitment strategy for KTC staff

Map of KTC stakeholder

Appointing the Centre Council

Analysis of legal and institutional environment for the KTC

Internal communication strategy focused on building a wide coalition supporting the KTC

Plan of IT development for the purposes of the KTC

SWOT analysis

Implementation schedule

Implementation budget

Overall business plan of the KTC

Diagram 4. Products of the preparation stage of establishing the KTC from the logical perspective Source: own.

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Risks What are the major risks? It should be emphasised that at the preparation stage you make decisions which will largely determine the frames of your operations with regard to the development of the Centre. They can be percieved as project decisions because they result in the development of a project of the Centre itself and the manner of its implementation. However, you need to take into account the possibility of some difficulties in the implementation of your plan of establishing the KTC. It is worth keeping in mind two major risks you can overcome by having an appropriate attitude and employing good practices.

Insufficient analysis of the commercialisation potential of close environment It is quite common that a person interested in knowledge transfer has a certain idea on what should be commercialised. This is a very good starting point and a source of motivation to initiate actions. However, remember that the Knowledge Transfer Centre cannot be limited to the commercialisation of one technology — it must aim at many implementations. In addition, staking everything on one roll of the dice is quite risky. As a result, at the initial stage you have to make every effort to recognise as many potential commercialisation possibilities as possi-

ble. Plan your time so that you can meet as many individuals from your immediate environment as possible and learn whether they have knowledge that is useful from the point of view of knowledge commercialisation in the field of your interest. These meetings will help you explore scientific potential which will help you make an informed decision as to which elements have a chance for commercialisation. Additionally, you will be able to tell people from your scientific environment about your plans for the Centre, thanks to which you will be able to strive for their approval for this venture straightaway.

The business model will not be adjusted to market reality A Knowledge Transfer Centre is to create an offer which will fit value chains that already exist on the market. Obtaining information on companies that already operate on the market and on problems they are trying to solve is crucial to developing an adequate business model. Therefore, we recommend that you participate in the actions of the company that will perform a market analysis for you. Do not be afraid to ask about the details of the analysis and get involved in the analytical work — read industry-specific reports, follow websites of companies you find interesting. The more energy you use to become knowledgeable about the topic, the better you “feel” the specificity of the industry you wish to direct your offer to.

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Stage 2: Start-up — Creating Organisational Structure What do we want to achieve? The purpose of the start-up stage is to provide the KTC with organisational structure and prepare the unit for testing and sales. Therefore, the start-up stage serves as appropriate preparation for beginning commercial activities in the successive stage. Ensuring the organisational structure of the functioning of the Centre is the main effect of the implementation of this stage. The following will be necessary for an effective start-up stage of a KTC: Market analysis KTC business model Competency profiles of different positions Initial offer concept

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All these products have already been created in the preparation stage of establishing the KTC. How do we want to achieve it?

Goals and indicators 1.  Provide personnel and working space The development of an organisational structure is one of the most important goals of the start-up stage. In particular, take care of two aspects: employ staff and provide working space.

KTC staff Ensuring appropriate staff is one of the most important challenges of this stage of implementation. Staffing the planned positions by having candidates compete with one another will increase the chance of finding competent staff. The competition should be open. Information about the competition, the so-called notice of competition, should be published on the website of the parent university and in other dedicated places (e.g. on

specialised websites). When creating a competition notice you can make use of Competency profiles of different positions developed at the preparation stage. The template of a broker’s competency profile can be found in Appendix 1. A sample competition notice is included in Appendix 2. It is also worth creating job description cards — a sample can be found on the website of the inLAB project (available at: http://www.inlab.byd. pl/index.php?id=2 in Appendices E1 — E3).

• date and place of the meeting; • contact details of the person responsible for the meeting organisation whom the candidate should report to when he/she arrives at the place; • duration of the meeting; • contact details of the person who may help in case of questions or a need for changing the deadline; • list of documents that should be brought (optionally); • participants of the meeting (optionally).

You have already planned the recruitment process with support of an HR mentor at the preparation stage. However, if you are implementing the KTC on your own and you have not reflected on this issue yet, we recommend at least a two-stage competition, consisting of (1) analysis of applications to the job, and (2) interview with the candidates. It means that in the first stage you will go over and read the documentation sent by the candidates. Based on this you will make the decision on the number of people who will be qualified for the next stage. Contact individuals whom you wish to invite for a meeting, preferably by phone, and ask them about key issues that may be potentially disqualifying (e.g. financial expectations exceeding the planned budget or lack of knowledge about a given subject). It will save time for both parties. Additionally, during the conversation or future e-mail correspondence, communicate information regarding further stages of the recruitment procedure, namely:

We recommend that during meetings you use a behavioural interview — ask questions concerning candidate’s experiences confirming his/her competencies. Appendix 3 contains general instructions and sample questions from an interview adapted to a manager’s competency profile. Based on this formula, try reflecting on questions for candidates applying for other positions. Ensure adequate amount of time dedicated for another part of recruitment. The interview itself takes time, but preparation for this interview (analysis of candidates’ CVs, preparation of relevant questions) and discussion within the Team, which will be held after the interviews, are also time-consuming. If possible, we recommend that you involve a recruitment agency that will help you find the most adequate person. It is also a good idea to research conditions of employing people at universities beforehand. Your method of recruitment must be adjusted to the procedures of a specific scientific unit. Remember that if

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you do not offer suitable remuneration, finding an appropriate person may be difficult. If none of the candidates meet the requirements, you can invite more than one person for a probation period and make the final selection after several months. The key to successful project implementation is the initial stage of work of the new employees, which should be planned in advance, along with the appointment of a person responsible for the introduction of the new employees. Ensure that new individuals have specific responsibilities from the first day of work and that there are no periods of idleness in their workday. Within this stage, newly-employed people should meet the Team members, familiarise themselves with procedures applying in the institution and KTC documents that have been prepared, and then prepare individual development plans and participate in preparing the Commercial Offer or the KTC Marketing Strategy. Assigning real obligations from the beginning of employment will be useful for establishing the organisation and will result in a more efficient implementation of the product testing and sales stage. In the case of a broker’s remuneration, it is worth considering the possibility of applying a motivational rewarding system, depending on performance.

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Box 6. Employee bonding Building a team and organisational identity is a relatively difficult task when we are dealing with a newly-created structure. A good practice is to arrange an event that will allow bonding and building trust among Team members. This event may take the form of workshops thanks to which new employees will have an opportunity to internalise the mission of the KTC and translate it into specific actions. A benefit of this approach will be a highly motivated team that achieves the planned goals with greater ease.

Workspace Ensure the necessary equipment and preparation of the workspace. This process also includes final decisions concerning the selection of: • IT infrastructure and tools; • software; • CRM system. The process of workspace preparation should be started as soon as possible owing to the long time of implementation of the public procurement procedure that is in force. It should be assumed that it may take up to several months from the beginning of the order procedure (e.g. gathering the required number of offers from prospective sellers) to its completion (delivery of the ordered product). The time of processing an order depends on several factors, such as the type of procedures or administrative efficiency of the unit. It is important to find relevant support at your university.

2.  Create plans for Team members’ competency development At the start-up stage, it is important to ensure proper competencies of people who make up your KTC. First of all, this is done in the already described process of staff recruitment. Regardless of whether or not the employed person meets the competency requirements in full, for each employee you should prepare competency development plans. The principles of drawing up competency development plans are covered in HR training. However, if you did not take part in this training, below you can find a list of useful books which will help you plan the development of your employees’ competencies.

and individual aspirations of employees. Specify: • competencies being developed; • detailed development directions; • actions ensuring development of competencies; • all necessary tools; • competency achievement indicators; • schedule of activities. A typical development plan can be found in Appendix 4. Additionally, the table below includes examples of development directions for particular positions in the KTC. These are only suggestions, as development plans are always arranged individually. Table 10. Examples of development directions for KTC staff Position

1. UN competency development – a practical guide (2010), available at http:// www.un.org/staffdevelopment/DevelopmentGuideWeb/image/OHRM_CDG. pdf 2. The Competency Development Planning Guide (2003), available at careweb.care. org/help/devplan/CompBook.doc 3. Knowledge basr concerning competency management in SMEs prepared for PARP (particularly the chapter concerning employee effectiveness management), available at http://www.kompetencjemsp.parp.gov.pl/baza-wiedzy.html

Remember that the final plans are an effect of negotiations with employees — they should take into account both the present and future needs of the KTC

Development direction

• Human resource management, KTC manager

Broker

Administrative assistant

• • • •

use of Team motivation techniques Applying for and managing R&D projects financed with external sources Use of direct sales techniques Training on commercialised technology/field of knowledge Improving qualifications related to administrative services of the KTC in the IT system used at the university

3.  Build relations inside the university To a large extent, the start-up stage is to (1) build internal relations and (2) prepare for communication outside the

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parent university. In the first stage you created a map of stakeholders and the communication strategy, and now you can make use of this work.

