Key Takeaways from the Texas MSTC Class of 2015

Just over a week ago, The University of Texas at Austin’s Master of Science in Technology Commercialization (MSTC) Program’s Class of 2015 walked across the stage to collect their diplomas from program director, Dr. Gary Cadenhead, and Dean Tom Gilligan of The McCombs School of Business.

Whether you ask our students, our faculty members, or our program staff, there is one answer that is identical across the board: MSTC is a whirlwind. Students start classes in early May, and just one year later they’re celebrating their completion of the program to the tune of “Pomp and Circumstance”.

Throughout our one-year business master’s degree program, our students learn a lot: a lot about business, a lot about innovation, a lot about each other, and–to be just a bit trite–a lot about life. With that in mind, we asked a handful of the members of the Class of 2015 to share with us their biggest takeaways from the Texas MSTC Program. We hope you enjoy their advice as much as we do!

MikeTulkoff“It is hard to believe that one year ago, I was waking up on a Sunday morning after launch week and thinking about how much there was to do. Now I’m up on Sunday morning thinking about how much we all have done. The best part of this program is all of the interaction between the students as well as between students and the fantastic faculty. I have learned a lot from all of them both inside and outside of class.

My key takeaways from the program are; recognize a market pain, figure out how to ease it, plan, plan, plan, and be persuasive. Throughout this year we have learned quite a few processes, tools, and frameworks that will suit us well going forward.”

-Mike Tulkoff, Independent Technology Consultant

Karyl

“The MSTC program was tailored directly to my interests and within the team structure, we were able to hone those interests even further. I am now leagues more confident in my business knowledge and can speak about concepts both abstractly and tangibly with confidence. With the curriculum, classmates, faculty and the McCombs brand behind me, new opportunities have presented themselves, and I have been equipped to take advantage of them. Now I have a new job fusing technologies together to help other companies see their innovations to fruition in the market, and it is incredibly fulfilling. I think I appreciated my degree a thousand times more after talking through a product manufacturing flow a client on my first day at work and likewise as I help formulate the stories we will tell to market to prospective clients. It was a marathon of a year, but I am so glad I did it.”

-Karyl Fowler, Business Development Specialist, Novati Technologies

 

Jonathan Cartmill
“Reflecting on how I have changed over the past year, I recognize my presentation, oral and written communication skills have dramatically improved. I am a very outgoing individual and have no fear of public speaking but this program definitely expanded on my communication skills. I also notice I approach problems much differently than before. I have learned how to ask the right questions and how to think about challenges in ways that will help drive a positive outcome. The best part of the program, however, has been my classmates because they come from many walks of life and have different professional experiences that truly enriched my MSTC experience.”

-Jonathan Cartmill, Technical Sales Representative, National Instruments

 

RainyaMosher-HeadShot-BlackAndWhite“I did accomplish what I set out to do and have successfully transitioned from Engineering Management to Product Management. This program certainly helped me reposition my personal brand and make the transition far more easily than it otherwise would have been. The conversations I am able to have today regarding markets, pricing, and general “the idea is great, but will anyone pay for it?” (with accuracy, gusto, and confidence) would not have been possible a year ago. The network of my fellow MSTC Class of 2015 is the real gem, of course! I am thankful to have grown my network by 70 or so amazing people.”

-Rainya Mosher, Product Manager, Rackspace

 

Britt2“The Master of Science in Technology Commercialization (MSTC) program was a significant game-changer for me. I retired out of the Navy with a solid grounding in risk assessment, operations, and execution – both at the tactical and strategic level – but quickly realized I did not have the vocabulary and foundation that my civilian counterparts had regarding how the corporate side functions. The MSTC program was a perfect bridge to creating that foundation. The conversations, questions, and concepts that I partake in today would absolutely not have been possible without the focused, rigorous curriculum that The University of Texas McCombs School of Business assembled in the MSTC program. It is hard to believe the difference between how I approach problems now and how I approached problems on day #1 of the program.” 

-Britt Talbert, Senior Program Manager, GM

 

If you’re interested in learning more about the Texas MSTC Program, we invite you to explore our website and visit a class. We hope to see you on campus soon. Hook ’em!

