Research to Innovation Hatchery
Unlock the power of your research
Imagine transforming your research into a force that drives real-world change. The Research to Innovation Hatchery is designed to amplify your impact by exploring the tangible potential of your work if it’s unleashed through commercialisation. This programme will equip you with essential knowledge, skills, and capabilities in knowledge mobilisation and entrepreneurship, propelling your research to new heights.
Explore how you might empower your research to contribute to the world’s environmental, social, and economic prosperity through entrepreneurship. By participating in the Research to Innovation Hatchery, you’ll learn how to turn your research into actionable, impactful solutions through commercialisation. Open doors to new opportunities for your future projects and career.
Make a lasting difference with your research. Join the Research to Innovation Hatchery and become a catalyst for change.
Please note: This programme is exclusively available to postgraduate students (Master’s and Doctoral) engaged in research, as well as academic staff.
Register your interest to take part in Research to Innovation Hatchery in 2025.
Programme structure
The Research to Innovation Hatchery is a 12-week programme. The investment of your time will be paid back with new skills, knowledge and networks. Through online learning, group sessions, in-person workshops, customer interviews, and market feedback, participants are poised to discover how their research may have a far-reaching societal impact or unlock commercial opportunities.
The time commitment for the Research Innovation Hatchery is around 8 hours per week for the 12-week programme. If you are accepted in the programme, you commit to partake fully.
Learning outcomes
Throughout the Research to Innovation Hatchery programme, participants will learn about, apply and test how to translate their research project into practical applications.
Learning outcomes:
Gaining understanding of the idea to innovation process
Be able to apply entrepreneurial concepts, such as market validation, ideation, business model canvas to analyse challenges and create recommendations for future opportunities
Market validation
• Have identified areas for primary and secondary research for market validation
• Developed strategies for research mobilisation and commercialisation
• Have undertaken market validation conversations outside the University
Who should apply
The Research Innovation Hatchery is open to University of Auckland researchers of all disciplines.
The Research Innovation Hatchery is for individuals or teams who:
- Are motivated to make a difference through their research
- Are enthusiastic about exploring the real-world applications of their research
- See entrepreneurship as a possible way to do this
- Want help conceptualising what that pathway looks like
Whether the potential lies in commercialisation or societal impact, the programme helps participants harness the potential of their research.
All applications are shared with UniServices, ensuring that your research receives optimal protection and comprehensive support.
Benefits
By joining our Research to Innovation Hatchery, you will:
- Uncover opportunities for impact: Learn to identify and harness opportunities for both social and commercial impact, ensuring your research makes a meaningful difference.
- Learn and practise market validation: Test your assumptions through market validation, ensuring your research addresses a critical need.
- Prepare for investment success: Develop your research to attract potential venture investment, including opportunities from the $40m evergreen University of Auckland’s Inventors’ Fund.
- Build a transdisciplinary network: Connect with researchers from all faculties, providing you with a rich base for future endeavours.
Timing and commitment
Important dates and time commitments:
Semester One
- 2-3 April – Two day kick-off workshop 10am – 4pm
- 9 May – Midway workshop 10am – 4pm
- 26 June – Final presentations 10am – 2pm
- Weekly one hour group sessions and 30 minute online individual mentoring.
Semester Two
- 20-21 August – Two day kick-off workshop 10am – 4pm
- 25 September – Midway workshop 10am – 4pm
- 13 November – Final presentations 10am – 2pm
- Weekly one hour group sessions and 30 minute online individual mentoring.
Cost
No charge. While there is no charge to join the programme, there is a cost to the University. Therefore, all applications will be assessed to ensure the best outcome for you and the University.
Facilitation team
We will have a range of mentors and industry experts joining us for sessions throughout the programme.
Guy Bate
Guy is currently a Lecturer in Technology Commercialisation & Strategy at Waipapa Taumata Rau, the University of Auckland. Prior to entering academia, he worked for nearly 20 years in the pharmaceutical, health technology and biotechnology industries, leading strategy, new product planning, business transformation, and commercial operations. We are thrilled to have Guy on board as Academic Programme Director this year.