Building internal relations We recommend focusing internal communication particularly on: • existing and potential co-workers; • organisational units of the university involved in knowledge transfer; • university authorities; • administration of the university.

Existing and potential collaborators The parent university provides appropriate infrastructure to the KTC. Additionally, its employees are a potential that may be used in the implementation of projects commissioned to the KTC. Ensure relevant presentation of the idea of the KTC for the widest possible group of employees and encourage them to cooperate. Include the following information in your announcement: • mission and vision of the KTC; • planned directions of operations of the KTC; • description of possibilities and terms of cooperation; • description of benefits from cooperation; • request for contact details of those interested in cooperation. Official support of the university authorities will consolidate the effectiveness of this message. At the preparation stage you you mapped people with potential to

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cooperate and met them; now you need to maintain contact at least via e-mail, although we recommend that you also maintain permanent relations. Remember to keep on looking for new potential co-workers by expanding the base of academics potentially interested in cooperation. Having such a database will significantly shorten the time of searching for staff that is properly prepared and positively focused on the implementation of external projects. Ensure readiness to fulfil obligations by people who would be constantly cooperating with the KTC (their input will be seen in the Commercial Offer).

Organisational units of the university involved in knowledge transfer The experiences drawn from the first KTC’s showed the importance of internal communication at an early stage of establishment, focused on other organisational units of the university, especially those that operate in a similar field. These primarily include the technology transfer centres existing at the university. At this stage, try to reduce uncertainty connected with the areas of operations and responsibilities of the KTC; highlight the separate character of tasks performed by the existing units and newly-created Centre and strive for common achievement of goals. Remember that the main distinguishing factor of your KTC will be addressing the selected field of knowledge, and thus its actions will be focused on a relatively narrow

group of scientists and entrepreneurs. At the same time, at various stages of your operations, cooperation with the technology transfer centre will be necessary (e.g. protection of intellectual property, signing contracts). It is worth arranging a meeting with the representatives of units dealing with knowledge transfer, aimed at determining the principles of cooperation (e.g. support with regard to legal and financial service of contracts or conducting negotiations). KTC Team may also use the experience of these units (for instance, in the scope of using existing templates of cooperation agreements). Remember that building internal relations successfully is the necessary condition for the effective implementation of the preliminary business model of the KTC.

Preparation for external communication The first message to external entities will be informing them of the official opening of the KTC. Until then, you should prepare the Visual identification design for the KTC — a set of mutually supplementary elements constituting a comprehensive image of the KTC. This design should contain: • logo of the KTC; • font and colours of the KTC; • brand book of the KTC; • letterhead paper; • templates of documents;

• templates of presentations; • design of e-mail account personalisation (e.g. template of footnote); • design of the website. Additionally, you can prepare business cards, company folders, advertising posters or other elements. Ensure that the Commercial Offer is prepared according to the principles of visual identification of the KTC. As everybody knows, the mere preparation of particular elements of visual identification is not sufficient. They should be made available to each employee of the KTC and their regular use should be monitored. At the start-up stage, take care of the efficient operation of the CRM system and availability of external communication channels, in particular the e-mail account of the KTC (and personalised accounts of particular employees), the website of the KTC (according to the visualisation design) and testing the e-mail and phone number of the unit. The start-up stage will end with planning and preparation of the official opening of the KTC. We suggest that it be in the form of a conference at which the Commercial Offer will be presented. The invited guests should include the most important entities operating in the industry1. Send an invitation to the e-mail addresses of recipients with Their list should be available in the Market Analysis, prepared at the preparation stage.

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a request for confirmation of participation through the website of the KTC in advance.

4.  Develop the Commercial Offer Commercial Offer At the end of the stage, you should develop and prepare for the implementation of the Commercial Offer. Its concept was prepared at the stage preparation stage of establishing the KTC. It is important that working on offer development involves not only the Leaders of the KTC, but also brokers and other collaborators. Remember that at the testing and sales stage university academics should be ready to act. According to law, the offer is a statement of will to conclude a contract submitted by the bidder. The offer should be prepared with consideration and caution as it will be binding — the potential recipient of products or services may lead to the conclusion of a contract consistent with the offer2. Some information may be singled out as being vital in each commercial offer, re-

A statement that contains only information (e.g. advertisement, price list, announcement) may not be an offer as defined by Article 66 of the Civil Code, but only an invitation to conclude a contract. Thus, if we do not want the presented information to constitute an offer, it is safe to include an appropriate note (e.g. this offer is informative and serves as an invitation to negotiations, this is not a commercial offer as defined by Article 66 §1 of the Civil Code and other relevant legal regulations).

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gardless of the offered products/services, including: • document title, contact details of the KTC (phone no. of broker, www); • table of contents (if document is extensive); • information about the KTC — When was it established? What is its mission? What does it specialise in? What are the competencies of employees? (also including published scientific articles/industry-specific articles); • description of products/services (possibly also a price list); • main benefits from cooperation — Why should a recipient cooperate with the KTC, rather than with its competitors?; • portfolio of clients — logos, opinions (in the case of previous cooperation), obtained certificates. The offers of the KTC will vary mainly with regard to the last part of the document (description of products/services, price list and major benefits from cooperation). To prepare these parts of the Commercial Offer you may use the provisions included in The KTC Business Model. Think about: • Which products/services do you want to offer? • What is the price structure of the products/services offered by the KTC? • What are the potential groups of recipients of KTC products/services (target groups)? • To what extent do the prices of KTC products/services vary for target groups?

Reflecting on these issues will help you imagine a potential recipient and specify their information needs. It largely determines the shape of your document (form, volume, graphic design), as well as the content of the last part of the document (part about the quantity and the level of detail of information provided).

What products/services do you want to offer? The detailed designation of products or services is one of the most significant provisions of the future contract that you should include in the offer. Make decisions concerning precise designation of the subject of the offer on the basis of a prior market analysis and place it in the revised version of the KTC Business Model. We suggest that the offer should have a form of a balanced-risk allocation portfolio. It means that products and services you offer are divided into two groups: (1) profitable products/services which will generate revenues with high probability, and (2) products/services burdened with greater risk of return on investment. The testing stage should end with portfolio analysis thanks to which it will be possible to make decisions concerning the shape of the future offer of the KTC (e.g. the decision on share reduction or exclusion of specific products/services from the offer). Offers prepared in a graphically attractive manner can appeal to a greater group of potential recipients; we may opt for an offer in a form of a folder containing pho-

tographs (if we offer products). On the other hand, when we offer services we should describe their scope in the most exact manner and, if possible, approximate the schedule of performance. Notwithstanding the above, we also need to think about what distinguishes our products/services on the market and what are recipient’s benefits from cooperating with us.

What is the price structure of KTC products/services? The price of a product/service is another significant provision of the agreement that you should include in the offer. On the one hand, the price of products or services is determined by the cost of manufacture, while on the other it depends on the offer of the competition. When fixing the price of products, pay attention to the provisions of the Accounting Act. Conversely, when fixing the price of services, take into account the amount of work necessary to perform the service. Include indirect costs in the price of the product/service. These costs can vary depending on arrangements with authorities of the parent university where the operations are conducted. Remember that the components of the offer are subject to taxation. We encourage you to include an approximate price list in the Commercial Offer. A good practice is to emphasise that a service you are offering is adjusted to the needs of the customer, and that the exact cost will be determined individ-

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ually. Remember that even in the case when the price list is not included in the Commercial Offer, the KTC should have an approximate list of prices for internal purposes.

What are the potential groups of recipients of KTC products/services? Think about what the structure of the recipients’ market is. Can this market be divided into clear segments? Do particular segments of customers express unified needs? What are the benefits of cooperation with the KTC for particular groups? Answers to those particular questions should have been included in the Trends Analysis. They allow you to define detailed groups of recipients and possibly specify the offered products and services in terms of the needs of buyers. In the event that there are several groups of recipients that vary in terms of their information needs, you may prepare two kinds of offers, e.g. a more detailed and informative Offer for scientists, which will also include data concerning scientific achievements of particular members of the KTC, and a more marketable Offer for companies, where a greater emphasis will be put on the competitive advantages of your offer. We also recommend that you construct the Offer in a way that allows easy and quick customisation of the document (e.g. indicate a place for entering a specific name of company) and sending it in such a form to the addressee.

