Event Details - ITEK - The Commercialisation Company of the University of South Australia

UniSA commercialisation agency ITEK actively assists students to gain an insight into the opportunities and challenges of pursuing the path of entrepreneurship.

Key ITEK executives recently joined serial entrepreneurs and patent attorneys to present a lecture in the course called ‘Professional Studies', which involves professionals addressing students about real-life career experiences drawn from the process of commercialisation.

UniSA City West Campus lecturer Gerhard Schurer designed the course to assist students make the challenging transition from university life to a professional career.

ITEK General Manager Chris Hill discussed the process of protecting intellectual property ownership and outlined how students should go about protecting their valuable ideas - now and in the future.

"ITEK can assist students and staff in the identification of ideas, provide a comprehensive assessment of the market and define business and financial strategies for moving through the stages of the commericalisation process," explained Mr. Hill.

Madderns Registered Patent and Trademarks Attorney Ms. Adele Flego explained that the various forms of intellectual property made it important to obtain professional advice to protect intellectual property.

"Securing intellectual property rights early in the commercialisation process may contribute to a project's attractiveness to further investment," said Ms. Flego.

ITEK Commercial Project Manager Dr Stephanie Agius went on to outline what investors were looking for when they assessed technology-related deals.  "As an entrepreneur and inventor, you need to target the type of investor you approach for financial investment," said Dr. Agius.

"Different types of investors will fund different stages of technology commercialisation depending on the risk and retrospective reward. For example, venture capitalists won't fund early stage technology whereas technology transfer offices including ITEK in addition to Government funding can bridge this gap."

ITEK maintains professional relationships with a variety of external consultants including Patent and Trademarks Attorneys, business angels, venture capitalists and entrepreneurs to facilitate access to various sources of funding and provide valuable strategic advice during the stages of technology commercialisation.

Access to these valuable resources enables ITEK to bridge the gap in funding between start-up and fast growth phases for businesses.

By providing sound commercial advice, ITEK assists University of South Australia staff and students to make well-informed decisions about how technology commercialisation can add value to their publications, research and professional development.