Across the world, technology parks like University Technology Park at IIT and The Montpellier Agglomération are coming to realize a special and important role they can play in promoting economic development and emerging company growth on the international scene. The special combination of ready space, focus on business development and contacts, and linkage to universities and potential customers has led to the development of “soft landing” programs in technology research parks around the globe. The offer of assistance in local business practices and customs, networking, and appropriate space is in sharp contrast to a generic commercial real estate location. Companies get special support, sometimes including administrative assistance and short term leases, to accommodate their initial forays into the local market. Further, cooperation and collaboration among technology research parks across the globe serve to help companies within the parks find the appropriate location to launch their international expansion.

This panel will discuss the development of the UTP at IIT and Montpellier BIC soft landing programs, why it is a solution for companies wishing to go global, and how it has become an economic development driver. They will discuss specific company success stories, what makes their location and program special, and what they think will make them sustainable.

This webinar is for those in the position to advise companies as to their international expansion, such as economic development professionals, embassies, and consulates, companies wishing to get a feel for locations that have assistance programs, such as incubator graduates ready to expand into a new market, for university researchers thinking about starting a company in a different country, and for tech transfer executives licensing intellectual property to emerging companies in international locations.

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COST: Free, but registration required.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE?: This series is online. You need a computer with web access for the visual/audio. Q&A is conducted by a chat box to the speakers.

WHO SHOULD PARTICIPATE IN THE WEBINAR?: These webinars are open to anyone interested in how universities and industry can better collaborate to commercialize R&D and create/fund university startups. In particular, we invite embassies, Global 1000, VCs, angel investors and university officials.

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Valerie de Saint Vaulry
(International Development Manager, The Montpellier Agglomération)

Bio

Mrs Valerie de Saint Vaulry was a fresh graduate from top-rated HEC School of Management (Paris, France) when she took in charge the creation and development of the North-American subsidiary of a French start up which designed and manufactured retail software solutions for opticians and optometrists. Based in Chicago for 3 years, she flew back to Paris when appointed to International Marketing and Sales, a position in which she managed and developed a portfolio of up to 15 countries. She was then recruited as a consultant in business strategy and territorial development, where she learnt how to support local authorities to carry out their economic and urban planning. When she eventually took over her current position at Montpellier Agglomeration in 2007, she had experienced what it was like to be an entrepreneur developing a business in a foreign country with neither support nor introductions. She has now reconciled her sense of entrepreneurship, her knowledge of public economy and her international experience as she now works at developing international cooperation to facilitate crossed business set up. Tireless traveler, she has wandered in South East Asia and throughout Europe, volunteered in Cameroon, studied in Budapest (Hungary) and remains endlessly curious of cultures and social organizations.

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David E. Baker
(Executive Director, University Technology Park at IIT)

Bio

David E. Baker, Executive Director, University Technology Park at IIT. Mr. Baker has led the initiative to create a technology park on Illinois Institute of Technology’s main campus on Chicago’s Southside, since 2002. The park has grown to include the renovation of three buildings, leveraging funding from local, state and federal government sources as well as the private sector. Nearly 25 companies are now resident in the park, including start-ups and larger companies in biotech, clean tech and software development. Mr. Baker also serves as the University’s Vice President for External Affairs, a position he has held since 1995. He is responsible for the University’s governmental relations, technology park development, strategic planning and trustee relations He also helped open the Perspectives/IIT Math and Science Academy, a public grade 6-12 charter school in September, 2008. From September 1993 through March 1995, he served as the Executive Director for the National Commission for IIT. Prior to joining the University, Mr. Baker served as President of The Illinois Coalition, whose mission is to strengthen the Illinois economy through science and technology. From 1980 to 1989, Mr. Baker served as the Executive Vice President of the Illinois State Chamber of Commerce, the state’s largest business advocacy organization. Mr. Baker holds an M.A. from Johns Hopkins University, School of Advanced International Studies, and an A.B. in History, with a minor in Economics, from Stanford University. He is married, has two children and lives in Chicago.

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Catherine E. Vorwald
(Director of Business Development, Wexford Science + Technology)

Bio

Catherine E. Vorwald is the Director of Business Development at Wexford Science + Technology, LLC a real estate developer of several technology park projects around the nation and works mainly on marketing and leasing activities. She previously consulted with The University of Maryland, Baltimore Office of Research and Development to work on various aspects of the UMB BioPark project; in particular she spearheaded the development of The BioInnovation Center, which is designed to provide real estate solutions for emerging companies in Baltimore. She crafted the Memorandum of Understanding with the Emerging Technology Center in Baltimore that provides for cooperation of incubator services and lab space for emerging companies that wish to locate in Baltimore. She further developed this “Technology Suites” real estate product line for other research park locations. She will chair the Association of University Technology Managers (AUTM) Special Interest Group on Research Parks. She has moderated and publically spoken on numerous panels on topics such as licensing for start-ups, technology marketing, and research material transfer models. She has entered (team won second place), mentored, and judged student business plan competitions. Ms Vorwald has academic research experience at the NIH and the University of California, San Francisco; she has technology transfer experience at both Stanford University and Johns Hopkins; and she has marketing and business development experience at companies ranging from Fortune 500 to start-up size. She was recently on the Board of Trustees for The Licensing Executives Society USA-Canada, Inc., is the founding Chapter Chair for the Licensing Executives Society Maryland Local Chapter and has been elected Vice President to the Board of the Licensing Executives Society Foundation. Ms. Vorwald holds a Master of Business Administration in Finance from The Johns Hopkins University as well as a Master of Science Degree and a Bachelor Degree in Biological Sciences from Georgetown University and the University of California, Santa Cruz, respectively.