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To what degree do the prices of products/services vary in particular groups of recipients? In the case of market segmentation, you can think about whether the prices of KTC products/services vary in particular groups of recipients. For instance, you can decide that some group of recipients (e.g. companies) should pay less/more than other groups (e.g. individual recipients). You can also reflect on whether the price should depend on the number of sold products/services (e.g. offering appropriate discounts to all recipients who buy at least 10 pieces of a product). Your marketing strategy may also include “the first service for free” option. Such information should be included in the Commercial Offer. If the price structure differs between particular groups of recipients, you can make a few versions of the Commercial Offer, editing only a part containing the price list. You should make a decision concerning the form of presentation of the KTC Commercial Offer. Usually the offers take forms of: • parts of a website; • documents available for download on the website (for instance in the .pdf format); • printed documents handed to potential recipients during meetings (e.g. conferences, symposiums, etc.);

• personalised attachments to an e-mail sent to a specific recipient3. It is popular to combine more than one form. It is also possible to opt for a more innovative form — presentation or video. The Commercial Offer is a seed of the KTC Marketing Strategy. In order to supplement the strategy, you should make decisions concerning the following issues: • What are the distribution channels of your products/services? • What is the strategy of communication and promotion of your products/ services? • What are your marketing goals? • What are the costs of executing the marketing strategy? The marketing strategy is an internal document of the KTC, and brokers should be involved in creating it. Experience will allow them to suggest possible distribution channels and help prepare a communication and promotion strategy. Additionally, the role of brokers is to update the offer, promote cooperation with the KTC and search for new marketing solutions. Remember that setting sales goals for each broker should take place in the

form of common negotiations. In case of having less experienced brokers you can arrange for their special training in sales techniques adjusted to the Sales Offer.

Key actions 1. Develop an effective organisational structure: • employ staff and plan development paths for employees; • equip the workspace; • build internal relations; and • prepare communication channels. 2. Prepare to sell: • prepare the commercial offer; • prepare the official opening of the KTC; and • revise the assumptions of the KTC Preliminary Business Model, including verified strategy of action at the testing stage. As a result of the implementation of key actions, the following products should be created: Report on the functioning of the Centre within the testing period Portfolio of sample solutions Detailed commercial offer

Note: some domains have arranged limits concerning the volume of sent attachments. In the event that the Offer for a potential recipient is a relatively large document (e.g. > 10 MB), ask for confirmation of receipt of the attachment. If the recipient does not have the possibility of receiving this document, access should be provided to in a different way (e.g. through the FTP server).

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KTC marketing strategy KTC visualisation design

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Risks What are the major risks? 1. Inappropriately selected staff, that results from a incorrect diagnosis of demand for competencies or pressure/convenience of hiring people already somehow linked to the newly-created unit. Consequences for further actions are very serious because an improperly selected team may be unable to implement actions scheduled in the KTC Business Model. This may be remedied by paying special attention to diagnosing demand for competencies and hiring candidates who are most appropriate for previously developed competency profiles. 2. Incomplete use of the potential of university co-workers caused by unwillingness to cooperate with the KTC due to the perception of low prestige or small benefits.

To alleviate this risk, it is recommended to obtain the support of the university authorities in promoting KTC operations and organising direct meetings with potential KTC collaborators. 3. Extending the duration of this stage due to administrative difficulties. Remedial actions include initiation of administrative procedures as soon as possible, early acquisition of information concerning the course of procedures, delegation of one person from the Team who would be in charge of the administrative aspect of taken actions. 4. Failure in sales caused by creation of an inappropriate commercial offer at the start-up stage. In order to minimise this risk, it is worth paying attention to market analysis, consulting the initial version of the offer with befriended recipients/experts in the field. Brokers should also be engaged in creation of this offer.

Stage 3: Testing and sales What do we want to achieve? The most important goal of this stage is to ensure profitability and self-financing after intervention. In a sense, this stage sums up preceding phases — preparation and start-up — and, at the same time, determines the success of the entire implementation. It is worth remembering that especially in the initial months of a KTC’s operation we will have to deal with testing of the previously-developed concept. It is worth treating this concept as a collection of hypotheses, and the first months as the time for their verification. This way you will check the offer prepared by the Centre, as well as procedures and processes occurring in the unit and related to cooperation with university administration. In case of signals that something may be going wrong, do not panic. It is typical at this stage. It means that information is reaching you — thus, the internal communication is working. Encourage collaborators to share their reflections on what is worth changing.

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After months of preparation for cooperation with the business environment, you move to the essence of operations of the KTC: you establish and deepen relations with customers, leading to commercialisation of your products and services. Undertaken actions are regular and to some extent repeated; therefore, you should make sure that their quality rises with each cycle. For instance, a broker should: • expand the base of prospective business partners; • schedule meetings and present the offer; • in case of interest in the offer, suggest a specific joint venture and strive for commercialisation; • carry out negotiations; and • monitor the preparation of a contract. Monitor effectiveness of actions in a continuous manner, reacting when feedback obtained from the environment and sales results suggests the need for changes or improvements. In order for a KTC to be able to effectively commercialise academic knowledge in the form of products and services, it is necessary to previously plan and start up many processes. We should al-

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ready be thinking about sales at the first stage of implementation, namely during preparation for establishing the KTC. All actions necessary to conduct successful commercialisation should be started at the start-up stage. Necessary elements include: • arrangements of the KTC with the parent university concerning the profit margin and division of income; it is necessary to plan sales activities and targets or estimate profitability; • identifying principles and testing cooperation with units that can support your activities, such as technology transfer centres, legal teams, international cooperation teams, promotion departments, etc.; it is also possible to establish cooperation externally outside the university (e.g. subcontractors, consultants, distributors); • implementing and testing the CRM system — the role of the system is not only to technically manage contacts with the environment of the KTC, but also to facilitate cultural change inside and in the immediate environment of your unit; • identifying a motivating reward system for brokers, along with determining sales targets, development plans, trainings and examination of the effects of activities; • developing in-house, internal communication standards on different levels (within the Team, or with external and internal clients), e.g. registering and giving at least an initial response to a customer’s request on the same day,

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principles of mediating and supporting contacts between companies and a scientist; and • creating pricing policy (possibly also price list with regard to regularly provided standardised services). It is worth noting that the sales stage will be a period of actual verification of the previously designed processes, e.g. in connection with an increased scale of KTC operations. It may prove necessary to employ additional staff, which, in turn, can change requirements relating to the management of the Team and operation of the KTC. The designed processes should take such a possibility into account, and therefore it is necessary to emphasise the important role of a well-selected and tested CRM system, which makes it possible to monitor and improve activities of the Sales Team (brokers). How do we want to achieve this?

Goals and indicators 1. Ensure the Centre’s profitability and chance of self-financing Commercialise and raise funds In the case of the sales stage, the most important action will certainly be commercialisation of products and services. You will also be applying for grants together with recipients, and implementing joint ventures (co-)financed from external funds. The most important source

of data verifying KTC activities at the sales stage would be sales results for particular categories of the offer, as well as a list of ventures implemented together with recipients.

Start scaling and optimising at the right moment However, that is not all. Along with gaining experience and achieving success in the field of sales, as well as organisational “solidification” and developing a financial reserve (taking into account the structure and needs of the Centre, you decide when it takes place), you should start thinking about scaling and optimising your sales. As the leader, at this stage you should be well aware of your resources, the strengths of the Centre and the most important elements of its offer. Scaling is all about maximisation of business effects by concentration and development of those elements of the offer that are relatively (and at a given time) strong (they sell best and have the greatest demand). In the context of knowledge transfer, in the ever-changing and developing technological areas, it is also important that you conduct continuous monitoring of sales in terms of demand for specific products and services — you analyse new market needs and current changes in trends. On the basis of the collected information, restrict the costs of activities and time assigned for their execution, maximise profits and improve the plan of sales activities, opting for a change in the intensity of actions related

to different elements of the offer. After a few months of running sales, draw up or order a report documenting market trends and the ongoing or forecasted changes. Perhaps, in the meantime, new recipients, significant players, potential partners, or a new technology appeared on the market? Compare the findings of the report with the market analysis executed at the preparation stage and the data collected on your own, and draw conclusions. Scaling also concerns optimisation of activities. Apart from commercialisation, optimisation should also apply to activities related to acquisition and execution of projects and grants executed together with recipients. You can improve both acquisition and distribution of any information about sources of financing, application preparation processes, and management of implemented projects. Optimisation involves a number of challenges, some of which are indicated below as risks. However, it is important that you attempt optimisation wherever possible (e.g. when we offer something repetitive, such as a service, test, or laboratory infrastructure, and we can offer it more often, faster, etc.).

2. Enhance the image of the KTC, develop relationships with clients, establish new business contacts Official opening of the KTC is an event that will create an opportunity to present

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the Centre and its offer. However, most importantly, it will be an opportunity to meet potential contractors. Due to the formal position within the structure of the university, a conference will be a natural form of opening. However, make sure that it is adjusted to the needs of participants (including companies) — increase attractiveness of the event by inviting well-known, important personae or authorities in a given field (preferably both scientists and entrepreneurs), ensure interactivity by organising additional workshops and create opportunities for talks about possible fields of cooperation. Disseminate information about the conference in industry-specific environments, e.g. chambers, associations and clusters, among leading entrepreneurs in the technological field or entities which already cooperate with the university (you can obtain information about them from the university promotion departments, technology transfer centres, or directly from scientists you invited or intend to invite to cooperate with the Centre). Don’t forget to invite graduates via an academic career office — their circle is a natural connection between the world of science and the world of business. Graduates build the corporate image in the eyes of employers, and are aware of the potential of scientists with regard to cooperation with the surroundings. They

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often turn to their alma mater as entrepreneurs who actively seek solutions to their business problems4. Official opening is a great opportunity for the so-called lead generation — acquisition of information on partners potentially interested in cooperation5. In exchange for providing contact details, participants can be offered access to extended version of conference papers, podcast, etc. It is also a good practice to hand out surveys to participants, defining their profile (Who are they? What do they do?) and potential scope of cooperation (What information are they looking for? What support would they expect from the university/scientists?).

