New business startup program message sent to UW-Madison faculty and staff

Using a new communications technology known as “rich media,” the Office of Corporate Relations (OCR) at the UW–Madison has begun distributing a message to those faculty and staff who may be considering starting a new business based on their research work at the university.

The message outlines the purpose and basic elements of the UW–Madison New Business Start-Up Program, which has been created by OCR as an additional service to faculty and staff who would like counsel and support in the development of new business ideas.

Combining a two-minute video message from OCR Assistant Director Allen Dines with a set of PowerPoint slides, the rich-media message was sent via e-mail to faculty and staff who subscribe to the campus e-mail news wire. Additional distribution of the message is planned for the beginning of the next school year.

In addition, the message has been posted on the OCR Web site.

Dines, who serves as manager of the new program, says, “The program has been designed to augment and complement those many other outstanding programs available on this campus and in our community to support entrepreneurism.

“The primary objective of the program is to help create, support and sustain new startup companies based on UW–Madison research. Our secondary objective is to help build a stronger Wisconsin by creating new businesses in what is often called ‘the knowledge economy’ of the 21st century.”

He adds, “Taking these two objectives together, this program is another good example of the Wisconsin Idea at work in the world around us.”

The message was developed and produced with Velocity Systems of Madison.

For more information, contact Patrick Strickler at (608) 262-7840 or pstrickler@wisc.edu.