Keywords: incubations, knowledge sharing, startups

UTTP is a 100hrs long technology commercialization bootcamp where real-life entrepreneurs work with real life tech- transfer officers as a team, to come up with the best possible commercialization roadmap, using the methodology and tools offered by IC2 Institute Instructors over a period of 3 months. Best roadmap created in the process is awarded.

Inventing is a difficult task, it requires knowledge, research and methodology. So as sales & marketing. Marketing of inventions, or in our case Technology Commercialization is a science on its own. It requires knowledge, research and methodology. Both innovators and Tech transfer officers involved in the process need to have certain tools to aid them. Tech Commercialization success stories do not happen by accident, they almost always have a deep and long preparation stage before they end up in the covers of business magazines. UTTP is a bootcamp designed to provide both innovators and tech transfer professionals with the tools they need during the commercialization process using real life inventions. The 100 hours over a 3-month long period program involves in-class lectures as well as field studies and study sessions. The program is designed as a commercialization roadmap competition of 10 teams. Each team has an entrepreneur with a strong technology idea, and 3 technology transfer professionals (scientists, academicians, and TTO officers etc) who ""works"" the product on hand throughout the camp. The idea is to develop the best Commercialization plan using the tools and methodologies taught during the lectures. IC2 Institute provides all 40 participants with twelve 8-hour classroom training sessions at Bilkent CYBERPARK, and also additional online training. The classroom sessions cover topics as primary & secondary research, valuation, tech marketing, licensing&negotiation, value propositions and the Quicklook methodology to analyze the readiness level of the invention at hand. The program offers intensive lecturing that aims to demystify the technology commercialization process in order to improve skills in technology assessment, intellectual property management, business pitch development and understanding of alternative funding models for startup creation and licensing opportunities.

UTTP is neither the first tech transfer course nor the first business plan contest of Turkey. However, it is the first program that combines them both and using real life cases. Graduates of the program refer to UTTP as ""a training process like no other"". There are several points that make UTTP different: - Everything is real. The cases are real. The people are real. The problems, constraints and resources -or lack thereof - are real. - It is hands- on. The teams are sent ""out of the building"" to get in touch with potential customers"" on day 1. The participants run the show, not the instructors - It is educating. 12 counts of 8-hour classroom trainings are no picnic. - It is competitive. Blood, sweat and tears competitive. Teams fight both with each other and also within themselves, just like real world.

The program trained 30 entrepreneurs, and 90 tech transfer professionals over the course of 3 years. Graduates of the program are highly sought after in the Tech Transfer ecosystem of Turkey. Many graduates hold positions of university TTOs, Technoparks, and /or incubators. The concept of Technology Transfer is not old in Turkey. Even though there are over 30 TTOs around the country, there is still no degree program structured for this specialty. The need for qualified personnel is imminent. UTTP is designed as a short term cure, to simulate a ""vocational school"" until official schools are in action. The program is still the only long term training program focusing on Tech Transfer. Every year, 10 entrepreneurs get matched with 30 TTO professionals to work as a team for 3 months. In the end, entrepreneurs learn the negative and positive parts of the projects, along with the importance of getting outside of their labs/offices. But more importantly all participants learn: - how to do market research and why - how to pursue an innovation or kill it and how to decide among the two - how to approach a customer, and how not to approach the innovators/academicians - how to prepare a commercialization road map that is realistic, applicable and fruitful - how to all of them with a team that is ""given"" to you.

Aspiring entrepreneurs who are interested in launching new ventures based on emerging technologies, academic researchers who want to learn how to commercialize their technology-based research, technology transfer specialists who desire to fine-tune their skills in technology assessment, licensing and commercialization are main participant candidates. Each year around 200 people apply and 40 are selected.

UTTP is a registered trademark of Bilkent CYBERPARK and TTGV (Turkish Technology Development Foundation). The program content is provided by The University of Texas at Austin""s IC2 Institute of Technology Commercialization Office.