The importance of multi-dimensional cooperation with graduates and the description of mutual benefits derived from regular contacts is particularly and firmly emphasised in the American model applied by such universities as MIT or Stanford University. In Poland, these experiences are covered in “Connection — Model of Cooperation between University and Business”, prepared in 2013 by a partnership composed of: PL Europa Sp. z o.o., International Studies and Politics Faculty of the University of Łódź and the Association of Graduates of WSMiP UŁ. We recommend reading the manual of implementation of the cooperation model, which is available at www.wsmip.uni.lodz.pl/wydzial/projekt-connection, (20.06.2015). 5 The ability to identify partners potentially interested in cooperation is one of the most important conditions for the effectiveness of sales activities. For more information on this topic go to www. b2b-marketing.pl. 4

Box 7. Conference? Or maybe a free course? An interesting example of an event that enabled a KTC to obtain and establish contacts with important individuals and institutions from the industry was a 5-day course called „Practical Aspects of Designing, Monitoring and Analysing Findings from Randomised Clinical Trials”, organised by the Małopolska Centre for Translational Medicine (MCTM). The course was addressed to companies interested in launching innovations, people interested in cooperation with MCTM UJ, students, doctoral candidates, academics and local administration employees. It was free of charge for the participants. The course was led by Professor T. R. Fleming – an outstanding American biostatistician from the University of Washington, Seattle. Participation in the course was possible in two forms: stationary classes at the university and an online webinar. The classes gathered over 200 participants. Additional 250 participants from different countries attended the webinar. Apart from its undisputed substantive value, the event resulted in establishing some valuable contacts, promoted the KTC domestically and internationally and enhanced the centre’s image.

The first successful cases of selling products or services will enable you to obtain references and build a portfolio of sample solutions, which should contain information about projects performed by the Centre for or with companies. Remember that the main purpose of the portfolio is to convince potential customers that it is worth cooperating with you, and that you can ensure a suitable level of product or service. To create a good portfolio, you have to keep in mind several principles: • emphasise the benefits recipients will draw from project implementation; • stress those qualities of your activities that will be important for the recipient, e.g. efficient cooperation, in the description; and • invest in the quality of description of particular projects, rather than their quantity.

A portfolio prepared this way will increase the credibility of the Centre as a business partner. A good portfolio and references are not the only elements that strengthen the professional image of a KTC. You can also achieve this effect through regular participation in scientific conferences, lectures, trainings and fairs, publication in industry-specific journals, etc. Remember about active participation and cooperation in networks and industry-specific organisations, e.g. societies, associations and clusters. Apart from obtaining valuable contacts, such activity allows better orientation in the structure of the industry, problems significant to potential partners, as well as access to decision-makers or individuals who are vital from the point of view of a given area (industry). If possible, continue or initiate activities in organisations re-

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sponsible for the evolution of the development conditions in a given area, e.g. by issuing opinions on law, amendments of acts, etc. (industry-specific commissions, ministerial commissions, professional organisations, etc.). To assess effectiveness of your activities in this field, prepare a summary report (e.g. a year from the commencement of the sales stage). Effective promotion of the professional image of the KTC should bring effect in the form of growth in the interest in professional operations of the Centre (e.g. analytical services, professional reports, etc.) Signalling your professional position in a given field is an element of the so-called content marketing that consists of regular provision of knowledge, instructions or advice that meet business needs of potential customers. To achieve it you may use websites, blogs and social media. That way, you can share news from a given technological area, legal and technological novelties or sample solutions to practical problems (case studies) with prospective customers. Through this type of activity you will be able to persuade at least some potential

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clients that it is worth contacting the Centre to obtain assistance in problem solving.

Focus on the customer Apart from regular commercialisation, after the period of testing, focus the activities of the KTC on the client — particularly on obtaining new business contacts (recipients, contractors) and developing relations with partners (the present customers). Motivate your Sales Team (brokers) to intensify contact with recipients through diverse access channels: from electronic media (e.g. websites, social media or newsletters) to direct contact with the client (business meetings with various levels of detail and advancement, industry-specific fairs, conferences, etc.) Specify who, how, and under what circumstances should contact the client — these decisions should not be a pure coincidence. Adjust forms of contact with clients to skills and results of your Team — not everyone should and can be the best in everything, e.g. someone may have an extraordinary, intriguing voice and do great over the phone, whereas others would do perfectly in live meetings.

Box 8. Broker as a “client’s assistant” — from finding potential clients to a successful transaction and contact maintenance Establishing contact with a future client does not always assume such a spectacular form as described above in a 5-day training. Sometimes, a successful transaction requires a few dozen e-mails, phones and meetings. Most importantly, at the beginning you should put yourself in your client’s position, try to walk in your client’s shoes. It will help you to provide your clients with adequate offers. Establishing and developing contacts by a broker from Małopolska Centre of Energy-saving Buildings (MCEB) may serve as a good example for such practices. A contact to a company dealing with heat insulation materials for buildings was found on the Internet. On the basis of the description of the company’s operations, an offer adapted to the client’s profile was prepared and sent via e-mail together with a description of the possibilities of cooperation with the university. After approximately 2 weeks, the Centre received a reply with an inquiry about the possibility to carry out specific research under cooperation. Then, over the phone, the scope of work was discussed. In the next step, the Centre received a description of an order for research. Afterwards a cooperation agreement was signed, under which the KTC was obliged to find a contractor. The order was discussed at a Centre Council meeting, during which a scientist who could execute the order was appointed. During a conversation with the appointed scientist, the broker determined the possibility of carrying out research. Then, it was necessary to prepare documents related to the order’s implementation. For this purpose, the broker was in contact with the client by e-mail and phone, and they communicated with the accountants of the company to arrange finances. After handling preliminary formalities, a meeting was held between the scientist and the entrepreneur and the broker, during which the substantive details of the order’s implementation were discussed. Then, formal issues were specified and the order could be implemented. During that time, consultations attended by all the involved parties were held several times. As an effect, the company was informed regularly about the progress. After conducting the research described in the order, the scientist prepared a written report with analyses, which was provided to the company during a meeting. Currently, the company continues to cooperate with the Centre and pins high hopes on the execution of subsequent orders.

You should expect perfect orientation, awareness and use of elements creating the brand of the KTC from your Sales Team in communication with the client. Since of the beginning of the sales stage it should translate into an increase in recognition of the KTC brand. This, in turn, will allow your Team to achieve better effects more easily. Gradually developed and perfected standards of sales should also help. These are strictly defined (and

written down) patterns of conduct in contact with the client, which include: • the way of initiating contact and developing relations with the client; • language and vocabulary used in contact with the client; • scripts of conversation with the client; • methods of building argumentation; and • client’s emotions caused as a result of contact.

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The value of standards is multi-faceted: firstly, effectively and correctly used standards bring about results in the form of an increase in sales figures, and in this respect, taking care of their introduction and use is strictly related to your interest and the interest of your Centre. Secondly, they invoke a sense of safety among personnel responsible for sales, along with clear formulation of expectations towards fulfilment of professional obligations, and allow them to focus on what is the most important in contacts with the client. Thirdly, they guarantee quality services because they relate to the beliefs, feelings, needs and expectations of the client.

dardisation of activities performed at work. Your task is to ensure appropriate motivation of brokers to use standards and show them that this is beneficial to them, to the Centre and to the client. You can do it through the organisation of workshops for brokers or direct support at work (e.g. joint visit on the client’s premises, coaching)6.

You do not have to reinvent the wheel or wander in the dark: when it comes to organising the work of your Sales Team. At the beginning make use of the available literature or the most often applied practices you can discuss with professionals in the field of sales7.

Generally, what you should aim at in the sales stage as a managing person is building and developing a Sales Team. Sales Team that is active and proactive, i.e. focuses on cleint’s needs and acts as the client advisors.

The mission of your Centre is also refuting inter-and intra-environmental stereotypes concerning cooperation between university and business or commercial activities conducted by universities. Therefore, the KTC should skilfully promote its resources to scientists and scientific units. Thus, you’ll need to take care of the promotion of operations of the Centre within the university, encouraging and obtaining cooperation of specialists in a given field. By analogy, as business value is determined by people working for its success, an attractive image of the KTC will also depend on people. It is worth remembering that the mere service may be perceived and valued in a completely different way if the contractor is a person unknown to recipients or on the contrary — recognised in the circles of recipients.

Certainly, not every sales process looks the same — therefore, we should not require all brokers to use standards every time and in every case. For example, it may appear that the person who obtains the best sales results has found a better way of conduct contact with the client. In that case, however, previous sales standards should be verified and adapted to the best, most effective practices.

