• Demonstrate a broad comprehension of concepts, theories, models and frameworks relevant to technology commercialization.
• Discuss critically the methods that are used in the process of commercializing technology and be able to determine the most appropriate approaches under a range of commercialization situations.
• Explain methods that can be used to identify, evaluate, and exploit technology commercialization opportunities.
• Recognize the formal and informal sources of capital for exploiting a technology opportunity.
• Understand the value of specific activities that entrepreneurs undertake in their efforts to commercialize technology.

In the modern world of global competition the ability to utilize technological innovation is increasingly important. This course will focus on a very specific question – How can we make technology commercialization a more predictable process? It will explore ways in which to increase the probability of success in commercializing technologies drawing on a range of practical examples, including case studies of successful technology commercialization processes. This course will investigate the sources of new technology, the tools to evaluate new technologies, the process of intellectual property transfer, and the eventual positioning of the resultant products and services in the commercial market. Its purpose is to improve the probability of success of this discipline in both existing organizational models and early stage ventures.
This course draws on successful delivery multiple times in recent years at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, a small technology-based school that attracts extraordinary students from around the world. It is predicated on the assumption that there are significant innovative and meaningful ideas in the global context of business. Understanding how to move these ideas from a process of commercialization is new and suggests that the probability of success of the outcomes will be enhanced is the underlying process models are understood. The course will examine:
•       Sources of ideas ranging from patent licensing to invention.
•       Opportunity Recognition that embraces process models to help select promising projects from an array of sources.
•       Feasibility Analyses to determine whether the ideas have enough potential to proceed.
•       Pathways Selection that examines multiple paths for execution from new venture creation to joint ventures.
•       Project plan…demonstrating the actual implementation pathway for the projects based on comparisons to the overall projects’ strategic direction.
Students are expected to be able to create working models for a variety of offered projects. To do so they will have to demonstrate a working knowledge of (1) financial metrics used the process decision-making, (2) market definition and pathways to the customer, (3) impact of organizational behaviors on the model’s performance, and (4) ability to critically evaluate the existing model.
In addition to the Mandatory Mid-term Assignment for the course that will involve group presentations in class of solutions to a technology commercialization problem, there will be a Preliminary Assignment that is prepared individually requiring students to solve a problem based on some specified readings with key points in the solution summarized on a few slides.

Class Schedule