We sat down with Executive Director Todd Sherer to talk about one of OTT’s signature events – the Emory Breakfast Club. Started in 2010, OTT’s Breakfast Club is an early morning networking breakfast during which OTT’s licensing associates briefly pitch new innovations.
Also, take a look at our video about the Breakfast Club events.
What was the inspiration for creating the event?
We realized we needed a better way to engage the business community with regards to licensing opportunities we had in the office. We created this event so that we could find a way to more regularly bring the business community together and pitch technologies to them.
What do you feel the audience gets out of the event?
I think the audience gets a chance to come and sit down and hear more about Emory and not just what is going on in the Tech Transfer Office. We will occasionally have speakers and provide background information about other things across campus. They get a chance to hear about business opportunities and to network.
Since this event is invitation only, how was the invitee list created?
We thought a lot about who to invite. We wanted it to be a fairly small event so people would be more inclined to participate and get engaged in the discussion. We also knew that it was a short event and we weren’t expecting people to travel. So we focused on the local community, primarily on entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and industry experts that could help us get our technologies closer to proof of principle and maybe even into a startup company or license.
How are the technologies that are presented selected?
We sit down as a group and ask ourselves “What technologies do we have that have a compelling story behind them?” If the compelling story includes that they might be well-suited for a startup company or are ready to be licensed, that’s even better. But it’s not an absolute requirement. We want to have something interesting to present to the community. We view the event as partly an opportunity to network, partly an opportunity to just pitch technologies.
What do you feel the office gets out of this event?
I think the office gets several things. First, it is a chance to thank the business community that we work with throughout the year. Second, it offers the experience of pitching our technologies. It is not an innate skill that most people have to take a long scientific discovery and be able to reduce it down to a succinct business opportunity and then pitch it. Third, and most importantly, it is an opportunity to start a conversation around Emory technology. Hopefully out of those conversations we find partnerships which are the goal of the event.
Have you been able to advance a technology or sign an agreement due to this event?
Yes, on several occasions we have found industry experts or CEOs for technologies. In a couple cases those have actually led to new license agreements. But the more common impact is that we find a partner for a technology that can help us get it closer to proof of principle. They can help us do that even without being a licensee. Just by sharing industry expertise that is relevant to the development of that particular technology.
What has been one surprise for you from this event?
Sherer: I think one surprise has been just how important of a networking event it has become for the people that attend this event. It has taken on a buzz and people come just to run into other like-minded people in the community who do what they do and are interested in developing biomedical research and inventions coming out of biomedical research. It is one of the most exciting aspects to come from the Emory Breakfast Club.