Business of Biotechnology

TRBIO410

Discusses the fundamentals of building and operating biotechnology-based companies

Course Director: Abubakar Jalloh
Term: Spring
Credits: 3

COURSE DESCRIPTION
The biopharmaceutical sector is vital to the economy of major U.S. cities. Local and state governments are increasingly encouraging people to join or move to their regions to contribute to the growth of new biotech hubs. This growth relies on the involvement of academic researchers, start-up founders, and experienced professionals from established companies. These individuals must compete or collaborate to convert scare resources -- or better yet, renewable resources -- into tangible benefits for humans, the ecosystem, and our built environment.

This course is therefore designed to prepare future founders, funders, and operators to thrive in an uncertain marketplace. We will begin the course by forming teams of 4-5 "co-founders" of a fictitious startup whose asset would be licensed from Scripps Research. Grading is heavily weighted in favor of group activities over individual assignments. As such, individuals are accountable to their teammates/"co-founders" for performance in the class.

The course will cover four matrixed modules that are built from the perspective of a future technical founder. Each module would be punctuated with assignments/deliverables that are tied to the lecture at hand:

  • Module 1:
    • Lectures: Bayh-Dole Act & The Origin of Academic Tech Transfer; Corporate Law Consideration for NewCo Formation
    • Deliverables: Individuals would submit bio, demonstrate LinkedIn presence, and review a list of Scripps Research assets that they are considering for their fictitious NewCo
  • Module 2:
    • Lectures: Intellectual Property, Contracts, and Compliance
    • Workshops & Deliverables: Business Model Canvas, Team Formation, Company Name, Elevator Pitches
  • Module 3:
    • Lectures: Partnerships (Build, Buy, Sell), Negotiation, The Startup from an Operator's Perspective
    • Workshops: The Art of Pitching
    • Deliverables: updated Business Model Canvas
  • Module 4:
    • Lectures: Product Development & Lifecycle, Clinical Trial & Regulatory Compliance, Health Economics
    • Workshops & Deliverables: Pitch Deck and Executive Summary drafts
         

View Syllabus

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