In his blog on start-ups and university entrepreneurship, serial entrepreneur and angel investor David B. Lerner summarizes some observations made by VCs at the annual University Startups Conference held recently in Washington, DC, hosted by the National Council for Entrepreneurial Tech Transfer (NCET). “Through the course of multiple panels and discussions, a good cross-section of venture investors from very reputable firms weighed in candidly on both what they like to see and what they don’t like to see when they try to spin-out companies from university tech transfer offices,” Lerner writes. “Many colorful stories were exchanged, to say the least.”
Lerner offers some quick bullets “straight from the proverbial horses’ mouth” that may help TTOs position university technologies favorably.
VC’s like to see:
- Platform technologies
- Great faculty “stars,” great scientists, and great science
- Rich entrepreneurial culture and community throughout the university
- A “go-to person” at the TTO who has entrepreneurial experience
- A TTO that’s “all about throughput” and getting deals done quickly
- Deal terms that are flexible, recognizing that “business models change over time”
VC’s do not like to see:
- Slow-moving offices that take too long to complete a deal
- “Mismatches” in the respective legal counsel in terms of the turnaround time, skill, and expertise
- “Greedy” TTOs with onerous deal terms
- “Big egos” at the TTO that obstruct deals
- Business plans. “VCs prefer to have a short summary and decide for themselves,” Lerner says.
Source: David B. Lerner