The following describes an "ideal" team makeup for the Rutgers I-Corps Site Program and is based on NSF's National I-Corps Teams requirements. Student teams may not exactly fit this model; two or more members constitutes a team. Please email i-corps@ored.rutgers.edu if you have any questions about team roles.
Team Roles:
The Entrepreneurial Lead (EL) manages the team's operations throughout the I-Corps process including Customer Discovery interviews, preparing and delivering weekly presentations, online Innovation Within activities, financial accounting for reimbursements. This person(s) is typically a student, graduate, postdoctoral scholar, staff member, or researcher who understands the technology and has a deep commitment to investigate the commercial applications for the innovation. The Entrepreneurial Lead should have a passion and commitment for entrepreneurship and the commercialization of the project's technology.
The Academic or Technical Lead (AL/TL) will typically be a faculty member, senior research scientist or inventor with deep and direct technical expertise in the actual core technology about which the I-Corps team is exploring commercial potential. Typically the Academic Lead will also serve as a Principal Investigator (PI) on proposals submitted to Government agencies such as NIH or NSF.
The Industry Mentor (IM) is typically someone from outside the university with ties to industry, understands industry trends, and how the innovation could provide value to the customer. He/She will advise the team on its progress through I-Corps and introduce the team to their industry contacts. Ideally, this person is an entrepreneur with experience in transitioning technology out of academic labs. The best IM is one that you've already aligned yourself with in the course of your research. However, if necessary, the Teaching Team will help your team identify one.