It's 6 months since I completed the inagural Saltire Fellowship, and this weekend I had the privilege of meeting candidates for the 2010 fellowship programme.  This week, successful applicants will be getting phone calls, and will have to make the big decision...  I thought it was about time I updated my blog with what I'm up to at the moment in case it's of any help to any of the (potential) new guys.  My passion is commercialising new technology.  Before the fellowship I was CTO for a software company, but now I have a "portfolio career" helping a variety of companies at different stages get their ideas to market.

So here's what I did in the last week...

Tue 11th May - working at ATEEDA, my Externship B company for whom I now do two days a week.  I am currently doing some high level technical work so I was writing design documents ready for final implementation.  I also spent some time preparing a final draft of marketing materials for the forthcoming Design Automation Conference.  I also received an e-mail from a contact at SE who thinks they may be able to help one of their client companies - which might mean more work coming my way.

Wed 12th May - attended the EIE and TechCrunch conferences.  If the fellowship has taught me one thing, it's the importance of networking!  One of the companies I consult for was exhibiting so I kept half an eye on them (they did just great without any help from me!)  them, and met as many of the attendees and exhibitors as I could.  I made a few introductions between investors I know who attended and companies, and I have a few invitations for meetings with companies who need assistance of one sort or another.  Spent the rest of the evening (until rather late) at the after-party chatting to entrepreneurs and technologists - all very interesting and exciting.

Thu 13th May - back at ATEEDA.  Spent some time with our design company finalising the marketing materials for the DAC conference, and booked my flights for the event.  Spent the rest of the day writing up specifications for technical work.  I also called someone about a business opportunity I have spotted - they seem interested.

Fri 14th May - An early start to get to Cumbernauld to help assess candidates for the 2010 fellowship.  It was an intense day, but the quality of applicants was high and I met some outstanding individuals who I hope will join the programme.  After dinner most of the candidates went off to complete teamwork for the next day, leaving me to chat with the other Fellows, organisers and entrepreneurs involved in the assessment process. 

Sat 15th May - The final part of the assessment centre, then home for a friends birthday party.  Not before I have engaged another of the 2009 fellows as a potential partner in a new business, and got some really interesting thoughts from one of the fellowship advisory board which may be relevant to a company I'm talking to...

Sun 16th May - A day off, but I still spent a little time running numbers on the business opportunity I am playing with.  It's not a very big opportunity overall but it only requires a small investment of time and effort, it's pretty low risk, and the potential returns are pretty big in comparison with the investment needed.  It's essentially a JV, so I'll see how the other partners feel about my numbers...

Monday 17th May - Working for Contemplate today.  Interviewed someone to help with my Market Assessment project (mostly desk research) and plotted strategies for market entry with the entrepreneurs.  It's really interesting as I'm providing a mix of support for short term decision making and strategic marketing work.  Currently writing up parts of my report and preparing a template for competitor analysis.  The next thing on my to-do list is to figure out who I need to speak to later in the week to get advice - there will be at least one other fellow and some other contacts from the fellowship programme on that list!

The 14 fellows from the 2009 group are all doing very different things, and what I do certainly isn't everyone's idea of a good time.  I love it though - through the programme I have got to know a huge number of people in the technology commercialisation space from entrepreneurs to investors, from marketeers to technologists.  There is so much going on - much of it thanks to this network - that I really need two or three of me to do it all...  My wife has said that I'm not allowed to clone myself as one of me is quite enough (I'm sure anyone who has met me will agree) so I can't wait for the next lot of fellows to graduate - you're sorely needed out here!

If anyone reading this is currently debating whether to accept an offer, then congratulations!  If you need any help with your decision please don't hesitate to contact me, and I'm sure any of the other 2009 fellows would say the same.  I think we're all very happy to answer questions and talk about our experiences of the programme!