Anna St George
Anna has worked across sectors from Spark to Les Mills International, to start-ups to her own. In her roles she has provided data, insights and avenues for growth that validate a new direction in a straightforward way, even if it initially presents in a complex one, most recently in SaaS, primary industry, or impact companies looking for expansion. From bedding to health [just as a few], from B2B, performance-based models to brand building – there isn’t a lot she hasn’t covered including working deals with Google, building business cases, influencing App roadmaps and working in the trenches. She has delivered multiple commercialisation projects, with a consumer, communications and purpose driven lens. Anna is a future thinker, comfortable with complexity, has a good dose of creativity, while working across stakeholders groups and leading teams to bring it all together – tied tightly to business goals. She is a problem solver, a deep thinker and happy to jump into most things to find their source of truth and change it up, but always for the greater good of our people, planet and prosperity. We are thrilled to have Anna on board as one of our Hatchery managers this year.
Duncan Ledwith
Since moving to New Zealand from Scotland in 2005, Duncan Ledwith has been a driving force in the local start-up ecosystem through mentorship, education, investment, and more. He is widely recognised as a leading expert in market validation and has been involved in the Icehouse and CIE from the very start. His areas of expertise include early-stage and technology investing, international market entry, large-scale strategic partnerships, building international sales revenue, and science commercialisation. He has founded several successful start-ups and held senior leadership positions at Microsoft from 1990 to 2005. In 2022, Duncan was honoured as one of the Business School’s Star Volunteers for his unwavering support of Velocity and CIE programmes. We are thrilled to have Duncan on board as one of our Hatchery managers this year.
Craig Squire
Born in South Africa, Craig grew up in the Hawkes Bay and graduated from Victoria University with a BA/LLB. Initially a finance lawyer, Craig moved into Investment banking during his decade abroad in the UK. Craig returned to NZ, becoming a full-time Dad to his two girls while also managing several property development projects, investing in multiple start-ups, and starting two companies of his own (solar and sustainable property development in conjunction with local authorities). Craig has been involved in the Auckland tech start-up community since joining Ice Angels in 2011. In 2016 he completed a Masters in Innovation and Commercialisation at the University of Auckland’s Business School. This led to his involvement with most of NZ’s Crown Research Institutes (as well as Kiwinet directly), consulting on projects ranging from whole-portfolio and IP reviews and the provision of strategic advice to individual technology engagements, including both licencing and spin-outs. Craig’s sweet spot is complex technology that requires market validation. As a consultant, he specialised in market discovery – the on-the-ground engagement with potential customers to discover the problems worth solving and the product-market fit. With many years of engaging with complex science and potential customers and investors, Craig’s experience helps founders and early-stage investors move forward with confidence. Ensuring that the big questions have been asked and answered and a clear path to market (where identified) is able to be articulated.
How to apply
Are you ready to amplify the influence of your research? Embark on a transformative journey with our bootcamp designed to cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset and equip you with the skills necessary to drive significant impact through your research endeavours.
Important Note: Your applications will be shared with UniServices, to ensure your research receives protection and maximum support.
Reviews
“Participating in the Researcher Hatchery programme was an opportunity for me to learn the skills necessary to actively push our research towards commercialisation. I learned so much. The programme has taught me the importance of early engagement with potential customers. What we thought was an ‘important research need’ was only our assumption/hypothesis as researchers and could be very different to what customers view as important. The programme has given us a practical skill set to engage potential customers to test our hypothesis.”
Haruna Suzuki-Kerr
Research Fellow – Medical and Health Sciences
EMAIL
CIE@AUCKLAND.AC.NZ
POSTAL ADDRESS
THE UNIVERSITY OF AUCKLAND BUSINESS SCHOOL
PRIVATE BAG 92019, AUCKLAND