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Remember that the added value of the implementation of sales standards in your Team depends on their actual and consistent application. Some brokers can feel resistance towards a strong stanBox 9. Sales Value Creating Model

An ideal point of reference for the method of work of the Sales Team is the so-called Value Creating Model. For the brokers in means: 1. Discovering problems not recognised before: The client should be provided with assistance in understanding problems that they have/ may have to deal with, and with the available solutions to these problems. 2. Striving for offering a solution that goes beyond the expectations of the client: The offered solution should be expressly better than the client can come up with (possibly the one that comes to their mind at a given moment). 3. Acting as a resource broker: The broker actually enables the client to use the resources of the organisation (high quality services, products, reaching out to appropriate individuals, etc.); he becomes „a spokesperson for the client’s needs”.

Promote your unit inside the university

A good starting point is reading the publication by R. Krool entitled Standardy kierowania zespołem handlowym, Wydawnictwo Studio Emka, Warsaw, 2008.

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3. Develop your team Create welcoming atmosphere that facilitates teamwork The work of the Sales Team (brokers) should be subject to regular monitoring and improvements. Check the effects of the work of the Team regularly. Exchange information and experience at regular, e.g. weekly, meetings. No later than after 6 months from starting the sales stage, organise a meeting that will sum up this period and will be used to draw conclusions and possibly develop all necessary changes (e.g. personnel, in the case of the probation period, or update on sales standards). After approximately a year from initiating the sales stage, conduct a periodical evaluation of the implementation of the Centre’s employee development plans, along with a complete feedback. It is important that the Team learns and develops in action and can regularly adjust its actions on its own on the basis of the available information. It will be possible if you create favourable conditions for sharing knowledge and experiences (regular meetings, common analysis of specific cases of commercialisation, presentation and discussion of conclusions from the analysis of feedback from the clients, use of tools fostering free discussion such as mind maps, etc.)

Source: Tom Snyder, Buyer-Focused Prospecting http://www.eyesonsales.com/content/article/buyer_focused_prospecting/

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Raise the quality and effectiveness of the Sales Team At the sales stage you cannot forget to continuously raise quality and effectiveness of all actions of the Sales Team. Apart from the auto-adjustment activities (mentioned above), use the data acquired from and about clients and analyse the status of particular relationships with your customers. Using the implemented CRM system, analyse the actions of the Sales Team and control the proportion of activities addressed to new and existing clients. Make sure that the Sales Team regularly carries out analyses concerning: • feedback acquired from contractors (concerning the urgency of needs, satisfaction, dissatisfaction or expectations towards services and products); • knowledge of reasons for undertaking (or not) cooperation with the KTC by recipients; and • scope of contacts and image of the Centre. Ensure cyclical preparation (e.g. every six months) and distribution of reports summing up the above analyses among the KTC Team. Provide your Sales Team with a controlled summary concerning the effects of their work including the number of served clients, the number of held meetings, the number of concluded transactions or the number of business contacts established through commercialisation. Thanks to a meticulous analysis, you will be able to identify

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those areas of actions of the Sales Team or single sellers (brokers) that require improvement or support (for instance, in the scope of negotiations or completion of transactions). Regarding abovementioned standards of sales, their development is a process lasting approximately three months. After this period, you will see what the effects of their implementation are and how your Teams deals with them. As to the review of work results (e.g. after 6  months), if necessary, you should update sales standards by means of their adjustment to reality, the level of knowledge about clients, skills of your employees and with the use of experience and practices applied by your most effective brokers. You can ask an external sales consultant for assistance in the verification of standards. Remember that necessary competencies include not only the knowledge or skills, but also proper motivation of employees. You can achieve it through: • clear communication of your expectations concerning the work of a given person and his/her connection with the functioning of the whole unit; • frequent feedback — both positive, and focused on areas for improvement; • learning the strengths of Team members and, if possible, assigning tasks accordingly; and • ensuring that all members of the Team perceive sales as a key activity of the

unit (e.g. organise common workshops for that purpose). Even the most promising and experienced sellers may achieve worse results and require support (in extreme cases you may have to employ someone with a different profile). Therefore, at the sales stage it is worth planning additional training workshops in soft skills (self-presentation, negotiations, and sales techniques) fitted to emerging needs8. You should consider not only onetime actions (e.g. organisation of training workshops), but also the introduction of permanent solutions, e.g. mentoring or coaching. You must take into account the fact that the sales stage is the primary test for the personnel of the KTC. Taking into consideration the lapse of time from starting the implementation, staff rotation cannot be excluded. In such a situation, standards of sales and continuous teamwork on their improvement would protect the Centre against the loss of unique knowledge and turbulences caused by personnel changes.

Sample training programmes, also in sales conducted within a unit, such as the KTC, can be found on the websites of laboratories of cooperation between science and business inLAB, www.inlab. byd.pl (20.06.2015).

8

Box 10. Literature and websites useful in the process of building and managing a Sales Team Publications: 1. R. Krool, Standardy kierowania zespołem handlowym, Wydawnictwo Studio EMKA, Warsaw, 2008. 2. P. Lencioni, 5 dysfunkcji pracy zespołowej. Opowieść o przywództwie, MT Biznes, Warsaw, 2014. 3. J. Gut, W. Haman, Psychologia szefa. Szef to zawód, Wydawnictwo Helion, Gliwice, 2009. 4. K. Blanchard, Jednominutowy menedżer, MT Biznes, Warsaw, 2011. 5. J. Spencer, Kto zabrał mój ser?, Wydawnictwo Studio EMKA, Warsaw, 2014. 6. J. Kotter, Gdy góra lodowa topnieje. Wprowadzanie zmian w każdych okolicznościach, Wydawnictwo Helion, Gliwice, 2008. Websites: www.b2b-marketing.pl www.akademiaparp.gov.pl www.profesjonalny-sprzedawca.pl Source: own.

Ensure an increase in substantive knowledge within the Team (and outside it) In the case of knowledge and technology transfer, passing of time enforces a continuous search for information, and scientific and technical novelties; you have to be up to date with the actual state of knowledge in a given technological area. In many domains, e.g. in biotechnology, development is so dynamic that it is quite a challenge for brokers

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to keep up. As a result, the sales stage also has to assume an ongoing increase in substantive knowledge, especially among staff responsible for contact with recipients. The team of brokers (sellers) should raise their substantive competencies by taking part in specialist training workshops, conferences, as well as taking up self-education. In order for the acquired knowledge to be internalised and consolidated within the Team and to be translated into the implementation of major stage goals, it should be made available and transferred to recipients via websites, newsletters and direct contacts. Sharing knowledge with buyers and co-workers, expanding its scope and constructing common meanings around new issues are considered as one of the most important elements of successful knowledge transfer. Depending on the

knowledge of recipients, you should assign appropriate importance to this task, which may mean, for instance, that in areas where technological knowledge is not spread, the KTC should undertake actions for the purpose of its dissemination.

4. Draw conclusions from the outcomes of activities Listen to signals coming both from your organisation and its environment — it is all about the members of your Team, representatives of the university and, most importantly, actual and potential clients. As a result, you will acquire information which will help you make relevant decisions with regard to a change or development of the operations of the Centre and, at the same time, protect you from making bad decisions.

Table 11. Key information and groups of stakeholders Stakeholders

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Information

Team

How does the work of particular individuals affect the functioning of the Centre? What is the atmosphere within the Team? What are the strengths of particular employees? How is the Centre perceived? What are the effects of employee development actions? How do the internal procedures operate? What organisational habits were created? How are they reflected in the functioning of the unit?

University authorities and administration employees

How is the Centre perceived? Who is it worth talking to in order to achieve the intended effect? What arguments are effective? How do the previously developed procedures and agreements work?

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Stakeholders

Information

Clients

What elements of the offer actually respond to the needs of particular customer segments? How is the Centre perceived? Is it perceived as a credible partner? Is it perceived as an effective partner? What is the effectiveness of different communication activities with regard to particular customer segments? What are the new trends in the environment?

Scientists

How is the Centre perceived? Which stimuli encouraging cooperation enjoy the interest of scientists (and which scientists)?

Others collaborators

How is the Centre perceived? Which stimuli encouraging cooperation enjoy interest (and whose?) What new important players emerged in the environment?

Source: own.

Key actions To sum up the previous discussion on the third stage of establishing and developing the KTC — testing and sales — we present the key actions necessary for the successful completion of this stage. 1. Ensuring profitability and opportunities of self-financing for the Centre: • Commercialisation and fundraising. • Scaling and optimisation of operations. 2. Strengthening the image of the KTC, developing relationships with clients and acquiring new business contacts: • Organisation of the kick-off event (conference). • Preparation of a portfolio with sample solutions. • Intensive contact with recipients. • Strengthening professional image of the Centre.

