Lean Canvas for Invention (LCI)
National Science Foundation IGE 2105489 Project Summary
The Pilot: The Lean Canvas for Invention (LCI): A Team Based Framework for Research Development and Mentoring is a bold, new, and trasformative approach to STEM graduate education and training. In this proposal, we pilot, test, and validate the effectiveness and feasibility of the Lean Cavas for Invention framework, hosted within a course for research teams (faculty plus students) within the College of Engineering at the University of Utah.
The Innovation: The LCI is a new program to help research teams identify and think through a key research problem and its most valuable research questions, and plan and implement both their joint and individual research and career trajectories. Their exploration will reach beyond the traditional scientific literature and experience and will include innovation triggers such as patent literature, business reviews, and personal interactions with key stakeholders. We have recently piloted the basic LCI, with excellent success. Faculty have readily adopted this approach with their teams. In this project we propose to add mentoring and career development aspects to the LCI. Thus, the LCI can provide a program that fits naturally with the way engineering research is typically done and provides a structure that enhances the team research experiences, and the quality of mentoring and career preparation.
Student Population and Justification for Inclusion: The LCI approach is ideal for engineering, where basic research leads to inventions and eventually to innovation and commercialization. Often called translational research in the medical field, we will apply the LCI approach for research teams in Engineering (Electrical and Computer, Mechanical, Chemical, Civil and Environmental, Nuclear, Bioengineering, Materials Science, and Computer Science). The rapid growth of the high tech sector in Utah has driven rapid growth in the college, and the opportunity for enhanced mentoring and career development for both students and faculty, which the LCI team-based model helps provide.
The Team:
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Cynthia Furse (PI) Links to an external site. Electrical and Computer Engineering University of UItah |
Donna Ziegenfuss (coPI) Links to an external site. Marriott Library University of Utah |
AJ Metz (coPI) Links to an external site. Educational Psychology University of Utah |
Karen Tao (coPI) Links to an external site. Educational Psychology University of Utah |
Arabella Bhutto Links to an external site. (Sr. Investigator, with a focus on business) Prof. of Business and Vice Chancellor SABS University (Pakistan) |
Alfred Mowdood Links to an external site. Marriott LIbrary (Patent Specialist) University of Utah |
Talllie Casucci Links to an external site. Marriott LIbrary (Patent Specialist) University of Utah |
Intellectual Merit
The purpose of this study is to examine the impact and feasibility of the team-based LCI framework. We hypothesize that this novel framework will improve graduate education by: (a) helping students develop their research objectives and critical thinking and develop the skills and knowledge to be successful in their discipline, (b) enhance the quality and effectiveness of peer and faculty mentoring relationships to create a more inclusive and supportive research environment, and (c) facilitate graduate students’ professional competencies, vocational literacy, career identity, workforce readiness, and lifelong career management for a broad range of STEM careers.
Broader Impacts
The LCI piloted in this project will help train the next generation of skilled STEM professionals. There is a strong need for this workforce in the U.S. In Utah, specifically, there has been an ever growing demand for engineering professionals, as our technical industries expand and new companies move in. The LCI will help better-prepare graduate students to enter this diverse workforce. The LCI helps research teams identify their most valuable research questions, after investigating the needs in industry. As such, the LCI naturally feeds into the Lean Canvas for Business and the prospect that research coming out of LCI-enabled groups will be more likely to be commercially viable. These are strong positive impacts for society. But the most important impacts may be on the individuals themselves. The value of every single engineering graduate student is tremendous in their potential to make a positive impact throughout their career. Giving each of these individuals a more positive and embracing experience in graduate school is a huge personal impact.
Resources:
We have recently converted this course to an online course. If you are an instructor who would like access to the materials to share with your students, please reach out to the project team (cfurse@ece.utah.edu)
- Textbook https://www.igi-global.com/book/converting-ideas-innovation-lean-canvas/313179 Links to an external site.