Dare Greatly to Change the World for the Better

IMG_0232The following post is written by Texas MSTC Class of 2015 graduate, Rainya Mosher. You can find this original post and more by Rainya on her blog

On 23 May 2015, myself and 65 other members of the cohort graduated from UT Austin’s McCombs School of Business with a Master of Science in Technology Commercialization. This one year Master’s program focuses on giving students the skills needed to take an idea, invention, or discovery through the immense amount of work needed to create and sustain a business. As my classmate Jonathan Cartmill said in his speech for the Teacher of the Year Award (given this year to Dr. Kate Mackie):

Just because you can detect salmonella doesn’t mean the chicken companies are going to pay you for it.

Tech commercialization is futuristic thinking grounded in the reality of the present. While brilliant thinkers, scientists, and engineers invent wonderful things every day, a commercialization expert ensures the invention connects to the real world in a meaningful way. This usually entails doing exhaustive research to find the group of someones who will pay to use the invention, and once these someones are identified, determining how much are they wiling to pay. It is a wonderful melange of business and science, finance and technology. Quite simply, it was the perfect degree for me!

Brett Hurt gave our commencement address with a message as timely and pointed as I could have asked for. A former entrepreneur-in-residence at McCombs, Brett is the founder of several successful startups and owns Hurt Family Investments. Below are my key takeaways from his brief but impacting speech.

On Tech Commercialization

There are many shortages in the world – food, water, energy, medicine among them. I challenge you to solve the world’s greatest challenges through technology commercialization. We are in the most amazing time in the history of the world for technology commercialization. The Internet and all its derivatives are being professionalized, making this period quite different from the dot com boom and bust of the ’90s.

On Books to Read

Watch less news. Read good books instead. Infinitely more thought has been put into them. This is where wisdom can be found. Specific books to inspire the dreamer in us all include: Abundance by Diamandis & Kotler; The Second Machine Age by Brynjolfsson & McAfee; and Man’s Search for Meaning by Frankl.

On Successful Entrepreneurship

The skills needed to to move from invention to a viable commercial product and finally to a prosperous business is what the MSTC program provides its graduates. Brett provided a reminder that some of the most important elements for success go beyond market validation and consolidated financial statements.

Live within your means

You’ll always feel rich (and be able to pursue your dreams) if you live within your means

Take time away from work

Take vacation time, even in the earliest stages of a startup, and use the time for deep reflection. Prioritizing time away to reflect on what you’ve learned and where you’re going. Some of the most important decisions affecting the direction of a company are frequently made while on vacation. If you don’t take the time to reflect, life and companies have a habit of running away with you.

Don’t forget your family

You’ll always feel stressed in some ways. There will be always be excuses on why you’re too busy to spend time iwth family. Don’t be that person who, on their death bed, regrets missing their children’s best years or wished they spent more time with their parents or partners. No matter how intense a business gets, time with family is truly just another choice you must make. Choose wisely.

Nourish your soul

If you lose your passion for a cause, stop pursuing it and find something else to ingnite the spark. Take a second look should you find yourself accepting a job solely on the basis of money or title. If you find you aren’t giving back either through your community or company, find ways to do so. Companies have souls that need to be nourished as well as people.

Take care of you

More important than all the other things is your health. Without health, nothing else is possible. You can’t enjoy the money your have earned or the time you spend with your family. The inner journey and maintaining health is as important as the outer journey and achieving success.

The Man in the Arena

Brett ended his speech with the famous “Man in the Arena” quote, taken from Theodore Roosevelt’s 1910 Citizenship in a Republic speech. This is perhaps my favorite quote of all time and fills me with strength in even the most difficult times:

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

So now, MSTC Class of 2015, with hoods, diplomas, and a hearty UT hook ‘em, we leave behind our classrooms for an arena full of possibility. There, we will dare greatly to change the world for the better. Of course, a healthy dose of profit alongside our world changing ventures won’t hurt, either!

**********

The full text of the speech is now available at http://lucky7.io/post/my-commencement-speech-for-the-2015-mstc-graduates-at-u.t.-austin