• Promotion the Centre inside the university. • Acquisition of new co-workers. 3. Development of the Team • Raising quality and effectiveness of actions taken by the Sales Team. • Organisation of support for the Sales Team: motivation, training, coaching. • Expanding substantive knowledge in the Team and among recipients. 4. Drawing conclusions from the outcomes of activities • Responding to signals coming both from the environment and from the Team, and formulating appropriate conclusions. • Making decisions based on conclusions. The result of the aforementioned activities will also be studies (products) which will be part of internal documentation of the Centre. Based on those studies, it will

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be possible to further improve the undertaken activities. These products include: Report with sales results and a list of projects implemented with recipients Report devoted to trends on the market: changes, forecasts, etc. Report on analyses concerning: feedback from clients and the range of the brand Report summarising image actions (e.g. participation in industry-specific events) Report on the interim evaluation of the implementation of employee development plans

Risks What are the major risks?

1.  Maladjustment of sales activities to the possibilities of the Centre (e.g. limited “capacity” and availability of scientists) Success in the field of commercialisation can be addictive! If it turns out that the activity of the KTC is a proverbial “bull’s eye”, a natural tendency may emerge in the sales activities to search for new opportunities to sell products to new contacts and clients. However, remember that the KTC is, in a way, a business vanguard at the university, and thus its

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development and significant change is faster than that of the parent university. This results in a high probability of problems which can include cooperation with scientists, especially in the case of those KTCs whose scientific potential is fully located outside the structure of the Centre. The unavailability of cooperating scientists from the perspective of business contacts of the Centre may result in serious damage to the image of the unit, together with cessation of cooperation. To avoid problems of this type, take care of constant and ongoing contacts with cooperating scientists and collect information about their current or future involvement in parallel projects. At the same time, verify and expand the base of cooperating scientists systematically, to increase the capacity of the KTC with regard to its fast response to the demand reported by recipients.

the technological area of your KTC may effectively discourage a company from investing and developing, including the use of your KTC. It in this case, it may be helpful to design and carefully plan the actions of the KTC. For example, conduct all the necessary analyses and simulations planned in the first stages of implementation. In addition, even at the sales stage, some dose of flexibility and readiness to change under unforeseen circumstances may be your allies.

3.  Temporary (or not) problems with financial liquidity

of its alma mater (particularly important at the beginning of the implementation). In the earlier stages preceding sales, ensure legal assistance and legal protection for contracts, minimising the risk of liquidity loss or levelling losses arising as a result. If problems with financial liquidity result from the lack of interest in the offer of the Centre, think about the reasons. Talk with the Team members and other individuals (including prospective clients) who can help you. Concentrate on how you can modify the offer and and how you can communicate it.

4.  Staff burnout

(different causes: arrangement with the university, unsuitable prices of products/ services, low demand or no public aid/de minimis aid)

The problem may afflict both the relationship between the recipient and the KTC (the client does not pay) and the relationship between the KTC and cooperating scientists (the Centre does not provide remuneration to scientists). Although a moderate delay on the part of the client should not affect its relations with the KTC, a delay in payment for contractors may result in ceasing cooperation and in extreme situations also in the loss of the reputation and credibility of the Centre.

This risk can be limited by proper recruitment and organisation of the operations conducted by the Sales Team (they must like their job!). This requires efficient management of personnel and continuous care for a suitable atmosphere and motivation in the Team. Making the existence of the Centre dependent on sales results exerts pressure and responsibility on the Sales Team (brokers) much more than on any other KTC employees. It may often lead to burnout and serious reduction in the effectiveness of their actions.

Some risks from this group can already be identified before the start of proper sales. However, increasing the complexity of the offer of the KTC makes it more difficult to specify and counteract all risks that pose a threat to the project’s profitability. For instance, the economic crisis afflicting industries related to

In each of the mentioned cases, it will be justified to secure the financial reserve in case of circumstances which would involve a loss in the current financial liquidity. You can, to this end, use the Centre’s own savings (slightly longer perspective). However, it also seems suitable to define a possible scope of support on the part

Remember to take responsibility for the Team: it should not be left without care of its Leaders and, what is more, it should be able to use support of external advisors, trainers and coaches. Try to observe the Sales Team carefully and react to the first symptoms of burnout or loss with enthusiasm (it is helpful to change the

2. Lack of profitability

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clients or offer/technology for which a given person is responsible).

5.  Staff rotation This risk may be a consequence of personnel burnout. In addition, it may occur for various reasons — from internal needs to change jobs, through resignation from an employee’s services, to unforeseen circumstances such as sickness. Regardless of the cause, rotation at the work place, especially in small teams of several people, almost always creates a risk of partial work disorganisation. It is worth thinking of this fact in advance and testing different scenarios and opportunities of reaction if there is a need for replacing an absent employee. It is particularly good to ensure proper (possibly comprehensive, arranged and clear) documentation of employee performance so that in case of rotation a person who takes over responsibilities can easily figure out the situation with the issues the predecessor was in charge of. It would be preferable if the leaving person could introduce a new employee

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to the specific character of their job and familiarise them with the know-how. In such situations it is also helpful to have work standards concerning a given position.

6.  You are very attached to your idea, so you do not want to change it despite a number of signs that change is worth considering Gather feedback and create room for consideration (e.g. coaching); discuss its results with someone who may look at them from a different perspective (e.g. mentor, talk with Team members).

7.  Administrative impediments, delay in contracts, grants At this stage it is worth knowing how much time different processes take (e.g. signing a contract) and who is in charge (what is the likelihood of delays). As a result, you will be able to reserve appropriate amount of time for reorganisation. Be active in consulting various documents and regulations that are important to the functioning of your unit.

Conclusion This is the end of this guide, but the beginning of your journey. The path on which you are about to embark is not often frequented — it is winding and tiring. However, it is worth staying on track. Always remember what brought you here. We may talk about the situation of Polish universities for days. It seems, however, that their future will undoubtedly also depend on the degree to which they are open to the surrounding environment. This is proven by positive examples from abroad, but also by the examples of successfully completed projects of this type in our country.

The process of changes at universities has already started — these changes are focused on intensification of cooperation with companies. It is all about a tighter link between science and the social and economic environment. Knowledge Transfer Centres (KTC) can catalyse this process. This guide is our suggestion on how to introduce positive changes to your environment. It is your turn to act!

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• knowledge of regulations regarding commercialisation applying at the university; and • knowledge of the industry in which the KTC operates.

Appendices Appendix 1. Broker’s competency profile The role of a broker: A broker is responsible for attracting and providing services to clients and regular collaborators of a KTC. Underline the purpose and mission of the position here.

Description of key obligations: Obligations of the person performing the role of a broker include: • analysing the market and attracting customers and permanent collaborators; • serving customers and permanent collaborators; • negotiating terms of contracts; • responding to requests for quotation; • keeping documentation of processed orders; • reporting the degree of achieving the planned sales targets; and • maintaining contact with internal collaborators; Include only the most important obligations from the point of view of the position.

Competency requirements: 1. Specialist sales knowledge Desired competencies: • knowledge of commercial law; • knowledge of the principles of invoicing and accounting related to commercialisation; and • knowledge of direct and indirect sales techniques.

2. Communication Desired competencies: • ability to establish, maintain and develop professional relations with external clients and internal collaborators; • ability to establish, maintain and develop professional relations with members of the KTC Team; • ability to select information based on the objectives, as well as to communicate information clearly and professionally to the Team members, collaborators and KTC clients; and • knowledge of a chosen CRM system. Additional assets: • ability to create and evaluate the Commercial Offer; • ability to create and evaluate the marketing strategy; and • ability to create and evaluate the visual identification design. 3. Independence at work Desired competencies: • ability to establish and implement short-term and long-term work plans (e.g. ability to set feasible sales goals for specific time intervals); • ability to set a career path, including research on training possibilities; • ability to evaluate the undertaken actions and readiness to change the strategy of operation in accordance with KTC mission; and • focus on the implementation of the defined goals. Additional assets: • experience in creating competency development plans; • ability to plan and implement complex projects; • ability to manage the work of the Sales Team. These are examples of competency requirements. They include desirable competencies and additional advantages. Should a given position require general competencies (e.g. relevant education, knowledge of foreign languages or driving licence), they can be included at the top of this box or in a separate box above.

Additional assets: • graduating in marketing;

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Appendix 2. Competition notice A competition notice should contain: • information on the KTC; • name and mission of the position; • form of employment; • description of obligations resulting from the employment; • description of required competencies and qualifications (knowledge, skills, experience); • description of benefits derived from working in a given position (KTC’s offer); and • list of documents required from a candidate. These can be, e.g.: —— CV; —— cover letter; and —— documents certifying qualifications; • date of conclusion of the completion and approximate date of sending feedback to people interested in work, along with a reservation that the answers will be sent to selected candidates only. Example of competition notice for the post of a broker: The KTC was created within the structures of … in … . It deals with the commercialisation of solutions in the field of … .

