Introduction
Technology transfer office and research commercialisation, from disclosure through licensing to spin-outs, is a 5-day course for technology transfer, commercialisation and industry partnership teams, ending with a Commercialisation Plan and TTO Operating Plan. Universities and research centres file patents that never reach a licensee, let promising inventions stall before proof of concept and form spin-outs on founder terms that later deter investors. Nominees already handle disclosures, partner contracts or start-up support, and learn through case studies built on disclosure files, term sheets and pipeline data. CoreConcept Training Center offers this technology transfer office and research commercialisation course.
Course Objectives
- Assess a technology transfer office's mandate, operating model, IP policy and pipeline data to set a baseline of disclosures, deals and income
- Run invention disclosure intake, prior art searching and patentability and market triage to decide which inventions to protect and promote
- Market inventions to prospective licensees and negotiate licence term sheets covering upfront payments, milestones, equity and diligence
- Negotiate industry-sponsored research contracts that balance publication freedom, ownership of results and company access rights
- Structure spin-out companies with founder agreements, capitalisation tables, institutional equity and conflict of interest controls
- Design a proof-of-concept fund and a TTO KPI scorecard that tracks disclosures, licences, start-ups and licence income
Target Audience
- Technology transfer teams responsible for invention intake, patent filing decisions and licensing to industry
- Research commercialisation units responsible for moving laboratory results into products, services and companies
- Industry partnership teams responsible for negotiating sponsored research and contract research with companies
- Enterprise and incubation teams responsible for spin-out formation, founder support and investor relations
- Research leadership teams accountable for institutional IP policy and commercialisation performance
- Seed and proof-of-concept fund teams responsible for selecting, funding and monitoring early-stage projects
Course Outline
Day 1: Technology Transfer Office Mandate, Pipeline and Current-State Baseline
- Lab-to-Market Pipeline Stages From Disclosure to Impact Monitoring
- TTO Operating Models Compared Centralised, Hub and Outsourced
- Institutional IP Policy Provisions on Inventor Revenue Sharing
- Inventor Incentive Schemes and Researcher Engagement Calendar
- TTO Baseline Audit With Disclosure, Deal and Income Data
Day 2: Invention Intake, Patentability Triage and Market Assessment
- Invention Disclosure Form Design and Inventor Intake Interview
- Prior Art Search Using Patent Database Query Strategies
- Patentability and Commercial Potential Triage Scoring Matrix
- Technology Readiness Level Grading for Early-Stage Inventions
- Market Sizing and Licensee Landscape Mapping for Inventions
Day 3: Licensing Deals, Early-Stage Valuation and Sponsored Research
- Non-Confidential Technology Summary and Licensee Outreach Campaign
- Licence Term Sheet Economics With Upfront, Milestone and Equity
- Comparable Deal Method for Valuing Early-Stage University Technology
- Diligence Milestones and Development Plan Clauses for Licensees
- Industry-Sponsored Research Contract Terms on Publication Rights
Day 4: Spin-out Formation, Proof-of-Concept Funding and Commercialisation Risks
- Spin-out Readiness Assessment of Team, Market and Technology
- Founder Agreement and Capitalisation Table Equity Split Modelling
- Institutional Equity Stake, Anti-Dilution and Investor Term Sheets
- Proof-of-Concept Fund Design, Selection Panel and Tranche Release
- Conflict of Interest Management Plan for Academic Founders
Day 5: Case Study Work on the Commercialisation Plan and TTO Operating Plan
- Case Research Centre File With Five Invention Disclosures
- Case Disclosure Triage and Patent Budget Allocation Decisions
- Case Licence Term Sheet Versus Spin-out Route Selection
- Case Proof-of-Concept Funding Request and TTO KPI Targets
- Commercialisation Plan and TTO Operating Plan Completion and Defence
Skills You Will Gain
- Invention Disclosure Triage
- Prior Art Searching
- Technology Market Assessment
- Licence Deal Negotiation
- Sponsored Research Contracting
- Spin-out Structuring
- Proof-of-Concept Fund Management
- TTO Performance Measurement
Why Attend This Course
- Deliver a Commercialisation Plan and TTO Operating Plan to the vice-president for research or the research centre board for approval
- Decide whether an invention is patented, licensed, spun out or released, using triage scores and market evidence rather than inventor enthusiasm
- Avoid wasted patent budgets, stalled spin-outs and sponsored research contracts that block publication or doctoral theses
- Coach researchers and office colleagues in disclosure forms, triage matrices, term sheet templates and cap table models
Conclusion
Back at work, the participant presents the Commercialisation Plan and TTO Operating Plan to the vice-president for research, the research centre board or the commercialisation committee. Leaders use it to approve patent budgets, choose between licensing and spin-out routes for priority inventions, allocate proof-of-concept money and agree staffing for the office. After the first two quarters, the office should compare disclosure volumes, triage decisions, signed deals, spin-out progress and licence income with the scorecard targets and revise the actions that have not moved.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
What should participants know before a technology transfer office and research commercialisation course?
Participants should already handle invention disclosures, partner contracts, start-up support or research administration in a university or research centre. Bringing an anonymised disclosure, term sheet or pipeline report helps them apply the triage, deal and scorecard templates to their own office.
How does technology transfer office and research commercialisation differ from an intellectual property agreements course?
This course runs the office workflow: disclosure intake, triage, market assessment, deal routes, spin-out formation, proof-of-concept funding and performance measurement. An IP agreements course concentrates on drafting licence, assignment and confidentiality clauses, which this course treats only at term sheet level.
Why does a technology transfer office use proof-of-concept funding in research commercialisation?
Proof-of-concept funding pays for prototypes, validation data and market tests that turn laboratory results into evidence a licensee or investor will accept. Without it, many inventions remain too early for industry and their patent costs bring no return.
What does a participant take back from technology transfer office and research commercialisation training?
Each participant takes back a Commercialisation Plan for a case invention and a TTO Operating Plan, with a disclosure form, triage scoring matrix, term sheet template, cap table model and KPI scorecard to adapt to their own office.
