Planning collaboration opportunities with universities
Our first stage in developing a collaboration with a university is conducting in-depth research to identify the right opportunities. While we have a diverse set of opportunities on a semester-basis, we only develop projects that meet specific structural and legal criteria. After an initial discovery phase with faculty members, we define a framework for the collaboration to present to potentially interested companies.
Creating the mutually beneficial match
In this stage, we focus on developing the right match for both the university and the company and clarifying expectations for both sides. First, we identify the mutual interest shared by the client and faculty member. Next, we facilitate an hour-long conference call in which both parties discuss mutually beneficial projects. Finally, we develop the framework for the collaboration and document expectations from all parties involved.
Tools and best practices for efficient and effective communication
Communication between students and the client can be very difficult to manage and poor planning can derail the overall intent of the project. There is no one-size-fits-all formula for designing the expectations for communication in these collaborations. Our process considers the requirements of the course as well as the timing and flexibility of the participating client. We also use tools such as private online communities and other secure web and mobile apps to manage this communication.
Presenting the ideas in a useful medium
At the end of every project, we arrange for the entire class to deliver an in-person presentation to the participating company. But what happens after the presentation is over? Early on we realized that simply sending a set of PowerPoint presentations was insufficient. So we brought a designer on board to organize, categorize, and print the presentations as a beautiful hardcover book. We found that small improvements in the way we deliver the information to the client makes a big difference in the way the client is able to disseminate the information internally.