The key responsibilities of the broker include: • analysing the market and attracting customers and permanent collaborators; • providing service to customers and permanent collaborators; • negotiating terms of contracts; • responding to requests for quotation; • keeping documentation of processed orders; • reporting the degree of achieving the planned sales targets; and • contact with internal co-workers. List key responsibilities

Potential candidates are expected to have: • specialist knowledge related to sales; • a high level of communication competencies; and • self-organisation skills at work. Specify key competencies

We offer: • job; • in a dynamically developing team; • opportunity of developing a career and adding industry-specific competencies; and • benefits… . List benefits from working in a given position

Describe the KTC.

Presently, we are looking for a person for the position of a broker responsible for attracting and providing services to clients and permanent collaborators of the KTC. Specify the position’s goal

If you are interested, please send your: • CV; • cover letter; and • documents certifying your experience and qualifications • to the following address: … until … . We reserve the right to send feedback until to selected individuals who include the following clause to their application: I agree to the processing of the personal data included in my application for the purposes of the recruitment process in accordance with the regulations of the Act of 29 August 1997 on personal data protection (Dz.U. of 2002, No. 101, item 926 as amended). I acknowledge that I have the right to inspect and correct the content of my data.

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Appendix 3. Job interview General guidelines: 1. Prepare yourself — read CVs of candidates, take notes with regard to what you need to learn. 2. Ask questions concerning competencies important from the point of view of the position — try to ask about specific situations where competencies were used. Ask the candidate to talk about their experience and give examples. 3. Conduct the interview in the form of a conversation rather than a hearing — listen to the answers, ask additional questions if something arouses your interest, and try to connect similar questions. 4. Do not ask questions if you have already obtained the answer to them when the candidate was responding to other questions. 5. Do not judge based on the first impression, be impartial — analyse facts. 6. At the end ask if the candidate would like to add something important; you will often obtain interesting information. Examples of questions from an interview adapted to the competency profile of a KTC manager Competency

Leadership skills (possibly managerial skills)

Desired scope

Communication and interpersonal skills

1. Precise and clear communication of information. Adaptation of message and arguments to the recipient. 2. Persuasion, ability to assertively present one’s own opinion. 3. Active listening, asking questions. 4. Establishing and maintaining adequate interpersonal contact, care for atmosphere. 5. Preparation and conduct of presentations. Examples of questions for the interview

1. To what extent do your actions at the present position affect the work of other people? 2. Please elaborate on a situation where you managed to persuade someone to change his or her opinion. How did you do that? 3. How did you try to persuade someone who was not convinced to change his or her opinion? What arguments did you use? 4. What type of speeches did you deliver? Please elaborate on the most difficult one. Communication and interpersonal skills can also be assessed on the basis of the interview.

Competency Change management and exerting impact

1. Maintaining an atmosphere and relations fostering the fulfilment of tasks within a team. 2. Assigning tasks and monitoring work of subordinates. 3. Motivating employees to undertake actions and achieve results. 4. Communicating vision and directing operations. 5. Strategic thinking. 6. Fostering the development of subordinates.

1. How do you motivate your employees? What motivational tools do you use? Which tools are the most effective in your opinion? 2. Please provide some examples of conflicts within the Team and tell me how you managed to settle them. 3. What methods of strengthening communication within the Team do you apply? 4. In your opinion, what makes a good boss? Which of those traits do you have? Please give examples. 5. What was the most difficult problem in the area of team management that you had to solve? 6. What do your subordinates appreciate you for? What could they indicate as your weakness?

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Desired scope 1. Assuming open attitude toward changes. 2. Knowledge of the cycle of change. 3. Dealing with resistance toward changes. 4. Putting forward proposals for improvements, ideas for changes. Examples of questions for the interview

Desired scope

Examples of questions for the interview

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Competency

1. Please elaborate on a situation where you put forward a proposition for changes/improvements/ optimisations or participated in their preparation and implementation? What did they relate to? Do they function to this day, and to what extent? 2. How do you deal with resistance of people toward changes? 3. In your opinion, what method should be applied in introducing a change in order to increase its chance of success? 4. How would you plan implementation of change, step by step? 5. What do you think is the most difficult in introducing changes? How can it be dealt with? Competency Result management, goalorientation

Desired scope 1. Setting priorities and planning/setting goals based on priorities. 2. Creating plans of operations and organizing own work and the work of subordinates. 3. Delegating tasks. 4. Ensuring control and monitoring at different stages of a task.

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Q3 Feedback 1. Analysis of assessments of the 3 last presentations and the implementation of conclusions 2. Familiarisation with literature about preparation of slides and delivery of presentations

Ability to communicate feedback

A higher level of audience’s satisfaction with the conducted presentations Delivery of presentations

Better results of assessments of the delivery of presentations

Q4 Budget for training 1. Training 2. Communicating feedback to subordinates every quarter Leadership skills (possibly managerial skills)

Appendix 4. Raising competencies — exemplary plan

1. What does your interest in the position result from? 2. How do you imagine work in this position? 3. What appeals to you most in this role? 4. What do you know about our KTC? 5. What is important for you in a new employer?

What assistance do I need? Tools

Examples of questions for the interview

What actions will I take? Actions ensuring development

1. Motivation to get the job. 2. Showing commitment and enthusiasm in action. 3. Consistency in the pursuit of the goal.

What do I want to achieve? Development direction

Motivation

Desired scope

Competency

Competency

How will I know that I have achieved the goal? Indicators

1. How do you monitor tasks delegated to employees? 2. How do you determine priorities? 3. How did you react when you saw the risks and threats to goals and tasks? 4. Please elaborate on a situation where you did not manage to achieve a goal. What were the reasons? Would you do something differently? 5. Please elaborate on your biggest professional success. 6. Please elaborate on your/your subordinate’s professional success. 7. What are your ways of carrying out tasks on time? 8. Do you remember a situation that unexpectedly forced a change of plans/priorities with regard to the execution of an entrusted task? What was it related to? How did you react?

Result of the Employee Opinion Survey —feedback aspect

Deadline Schedule

Examples of questions for the interview

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Appendix 5. Organisational Structure of the Knowledge Transfer Centre The two most important positions in the Knowledge Transfer Centre are held by the head and the manager — the KTC Leaders. The head should be a person with suitable prestige and specialist knowledge of the area the Centre will be dealing with. Their obligations will include making strategic decisions, establishing partnerships and lobbying for changes in the environment of the Centre. The manager of the KTC reports to the head of the Centre. Their tasks include: running the project Team, specifying tasks to be solved and assigning them to appropriate individuals, monitoring the course of work, representing the Team and making operational decisions concerning the Team’s functioning. While preparing the plan of the Centre’s operation, it is worth looking into the breakdown of tasks between the manager and the head. The successful functioning of the KTC to a large extent depends on the cooperation between these two individuals. The Team of the KTC needs to include the following positions: broker, promotion specialist and administrative specialist. The broker’s competency profile can be found in Appendix 1. Depending on the needs, it is possible to expand the Team by other individuals.  

 

head

Appendix 6. Information on “SPIN — Model of Innovation Transfer in Małopolska” The SPIN model was designed and tested under the project “SPIN — Model of Innovation Transfer in Małopolska” in the period from March 2013 to September 2015. The execution of the project involved the following entities: Małopolskie Voivodeship, Jagiellonian University, Cracow University of Technology and AGH University of Science and Technology. Within the project, four Knowledge Transfer Centres (KTC) were established in Małopolska: 1. Centre of Intelligent IT Systems (CIIS) at the AGH University of Science and Technology (http://isi.agh.edu.pl/centrum_isi). 2. Małopolska Centre of Biotechnology (MCB) at the Jagiellonian University (http:// www.mcb.uj.edu.pl/). 3. Małopolska Centre of Energy-saving Buildings (MCEB) at the Cracow University of Technology (http://www.mcbe.pl/). 4. Małopolska Centre for Translational Medicine (MCTM) at the Collegium Medicum of the Jagiellonian University (http://www.momt.uj.edu.pl). For more information about the project see: www.spin.malopolska.pl.

manager   promotion specialist   broker   Administrative specialist   ...

In addition, it is worth creating a Programme Council, which will consist of the major stakeholders of the Centre. It will provide opinions and advice. The Council’s meetings should be organised quarterly. The role of the Council will be expressing opinion on the key directions and actions of the KTC, therefore it is worth expanding it by business representatives from the industry in which the KTC is interested, and representatives of public administration interested in commercialisation of scientific knowledge. Invitations to participate in the work of the Council should be issued by the university rector (authority of a given scientific unit).

