Translating cutting-edge technology and scientific discoveries into high-growth business opportunities

HiValue - Applications are open!

KNOW MORE

HiTech - The program is under construction at the moment!

KNOW MORE

Overview.

HiTech is a two-stage ‘hands-on’ training program that supports the translation of cutting-edge technology and scientific discoveries into high-growth business opportunities.

HiTech is for research teams that are willing to validate the commercial potential of a product (or service) concept derived from the technologies they have developed in their research activities.

HiTech teams are formed with the researchers (that have developed the technologies), management students (from the partner business schools) and mentors.

Participants will acquire skills in technology commercialization and science-based entrepreneurship.

Each stage is two-month long and follows a structured process that has been thoroughly developed in an international setting.

Throughout each two-month period, there are, once weekly, in-class meetings with experienced faculty and mentors and, occasionally, seminars on topics relevant to technology commercialization. In between in-class meetings, participating teams will need to work on the deliverables that support the development of the product concept, the value proposal and the business case.


A value proposal for a product/service concept derived from the technology proposed by the research teams (1^st Stage). A well-grounded business case for the product concept developed in the 1^st Stage of the Program (2^nd Stage).
Call for proposals are closed, and our roadshow will start in in the first quarter of 2020.

AMTC- Anti-malarial combination therapy / CLEVER / ENKI HydroTec / IR Bactyping / NewAlgaFeed / Nitrogen Sensing Solutions / T-ALL therapies / TripleHope

2Resource / AntiBioCoat / Aqua in Silico / GlassLink / GlycoDiagnostic / OncoAdvanC+ / Plastics-4B / PPK / SensiNOV / Targ.Tex / UNI.Value

Who
Can Apply?

Teams with cutting-edge technology and scientific discoveries
that are strongly motivated to move their findings to the market and, at the same time, want to gain skills in technology commercialization and entrepreneurship.

Management students
that are strongly motivated to work in a multidisciplinary team and learn how to match technology and scientific discoveries with a business opportunity. HiTech is an opportunity to integrate the knowledge and the skills, acquired in the management programs, in a comprehensive and applied manner, by working closely with researchers and technologists to develop a business model and a business case for a global high-tech project.

MBA alumni
that are strongly motivated to work in a multidisciplinary team and to learn how to match technology and scientific discoveries with a business opportunity. HiTech is an opportunity to re-position the knowledge and skills acquired, and put into practice in their companies, in a completely new context: the creation and development of a technology-based start-up.

What
are the costs?

Participation in HiTech does not involve any fees.

However, before you apply, you should bear in mind that there is a cost for organizing the Program and you need to assure us that you will have the time and willingness to fully participate in the HiTech throughout its duration. There is a ‘moral’ penalty for teams that withdraw from the Program once it has started, which is related to the fact that you have left out another team that was willing to participate.

How
it works?

The 1^st stage will take place in the second quarter of 2020.
In-class sessions and mentor meetings occur once a week.
A set of seminars on relevant topics for the on-going tasks will be provided to the participants (e.g., team building, intellectual property or pitching).
The 1^st Stage concludes with a private presentation to a judging panel that will evaluate each value proposal.

For teams that are selected by the judging panel after concluding the 1^st stage 1 or that have developed a well-grounded value proposal for a science-based product concept that meets the requirements of HiTech.
The 2^nd Stage will take place in the fourth quarter of 2020.
In-class sessions and mentor meetings occur once a week, but formal teaching is reduced to a minimum and most work will be carried out by the teams, guided by the faculty and mentors.
A set of seminars on relevant topics for the on-going tasks will be provided to the participants (e.g., business development, business planning or financial tools).
The 2^nd Stage concludes with a public presentation in which teams will pitch their business cases to an audience.

Are two-month long.
Run at Nova School of Business and Economics and Porto Business School
Weekly deliverables will need to be carried out in between in-class sessions.
These deliverables are key in the learning process and provide the guidelines to help you move towards the development of a value proposal (1^st Stage) and a business case (2^nd Stage) for a product concept leveraged by the teams’ technology and scientific discoveries.

The
concept.

HiTech is a ‘contact sport’

Participants are fully involved in the technology commercialization process and are required to interact with the ‘business world’ to validate the assumptions they develop throughout the process.

HiTech pedagogy is based on ‘learning by doing’

We strongly believe that to embed technology commercialization and entrepreneurship skills, it is essential for participants to be engaged in real projects, leading to real business proposals.

HiTech is team-based

Because it allows for different skills (from business to technology) to be brought to the project, enhancing the learning experience. The approach employed emulates a real start-up experience and because the team members (researchers, technologists, management students and business mentors) have very different educational backgrounds, the set of deliverables to be completed each week are key in providing common goals, language and framework for the team action.

HiTech focus is on supporting the teams to identify business opportunities by matching technological capabilities to unmet (or ill met) market needs.

The starting point is the technology and scientific discoveries proposed by the teams and from there they will be guided in the development of product concepts that use the technological capabilities to match market needs. Then, they will start systematically evaluating the market relevance of these product concepts and formulating a strategy to bring these product concepts to the market. The commercialization strategy then pursues with the selection and the redefinition of the product concepts, through testing both technological and market assumptions and building a value proposal (1^st Stage) and a business case (2^nd Stage).