Blast Furnace Podcast #18 – Life Science Entrepreneurship with Mike Flock, Ph.D.
The Blast Furnace is the University of Pittsburgh student accelerator that provides student entrepreneurs with the knowledge and skills they need to commercialize their ideas. The program gives students of all levels from anywhere in the University access to a deep mentor network, co-working space, and a hands-on, experiential curriculum. The Blast Furnace podcast is the latest addition to the accelerator and shares real experiences from entrepreneurs for early-stage and University startups.
In this episode, Greg Coticchia, Director of the Blast Furnace, and Alan Martello, Blast Furnace Entrepreneur-in-Residence, interview Mike Flock, Ph.D. from the Clinical & Translational Science Institute (CTSI) at the University of Pittsburgh.
Mike Flock, Ph.D. is the Innovation Core Manager for the Clinical & Translational Science Institute (CTSI) at the University of Pittsburgh where he is responsible for implementing novel funding programs such as the Pitt Innovation Challenge. Mike has a Ph.D. in Nutritional Sciences and before joining CTSI worked in the food and supplement industries as a clinical nutrition scientist where he coordinated clinical studies in collaboration with academic experts and communication efforts effectively translating research findings. Mike enjoys interdisciplinary research, engaging with individuals from across a range of fields, and applying findings from basic science to enhance human health and well-being.
In this Blast Furnace Podcast, Mike describes to Greg and Alan what ‘Life Sciences’ is and discusses entrepreneurial opportunities in the Life Sciences. He describes how the Pitt Innovation Challenge (PInCh) works and how it can empower entrepreneurs to take their Life Science idea to the next step. Life Sciences has its own challenges and Mike encourages entrepreneurs with a Life Sciences interest to extend themselves ‘outside their comfort zone’. He mentions the challenges of time and money delivering some products to market (like medical devices and drugs) and highlights that not all Life Sciences products have a significant time or financial need.
Greg Coticchia is the founding director of the Blast Furnace Student Accelerator at the University of Pittsburgh Innovation Institute. He is a serial entrepreneur involved with a number of successful exits and has been actively advising and mentoring startups for many years. Greg's latest book is called Start Your Startup Right.
Alan Martello has a Ph.D. from the University of Pittsburgh and is an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the University of Pittsburgh Blast Furnace Student Accelerator. Alan bootstrapped an international software company over 20+ years before orchestrating a successful exit to a public company. Today he focuses on mentoring startups and entrepreneurial education including his successful book, the Entrepreneur Coloring Book.
Blast Furnace Podcast #19 – Entrepreneur Mentors: Alan Martello Interviews Greg Coticchia on Entrepreneur Mentors
In this episode, Greg discusses with Alan some key insights around mentorship. Greg starts off sharing why people often don’t look for a mentor early in their career and how students today are more likely to embrace mentorship compared to entrepreneurs 20-30 years ago. Mentor relationships also typically change over time as we grow and our business changes, and Greg examines why this happens. Greg describes his own personal journey with mentors and how they have directly increased value to his business over the years. Greg wraps up with suggestions on the relationship between entrepreneur and mentor and how mentors working with entrepreneurs can be more effective. Look for more podcasts by clicking here or following us on Twitter or Facebook @pittinnovates.
Interested in continuing the discussion in person?
Join us for Entrepreneurial Café! Greg Coticchia also hosts the ECafé; it's a place for Pitt students across campus to meet like-minded peers and established entrepreneurs.
The next session is November 3, 2017, with University of Pittsburgh Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business and Pittsburgh Entrepreneurs Forum. ECafé will host two speakers, Barry Rabkin, Chief Marketing Officer at Identified Technologies, and Jack Mason, Director of Entrepreneurial Studies at Duquesne University's Palumbo Donahue School of Business.
Mark Your Calendar
Save the date for Blast Furnace Cohort 6 Demo Day. See Pitt students pitch their startups live at William Pitt Union! Demo Day is December 7, 2017, at 5 p.m. Register to attend by clicking below!
