Melissa Heffner

The objective of this article is to support student and faculty researchers who endeavor to commercialize their technology. We share our experiences as evidence-based lean start-up instructors who coach fledgling start-ups as they attempt to spin out intellectual property from within research institutions. Our instruction is deeprooted in customer discovery-the act of talking with and observing customers to ensure that the solution provided best fits their needs and, as a result, will more… Show more

The objective of this article is to support student and faculty researchers who endeavor to commercialize their technology. We share our experiences as evidence-based lean start-up instructors who coach fledgling start-ups as they attempt to spin out intellectual property from within research institutions. Our instruction is deeprooted in customer discovery-the act of talking with and observing customers to ensure that the solution provided best fits their needs and, as a result, will more likely bear the fruit of a successful commercialization effort. Show less

The objective of this work is to support our colleagues in building classroom rapport. We share our experiences transitioning an in-class graduate team-based engineering entrepreneurship course to a virtual classroom in Spring 2020. These experiences are placed in the context of fundamental research in rapport-building and online education. In our course, where engineering students must shift out of their comfort zone and interview stakeholders, we demonstrate the importance of estab- lishing… Show more

The objective of this work is to support our colleagues in building classroom rapport. We share our experiences transitioning an in-class graduate team-based engineering entrepreneurship course to a virtual classroom in Spring 2020. These experiences are placed in the context of fundamental research in rapport-building and online education. In our course, where engineering students must shift out of their comfort zone and interview stakeholders, we demonstrate the importance of estab- lishing rapport to maintain open communication channels for meaningful discussions. The enduring elements of classroom rapport include instructor openness, clear communication/guidelines, and usage of a web-based learning management system. Show less