Client Selection
KTC clients include engineers, scientists, entrepreneurs and others interested in commercializing technologies or other innovations that will enhance the overall mission of the KTC and the economy of Indiana. Companies entering the program are evaluated on their progress and needs and provided with business development assistance designed to better equip them for survival in competitive environments. KTC accepts high-potential clients who must meet at least one of the following conditions:

The company is involved in “high technology activity" that includes one or more of the following:
• Advanced computing, which is any technology used in the design and development of computer hardware, software, data communication, or information technologies.
• Advanced materials, which are materials with engineered properties created through the development of specialized process and synthesis technology.
• Biotechnology, which is any technology that uses living organisms, cells, macromolecules, microorganisms, or substances from living organisms to make or modify a product, improve plants or animals, or develop microorganisms for useful purposes. Biotechnology does not include human cloning or stem cell research with embryonic tissue.
• Electronic device technology, which is any technology that involves microelectronics, semiconductors, electronic equipment, instrumentation, radio frequency, microwave, millimeter electronics, optical and optic electrical devices, or data and digital communications and imaging devices.
• Engineering or laboratory testing related to the development of a product.
• Technology that assists in the assessment or prevention of threats or damage to human health or the environment, including environmental cleanup technology, pollution prevention technology, or development of alternative energy sources.
• Medical device technology, which is any technology that involves medical equipment or products other than a pharmaceutical product that has therapeutic or diagnostic value and is regulated.
• Product research and development.
• Advanced vehicles technology, which is any technology that involves electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles, or alternative fuel vehicles; or components used in the construction of electric vehicles, hybrid vehicles, or alternative fuel vehicles.

• The venture involves the licensing of intellectual property
• The venture offers employment to significant numbers
• A significant contribution to the Indiana economy is expected

One condition that must be met by all clients is they must be “highly leverageable” ventures in which rapid acceleration and growth in revenues and profits are considered possible. Companies offering products such as software, scientific devices, drug development and delivery, and advanced manufacturing technologies, tend to be preferred over firms providing consulting services to one client at a time (difficult to leverage).

Service Providers

North Central Indiana Small Business Development Center
Inventrek Technology Park
700 E. Firmin St., Suite 106
Kokomo, IN 46902
Ph: 765.454.7922

Kokomo Howard County Development Corporation
700 E. Firmin,
Suite 200,
Kokomo, Indiana
46902ph: 765.457.2000
email: info@khdc.org

Mentors
One of the key business development services highly valued by our client firms is access to seasoned business executives who are willing to mentor new ventures. Volunteer mentors must be willing to nurture and help cultivate these fragile young ventures as they make their earliest, most uncertain decisions about how they will enter targeted industries, and how they will compete with rivals. Since these mentors serve as volunteers, KTC seeks to minimize the burden arising from such a leadership activity. The mentors themselves are free to establish ground rules for their involvement with KTC clients with typical commitments being only 1-2 hours/month. The span of involvement varies greatly, however, and KTC would ask mentors to be willing to commit to advising the firm through their initial launch and development, the time of which may span one to two years.

Important credentials of effective mentors include the following:
• A servant’s spirit, and a willingness to be available to these young firms for brief sessions in which ad hoc phone counsel may be needed. Mentors should be willing to function as an “informed sounding board” with respect to key issues.
• A technical background or other specific credentials (education, prior work history, etc.) relevant to the proposed new venture. It is crucial that mentors and company founders be mutually equipped to discuss technical issues at a very high level to maximize the efficiency of those interchanges.
• A deep understanding of the competitive landscape of related industries and a willingness to share those insights with prospective ventures.
• A willingness to make crucial networking contacts and introductions for KTC firms at those times deemed appropriate by all participants. Mentors are under no obligation to make contacts for firms, especially when such contacts involve any kind of conflict with the interests of the mentor. When (and if) the firm reaches a point wherein such contacts and networking are deemed appropriate and useful for the ultimate success of the venture, it becomes the mentor’s option to make whatever introductions may be advisable in their sole discretion.
• A willingness to make key introductions to prospective members of the top management team. Most KTC firms are founded by entrepreneurs with an often world-class understanding of their respective technologies, which may not, however, be balanced by an equal grasp of key business practices and principles. Experienced business leaders are critically necessary for many KTC firms to achieve their full potential.

KTC mentors, therefore, constitute a critical element of the KTC Service Program. As anticipated, the need for broad participation by mentors from across multiple disciplines, and from divergent industries is growing rapidly. It is prudent, therefore, to cultivate a complex web of complementary relationships among KTC mentors.

Job Openings
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