HOUGHTON ? Megan Frost is developing an antimicrobial film dressing for wound closure at her lab at Michigan Technological University. But while she understood the science, she didn?t know how to build a company to commercialize her invention. Enter Inforum’s ACTiVATE program.
ACTiVATE, a 10-month program launched in August 2012 by Inforum, guides women through idea generation and commercial viability to help them launch growth-oriented businesses.
?When I started out, I had no notion of what it would take to take an idea from inception to reality,? said Frost, an associate professor at MTU?s Department of Biomechanical Engineering. ?Through ACTiVATE, I have learned a lot about business ideas. I?ve learned how to pitch a non-technical audience. ACTiVATE taught me how to frame my concept for people outside my field to understand.?
The program also taught Frost how to set up her company, Frost Research Center LLC. Now she also has a grasp of how to seek FDA approval for her biotech product, and how to find the investors to fund its growth ? also part of the curriculum.
?It?s been tremendously practical program for me,? Frost said. ?I now have a better idea how to move from a laboratory notebook to a real product.?
That?s precisely what Inforum, a professional women?s alliance, sought to do with ACTiVATE.
?It?s a very intensive 10-month program that covers 40 topics,? said Kathleen L. Mechem, Inforum?s Executive Director of Entrepreneurial Strategies. ?Phase one is ?what I should do.? We help participants identify and validate their business idea. In Phase two we teach them how to develop a business model and a financing plan.?
The current class has 18 women participating. Mechem said she?d like to expand the next class to 25, or perhaps more.
Mechem said ACTiVATE?s curriculum is taught by certified instructors one night each week in Dearborn, at the University of Michigan?s Fairlane campus, and one full-day class each month on Saturday. Some of the course work is done on-line.
For instance, with the current class, which graduates in June, several women from the Upper Peninsula telecommute for the week night class at the MTU Smart Zone, than fly to Dearborn for the Saturday sessions. Mechem said she plans to add a second location in Grand Rapids for the fall 2013 class.
?We target women who have some experience under their belt in science, technology, government, business, and academia,? she said. ?They typically have come up with a potential business idea through their career and want to move to the next level and start a business. ACTiVATE helps them stay in their current job while they are developing their business plan.?
ACTiVATE costs $3,500. Mechem said partial scholarships are available that pay up to half of the tuition. The program is underwritten by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation and the New Economy Initiative.
The deadline to apply for the September 2013 class is May 31. To download an application, click on InforumMichigan.Org
