Technology Transfer and Commercialization in Greater Philadelphia

Econsult Solutions, Inc. (ESI) and CEO Council for Growth, an initiative of the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, have teamed up to release the Technology Transfer and Commercialization study, which examines the Philadelphia region’s economic growth into the future.

The study sought to lay a road map on how the Philadelphia region can further capitalize on its culture of innovation and entrepreneurship while measuring how the region stacks up with other leading regions around the country.

The study also set an “overachieving” goal for the region’s research institutions to create 10 companies that will grow to a liquidity event of $100 million or more over the course of next 10 years.

Results found that the Philadelphia region scored well in research categories due in part to its dense array of institutions of all sizes and disciplines. Conversely, the study also found that the region lacks in activity when compared to other leading regions. In fact, the highest ranked regions were found to boast two or more times activity than Greater Philadelphia. The region’s dense array of institutions has not translated to equitable amounts of commercialization when compared to other leading regions.

In order to grow the region’s commercialization output, the study recommends the following steps:

• Funding – Public and private sector participation should be recruited to fund additional pre-venture capital funds and business acceleration services.

• Advocating – The region should advocate for policies at all levels at all levels of government that demonstrate a commitment to innovation as an economic driver.

• Collaborating – Collaboration must be encouraged, particularly through the use of shared space and shared equipment. A particular focus should be placed on elevating the work of the region’s engineering schools, given the promising intersections of engineering and health care, engineering and energy and engineering and advanced manufacturing.

• Promoting – The region’s leaders must work together to promote the region as an innovation hub, making particular appeals to venture capital firms seeking deals, young research and entrepreneur talent seeking a place to learn and grow and established entrepreneurs with regional ties who can help grow the next generation of start-up ventures.