Entrepreneurial
To be entrepreneurial in our culture is to see potential in existing and future activity and to translate that into action and application.
The Eden Campus, Guardbridge.
1.
Entrepreneurial St Andrews will drive a culture shift in our University to strengthen our engagement with industry, business, and policy makers, and increase our capacity for innovation and value creation. We recognise that industry is increasingly setting the agenda for major funding priorities. Innovation is a key differentiator, and the demand for specific skills is growing. The current scale and pace of technological advancement are already posing fundamental challenges to society. St Andrews will need a step-change to engage fully to support innovation and deliver the education and skills that are needed for inclusive economic growth.
2.
Entrepreneurial St Andrews will build on our knowledge, and the ideas and drive of our staff and students, and will link these with the disruptive ambitions of investors, industry, and business to deliver holistic solutions. To be entrepreneurial in our culture is to see potential in existing and future activity and to translate that into action and application. We will bring together staff, students, industrialists, policy shapers, and investors in an ecosystem that fosters a culture of collaboration, curiosity, and constructive challenge that is cognisant of impact on people and society. We will also learn from other institutions where successful networks already operate. Universities are central to delivering innovation. Industry and business, however, are essential for its rapid deployment.
3.
At our Eden Campus, we have a once in a generation opportunity to develop a new model to bring together expertise, both internal and external, into an environment for experimentation, the development of new approaches, and their impact on public policy. The aim will be to create a network that enables others to work with our expertise and create opportunities for:
- Researchers – the translation of their knowledge and understanding into solutions for investors, industry, and policy makers
- Investors, industry, and policy makers – the innovative thinking required to assemble disruptive ideas to overcome major challenges
- Teachers and students – opportunities to enrich learning, giving students practical opportunities to apply their learning quickly and grow their enterprise
- Government and funders – an environment in which meaningful ideas can be explored and transformed into practical applications
4.
Entrepreneurial St Andrews will share across the University the approach catalysed at the Eden Campus, to embed an accessible model of engagement in our culture. It will create the support structures and networking needed to facilitate access to and translation of our ideas and knowledge.
5.
Entrepreneurial St Andrews will recognise the significant expertise in engineering found across our Schools and academic activities and will provide focus and support for the development of a larger collaborative community of engineers working in a broad interdisciplinary context that concentrates on translation.
6.
We need to create a culture shift to raise awareness of potential opportunities, to support and incentivise staff and students in progressing their ideas, with access to advice and facilities.
7.
Enterprise education will play a key element in these ambitions. In this context, entrepreneurship is seen as the application of enterprise capabilities into the creation of cultural, social, or economic value, which can also lead to venture generation.
8.
In a challenging financial environment, we will consolidate our resources and find imaginative ways to generate new income streams. We will create an investment pool for alumni, supporters, and third-party investors to benefit from and share in the acceleration of ideas from discovery to action. Wherever possible, the allocation of resources will be directed to where maximum value creation is anticipated.
9.
Entrepreneurial St Andrews will:
- Develop an entrepreneurial culture which attracts others to seek the development of solutions with the University
- Create support structures that enable effective engagement between researchers, industry, business, policy makers, students, alumni, and investors, and develop and support our enterprise education portfolio
- Enable start-ups to become active and sustainable enterprises
- Establish investment vehicles and opportunities for supporting sustainable innovation
- Develop a rounded strategy for the exploitation of intellectual property
- Ensure that entrepreneurial engagement is University wide, with a clear place for the Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences
- Develop a horizon-scanning environment to engage with leaders from industry
10.
We will deliver this by:
- Recognising and supporting staff and students with the initiative to innovate
- Creating a framework to stimulate and challenge the culture of entrepreneurship
- Developing and investing in the Eden Campus as a key catalyst and hub for entrepreneurial activities
- Enabling pooling and collaboration of expertise across disciplines
- Taking a disciplined and socially responsible approach to prioritisation and allocation of resources
- Promoting and developing enterprise education
11.
The progress of Entrepreneurial St Andrews will be indicated by the:
- Levels of industrial support for research activity
- Heightened networking opportunities for business and industry in St Andrews itself
- Proportion of start-up companies which become sustainable enterprises
- Levels of external investment and collaboration
- Additional income generated
12.
Activity levels and scale will be contingent on external investment and funding, and in addition fundamental investment will be required for:
- Fundraising, business case development, and relationship building
- The development of infrastructure at the Eden Campus
- Seedcorn funding alongside investors to encourage new enterprise
- Development of partnerships with industry to enable practical project opportunities for staff and students
Realising the Vision
We will always stay true to our values and the Homeric motto that expresses our determination to move forward with purpose, integrity, and success: Ever to Excel.