ASU Technopolis provides an entrepreneurial kick-start for technology and life science innovators
By Jessica McCann

The U.S. National Institutes of Health invests about $27 billion annually in medical research. More than 80 percent of its funding is awarded through approximately 50,000 grants to researchers at more than 2,800 universities, medical schools and other research institutions in every state and around the world.

Despite these staggering figures, government funds for basic research are in fact a small portion of the total cost of transforming a laboratory discovery into a life-saving medicine, diagnostic test or other biotechnology product. Thus, technology and life science researchers with a promising discovery must know more than just their product or innovation to bring it to market. They must understand how to create viable business plans, unearth additional funding, manage fast-growing companies and connect with other businesses and experts. Those without this critical entrepreneurial know-how often must put their promising discoveries on a shelf.

“ Think about your government dollars being spent. Does it really make any sense to spend all that money on research and then not have the public get any benefit out of it?” said Chad Kennedy, president and chief executive officer of Chandler, Ariz.-based biotech start-up Cynexus.

Kennedy’s company is an outgrowth of several years of advanced medical research and technology developed in the labs of Stephen Massia, a professor of bioengineering at ASU. Less than two years ago, Kennedy was a graduate student working with Massia, along with three other researchers, Gholamreza Ehteshami, Jeffrey Bade and Megan Kalstad. Their collective work had uncovered promising results with a family of biological molecules that could provide potent and effective anti-inflammation therapy for a wide variety of medical conditions. With that, the group found themselves at a critical turning point in their careers.

“ It got to a point where we realized we had something very promising,” Kennedy recalled. “And we could either put it on the back burner, or we could do something more with it.”
Their decision to launch a biotech start-up coincided with the launch of a unique ASU initiative — ASU Technopolis — created to provide people like Kennedy with the entrepreneurial education they need to get their discoveries from innovation to commercialization.

Within the past three years, Arizona has made significant investments toward strengthening and supporting the development of the state’s emerging bioscience industry sector. Its strategy focuses on encouraging the commercialization of discoveries and providing a supportive environment for start-up, emerging and expanding bioscience companies. As part of that effort, ASU Technopolis was created.

An initiative of the Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Affairs, ASU Technopolis provides education, coaching and mentoring to technology and life science entrepreneurs, faculty and students. Its offerings include an introductory six-week Technology and Life Science Entrepreneurship course, one-on-one coaching and in-depth workshops on federal funding for small businesses.

“ Historically, university faculty and graduate students are focused on the research, on making discoveries. Their careers have been as professors, as researchers, as teachers,” says Terree Wasley, director of ASU Technopolis. “In most cases, they have not had experience as entrepreneurs. Some of their skills carry over, but other necessary skills certainly are very different. They’re really stepping out into the unknown.”

Potential entrepreneurs no longer have to take the step alone. Kennedy and his colleagues did so with the support of two experienced business coaches, through ASU Technopolis’ signature program, Launch Pad. Weekly coaching sessions and assignments guided them in developing their business concepts and strategies — from strategic planning, product development and financing, to intellectual property, legal issues and marketing.

“ We had to start thinking like business people instead of researchers, which was a bit of a transition,” said Kennedy, who earned a master’s degree in bioengineering from ASU in 2001 and a doctoral degree in bioengineering in 2003.

Launch Pad is just what its name implies — an intense countdown before the start-up is propelled into the proverbial unknown. It is eight to 10 weeks of concentrated learning in a small group setting that offers both warm encouragement and cold reality in healthy doses. More often than not, the business team learns just how much more they need to learn. What is the core technology? Who will be its customers? How will the product be marketed? From where will new funding be found to continue with development?

When the business team is ready, a 15-minute business plan presentation is given to a panel of experts hand-picked to meet the specific needs of the entrepreneurial venture. The panel then provides in-depth feedback and advice, which the entrepreneurs would not typically receive in a traditional presentation to a venture capital or angel group.

“ We had lots of grandiose ideas, but we really needed somebody to help us focus,” said Kennedy. “As a result of Launch Pad and the panel presentation, we basically rewrote our entire business objectives and business plan. It helped us get our plan narrowed down to something manageable, something we can wrap a business model around.”

While the Cynexus technology has potential applications for a wide range of medical conditions, the company is beginning its venture by addressing the underserved dry eye market. Inflammatory dry eye disease is a complex sight-threatening disease afflicting more than 30 million Americans.

“ Technopolis also put us in networking contact with a lot of folks that we would never have known otherwise,” he said, adding with a laugh, “in fact, we wouldn’t have even known that we needed to know them.”

Wasley also stresses that the interpersonal connections made through the ASU Technopolis programs are as critical to the success of its participants as the education and information provided.

“ It’s a huge part of the program,” she said. “A lot of what happens with entrepreneurs in growing their business and getting their business funded is really about making contacts and getting connected with the right people who can help you at every stage of your business development.”

The intensity of Launch Pad is just the beginning of the long arduous road to market. Cynexus completed its Launch Pad presentation in February 2004. Its next milestone was the completion of licensing negotiations with the university, facilitated by Arizona Technology Enterprises, ASU’s technology commercialization company. In December, Cynexus made its first public presentation at the Arizona Angel Investment Conference; and the group received their first placement of investments in March 2005.

“ That shows how long of a hurry-up-and-wait game it can be,” said Kennedy, with equal parts exasperation and exhilaration. “It’s not easy, it’s difficult, but we’re still pushing.”

Jessica McCann is a Scottsdale-based freelance writer.

To provide feedback on this article, click here.

Photo: Dave Tevis

Chad Kennedy, president and CEO of Cynexus, has benefited from the programs and services of ASU Technopolis.