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Appendix 7. Schedule of establishing and developing a Knowledge Transfer Centre (in weeks) PLAN IMPLEMENTATION COMPLETION START DURATION START DURATION PERCENTAGE

Plan Realiza % Wykona Faktycz% Zrealizowane

WEEKS 1 2 3

4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120

Action

Etap:

PREPARATION STAGE Training in transferology Workshops focused on preparing the concept of a business model Preparation of the plan for researching immediate potential of the KTC Conducting research on immediate potential of the KTC Preparation of the market research plan Conducting market research Training entitled "brokering — a key to transfer" HR training Preparation of competence profiles and procedures of employee recruitment Training in change management and building a coalition for change Conducting stakeholders analysis for communication within the University Ongoing analysis of the results of potential and market research Preparation of a full business plan for the KTC START-UP STAGE Familiarisation with the regulations Staff employment Planning the development of employee competences Equipping q pp g the workspace p Building internal relations Preparation of communication channels Preparation of the offer for prospective recipients Preparation of a portfolio of sample solutions Preparation of the KTC opening Revising the assumptions of the KTC business plan TESTING AND SALES STAGE Official opening of the KTC Preparation of sales standards Updating the portfolio of sample solutions 1st Periodical review of results, introduction of corrections Promotion of the Centre within the University Acquisition of new collaborators (scientists) Strengthening the professional image of the Centre Organisation of support for the Sales Team Contact with recipients and commercialisation Repeated market analysis, trend forecast 2nd Periodical review of results, introduction of corrections Scaling and optimisation Annual evaluation of employees

1

16

1

16

0%

1

1

1

1

0%

1

1

1

1

0%

1

2

1

2

0%

3

10

3

10

0%

3

1

3

1

0%

4

10

4

10

0%

3

1

3

1

0%

4

1

4

1

0%

5

1

5

1

0%

6

1

6

1

0%

6

1

6

1

0%

7

6

7

6

0%

13

3

13

3

0%

17

11

17

11

0%

17

3

17

3

0%

17

7

17

7

0%

25

3

25

3

0%

17

7

17

7

0%

17

11

17

11

0%

21

7

21

7

0%

17

9

17

9

0%

17

9

17

9

0%

25

3

25

3

0%

27

2

27

2

0%

29

92

29

92

0%

29

1

29

1

0%

29

12

29

12

0%

81

4

81

4

0%

53

2

53

2

0%

29

92

29

92

0%

29

92

29

92

0%

29

92

29

92

0%

29

92

29

92

0%

29

92

29

92

0%

65

12

65

12

0%

77

4

77

4

0%

81

40

81

40

0%

81

4

81

4

0%

Source: own.

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Appendix 8. Sample sources of financing the operations of the Knowledge Transfer Centre The following specification is not intended to be complete. It refers to basic knowledge about sources of financing available in June 2015. For more information go to websites of the institutions described below and your own scientific unit responsible for supporting scientists applying for external financing. Source

Description Horizon 2020

National Contact Point: http://www.kpk.gov.pl/ Regional Contact Point for Małopolska: http://www.transfer.edu.pl/pl/rpk.htm

The European Union Framework Programme Horizon 2020 is the largest programme in the history of the EU with regard to scientific research and innovations. Its scope covers three, so far separate, research support programmes at the EU level. These are: • 7th Framework Programme for Research, Technological Development and Demonstration Activities; • part of the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP) dedicated to innovation; and • actions of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT).

Operational Programme Intelligent Development (OP ID) Contact points: https://www.funduszeeuropejskie. gov.pl/strony/o-funduszach/punkty/#/ Information about calls for proposals: https://www.poir.gov.pl/strony/skorzystaj/nabory/ Schedule of calls for proposals in June 2015: http://www.poir.gov.pl/media/1643/ harmonogram_konkursow_POIR_ wersja1_12032015.pdf

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The Operational Programme Intelligent Development is the largest source of financing R&D activities from EU funds in recent years. The main goal of the programme is the development of the Polish economy on the basis of innovative companies. Specific goals include: 1. Increasing innovativeness of companies. 2. Increasing competitiveness of the Polish science. 3. Increasing the role of science in economic growth. 4. Increasing the share of innovative products of the Polish economy on the international market. 5. Creating stable and better jobs. 6. Increasing the use of information and communication technologies in the economy.

Source

Description

National Centre for Research and Development (NCBiR) Information about programmes and projects implemented by NCBiR. http://www.ncbr.gov.pl/o-centrum/ programmey-i-projekty-realizowane-w-narodowym-centrum-badan-i-rozwoju/ Support from NCBiR, depending on the technology readiness level (TRL): http://www.ncbr.gov.pl/dla-mediow/ trl-scheme/

NCBiR is the most important national source of public financing for research and development activities. The unit executes European, international, domestic and strategic programmes.

Regional Operational Programme for Małopolska Voivodeship (RPO WM) Information about calls for proposals under MRPO: http://www.fundusze.malopolska.pl/ ogloszenia-o-naborach Information points in Małopolska: http://www.rpo.malopolska.pl/znajdz-punkt-informacyjny Detailed Description of Priority Axes of the Regional Operational Programme http://www.rpo.malopolska. pl/download/program-regionalny/o-programie/ zapoznaj-sie-z-prawem-i-dokumentami/szczegolowy_opisu_osi_priorytetowych_regionalnego_programu_operacyjnego_wojewodztwa_malopolskiego/2015/03/SzOOP10032015.pdf

The Regional Operational Programme for Małopolska Voivodeship for the years 2014—2020 is an operational programme financed from the funds of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Social Fund (EFS). The primary purpose of the first priority axis (Knowledge-based economy) is an increase in innovation of the regional economy, manifested mostly by increasing expenditure on research and development activities. Interventions supported under this axis will contribute to strengthening scientific research, technological development and innovations, in areas of the so-called intelligent specialisation of Małopolska, resulting from the Regional Innovation Strategy for Małopolska Region.

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KTC Team — the Team includes the Leaders of the KTC, namely the head and manager, and people employed in the recruitment process (at the start-up stage), such as the broker, promotion specialist and administration specialist. See Appendix 5.

Glossary Area of implementation — the area of knowledge that the Knowledge Transfer Centre is dedicated to. Broker — one of the positions within the KTC necessary for prosperous functioning of the unit. An individual whose primary task is to attract and provide service to clients and permanent collaborators of the KTC (see Appendices 1 and 5). CIIS — Centre of Intelligent IT Systems, KTC established at the AGH University of Science and Technology. Commercialisation — form of knowledge transfer resulting in obtaining financial benefits. Companies — clients of the KTC; in principle, all entities (also public administration and non-governmental organisations) interested in the practical use of research and development. Head of the KTC — an outstanding scientist who also has considerable experi-

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Leader of the KTC — head or manager of the KTC. ence in cooperating with companies; he/ she fulfils the role of the KTC’s patron, makes strategic decisions, takes care of relationships with key stakeholders and supervises the work of the manager (see Appendix 5).

Manager of the KTC — the person who manages the KTC; see Appendices 3 and 5. MCB — Małopolska Center of Biotechnology, a KTC established at the Jagiellonian University.

MCEB — Małopolska Centre of Energy-saving Buildings, a KTC created at the Cracow University of Technology. MCTM — Małopolska Centre for Translational Medicine, a KTC established at the Collegium Medicum of the Jagiellonian University. Sales Team — a team of brokers. Technology Transfer Centre (TTC) — a university unit that assists other entities present in the university structures with commercialisation of scientific knowledge.

Knowledge transfer — exchange of information through cooperation networks, under which positive ideas, results and skills are transferred between universities, other research units, companies and the society as a whole to enable the development of new, innovative products and services*.9 Knowledge Transfer Centre (KTC) — an organisational unit established at a lower level of the university structure (e.g. at the level of the faculty, department), dealing directly with commercialisation of specialist scientific knowledge and tightening cooperation with a selected industry. * Owen, D.-H., Wahl, Z. (2011). Defining Four Pillars for Successful Applied. (in:) J.R. Howlett, Innovation through Knowledge Transfer 2010. Berlin Heidelberg: Springer, pp. 83—93.

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Notes

Lists of tables and figures Figure 1. Stages of establishing and developing a KTC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Figure 2 Basic sources of KTC financing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Figure 3 Vision of KTC and the effect of synergy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Box 1. Sample offer of a Knowledge Transfer Centre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Box 2. KTC business plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Box 3. Product/market fit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Box 4. Technological readiness levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Box 5. Goals of training aimed at building potential to manage change and manage within change . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Box 6. Employee bonding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Box 7. Conference? And what about a free course? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Box 8. Broker as “client’s helper” — from finding potential clients to a successful transaction and contact maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Box 9. Sales Value Creating Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 Box 10. Literature and websites useful in the process of building and managing a Sales TeamSales Team . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 Table 1. Knowledge Transfer Centres in Małopolska . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Table 2. Examples of commercialisation of KTC activities — examples from the pilot programme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 Table 3. Stages of starting up a business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Table 4. Business model elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Table 5. Basic resources for a Knowledge Transfer Centre . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Table 6. General schedule of the preparation stage of establishing a KTC — p. 1 . . 23 Table 7. Aspects of knowledge concerning human resources management and recruitment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Table 8. General schedule of the preparation stage of establishing a KTC — p. 2 . . 26 Table 9. General schedule of the preparation stage of establishing a KTC — p. 3 . . 29 Table 10. Examples of development directions for KTC staff . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Table 11. Key information and groups of stakeholders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

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