New Venture Development

The New Venture Development is a mix of university resources and equity investment designed to provide a path to, and facilitate more, startup activity at UMass Lowell.

We help teams explore and develop potential commercialization strategies, test market assumptions, recruit university and non-university expertise and talent and secure early-stage funding. Funding sources include commercialization grants, internal and external competitions, state and local financing mechanisms and private funding. This activity, paired with strong intellectual property resources, speeds early commercialization efforts and better prepares our university-related startups for other financing opportunities.

We also manage the following:

River Hawk New Venture Fund, which pools licensing revenue and committed alumni contributions to make pre-seed and seed-stage investments into University-affiliated technology.
National Science Foundation (NSF) I-Corps New England Program: The NSF Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program is designed to empower researchers, and students to test the commercial potential of their research and ideas. I-Corps also prepares scientists and engineers to expand their focus beyond the laboratory and increase the impact of basic research.

Stage 1

NVD works to develop relationships with teams that are:

Interested in competing for a National Science Foundation I-Corps Team grant, President’s Office Technology Development Grant, MassCEC grants, or other commercialization grant opportunities
Currently working on a technology that has been secured with a provisional patent filing
Participating in NVD Programs like Tech Venture Program or eBITES Lecture Series
Identified by NVD staff as having some of the necessary components to be a potential spin-out
Highly motivated to fully explore the start-up potential of their technology, and are willing to work with NVD to achieve the necessary product and strategy development to test their assumptions

Teams at this stage include:

Well engaged teams that have self-declared their start-up interests
Teams that have completed the Tech Venture Program and continue to be highly engaged
I-CORP participants

Activities in Cultivation Phase

NVD helps with the drafting of initial executive summary, core value proposition messaging, and introduction to mentors
1:1 meeting with NVD Staff

Incentives for Teams

Sharing of Markets Trend Summaries and Reports relevant to the Project

Teams at this stage have completed at least one of the following:

Provisional Patent Filed
Proof of Concept Demonstrated
Completed I-CORPS Team Cohort
Have finished work related to outside commercialization grants
Start-up potential identified by Office of Technology & Commercialization (OTC) internal IP Assessment

Activities in Assessment Phase

In-Depth Market Study
Slide-Deck developed for pitching during assessment committee sessions
Assessment Committee working sessions
Final Report with recommendations from Assessment Committee group

Incentives for teams

In-depth market study and pitch development support
Invitation to Assessment Committee Meeting to gather feedback from relevant industry experts
Team dedicated Mentor and NVD Entrepreneur-in-Residence assigned

Stage 2

Teams at this stage have:

Received recommendations from Assessment Committee, and agreed upon a short term action plan
Identified a Faculty point of contact, and at least one other team member to drive project progress

Activities in Onboarding

Feasibility testing and development on the project and technology
Initial Plan and Milestone Creation using internal resources
Identification and Onboarding of an 'Expert' technical consultant who helps create a well-defined milestone & plan document
Non-technical program manager (internal from NVD) to assist with: market strategy, product-market fit, and more refinement of the value proposition

Incentives in Onboarding

Output of the feasibility study and action plan
Addition of team members including mentors and EIRs as required
I-CORPs site grants and resource support
Access to other internal grants such as NSF ICORP Micro Seed grants

Activities in this stage are personalized to the team, but can include:

Hiring a technical expert or early potential business lead to create a well-defined milestone & start-up plan
Ongoing NVD support for refining of slide decks, networking, and participation in industry conferences
Product development planning
IP Planning

NVD provides ongoing support of teams by:

Helping teams identify early executive team members
Creating a more formalized milestone plan with consensus from external advisors and internal stakeholder
Facilitating interaction with investors, getting early feedback
Formalizing the startup through entity creation
Initiating the process of shortlisting Board of Advisors

Stage 3

Prior to spin-out, the NVD team acts as in-house executive-level management, providing leadership and strategic direction to small teams. This helps in development of strategic milestones, secure funding, and establish initial outside operations.

Entry Criteria for Startup Scaffold Phase

1 year plan of defined milestones to address the recommendations from Assessment Committee and Technical Advisors (Product, Technical, Fundraising & Team Development)

Activities in Startup scaffold phase

Development of Resources on Marketing Materials: Website, Executive summary, Pitch presentations, Job descriptions
Checklist for Launch: Team Acquisition, Incorporation, Expert Advisor List

Activities in the fundraising stage include:

Opportunity to pitch at the River Hawk New Venture Fund for pre-seed investments
Micro Seed Grants through NSF ICORP Site
Facilitation for SBIR and other external grants
Supporting fundraising efforts through accelerators and private investments