It is important for service providing units like CTTC to effectively communicate their accomplishments to the Vanderbilt community so that faculty and staff understand the importance of engaging in the supported activity. This Driving Innovation Forward publication seeks to do that by providing a summary of key technology commercialization metrics of CTTC and short stories illustrating outcomes achieved over the past year.
However, it is equally important to articulate where we are going and who is helping take us there. We are assisting in the launch and growth of the Industry Collaborations group – led by Christopher Rowe and co-located with CTTC, and charged with building upon CTTC’s efforts to structure collaborations and solicit sponsorship support from industry partners. Additionally, we are substantially reinventing the support and assistance we provide to aspiring entrepreneurs within the Vanderbilt community, positively impacting new venture launch and growth in ways we have not been able to in the past.
Taking industry collaboration and start up support to a new level is a team sport, and coordination among institutional stakeholders is key. Perhaps our most impactful partner in this pursuit is the Wond’ry, who is also expanding its capabilities to support entrepreneurship, and possess goals highly aligned with ours. Other groups also play integral roles, including the Owen Graduate School of Management, Center for Entrepreneurship, and various efforts within the individual schools. But it is really the expectations created by leadership that is driving the exciting new focus on entrepreneurship across campus, from the Chancellor and Provost, to the Vice Provost for Research who is working every day to advance these goals, to the Deans of the schools.
Leadership and vision really make a difference, and groups like CTTC thrive when provided with the opportunity to contribute to this vision.