- Cynthia Furse, Karen Tao, A.J. Metz, Donna Ziegenfuss, and Arabella Bhutto,” An Innovative Graduate Education Course – Lean Canvas for Invention,” IEEE International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation and USNC-URSI Radio Science Meeting, Portland, OR, July 23-28, 2023 Download Cynthia Furse, Karen Tao, A.J. Metz, Donna Ziegenfuss, and Arabella Bhutto,” An Innovative Graduate Education Course – Lean Canvas for Invention,” IEEE International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation and USNC-URSI Radio Science Meeting, Portland, OR, July 23-28, 2023
- Free Online Workshop Version: Cynthia Furse, Donna Ziegenfuss, Alfred Mowdood, Tallis Casuchi, “Engineering Entrepreneurship: Lean Canvas for Invention (Free Online Workshop for IEEE APS),” Oct. 23, 2023
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Cynthia Furse, A.J. Metz, Karen Tao, Donna Ziegenfuss, Arabella Bhutto, “WIP: The Lean Canvas for Invention (LCI): An Integrated Framework for Research Development, Matrix Mentoring, and Career Development Training,” Frontiers in Engineering Education Conference, Oct. 13-16, 2024, Washington, D.C. Download nthia Furse, A.J. Metz, Karen Tao, Donna Ziegenfuss, Arabella Bhutto, “WIP: The Lean Canvas for Invention (LCI): An Integrated Framework for Research Development, Matrix Mentoring, and Career Development Training,” Frontiers in Engineering Education Conference, Oct. 13-16, 2024, Washington, D.C.
AJ Metz, Karen Tao, Donna Ziegenfuss, Arabella Bhutto, Cynthia Furse, “Enhancing STEM Graduate Education: The Design, Development, and Piloting of a Course to Promote Reesarch Innovation, Mentoring, and Career Readiness,” 2024 Hawaii International Conference on Education, Waikoloa, Hawaii, Jan. 3-6, 2024 Download AJ Metz, Karen Tao, Donna Ziegenfuss, Arabella Bhutto, Cynthia Furse, “Enhancing STEM Graduate Education: The Design, Development, and Piloting of a Course to Promote Reesarch Innovation, Mentoring, and Career Readiness,” 2024 Hawaii International Conference on Education, Waikoloa, Hawaii, Jan. 3-6, 2024
Cynthia Furse, Karen Tao, A.J. Metz, Donna Ziegenfuss, and Arabella Bhutto,” An Innovative Graduate Education Course – Lean Canvas for Invention,” IEEE International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation and USNC-URSI Radio Science Meeting, Portland, OR, July 23-28, 2023 Download Cynthia Furse, Karen Tao, A.J. Metz, Donna Ziegenfuss, and Arabella Bhutto,” An Innovative Graduate Education Course – Lean Canvas for Invention,” IEEE International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation and USNC-URSI Radio Science Meeting, Portland, OR, July 23-28, 2023
Cynthia Furse, Arabella Bhutto, “Entrepreneurship: Getting Your Research “Off the Bench” and Out Into the Real World,” IEEE Antennas and Propagation Magazine, 61(1), 2019, pp. 139-142.
Arabella Bhutto, Cynthia Furse, "Bridging Academic Inventor-TTO Manager Schism: A Tool - the Lean Canvas for Invention", First International Triple Helix Summit Links to an external site. on “The Role of Government / Academia / Industry in building Innovation-based Cities and Nations” Nov. 10-13, 2018, Dubai, United Arab Emirates https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-23898-8_5 Links to an external site.
Donna Harp Ziegenfuss, Cynthia Furse, ‘Opening Up Collaboration and Partnership Possibilities: ReValuing Library Resources, Skill Sets and Expertise,’ Special Issue of OCLC Systems & Services: International Digital Library Perspectives, 2016, 32(2), 103-116. 2017 Highly Commended Award from Emerald Publishing.
Sponsored by the National Science Foundation under grant IGE-2105489