The University of Michigan’s Fast Forward Medical Innovation (FFMI) team is working in close partnership with U-M’s CTSA organization MICHR to support educational programs for all learners on the commercialization of biomedical research and innovation.

The FFMI fastPACE program, based on LEAN Startup principles, is customized to help busy clinician-researchers and scientists better understand how to successfully put their research innovations on viable paths to commercialization through a process of accelerated value proposition analysis and customer discovery.

“It was wonderful to meet with a group of experts across multiple institutions who see a common vision of how we could broaden our impact in the lives of our patients.”

“This provided exactly the information I need to bring a recommendation forward for commercialization education at my institution.”

“I came away with a number of ideas for improving my workshop and enhancing how I work with our funding programs.”

To date, our Train-the-Trainer program welcomed 21 institutions from across the country:

FFMI fastPACE

In April 2021, FFMI launched its 14th cohort of this 4-week biomedical commercialization and innovation course designed for the busy medical academician with an early stage biomedical product idea.  This course blends in-person and online education to help faculty researchers and clinicians prepare a successful business case for funding and partnerships.

Train-the-Trainer for fastPACE

In parallel to fastPACE, participating CTSA organizations had the opportunity to observe our expert teaching team and learn how to launch this program at their home institutions, providing their biomedical faculty with the knowledge and tools necessary to navigate the initial process of innovation and commercialization. This 4-week course is a hands-on collaborative learning experience. This past session’s participants included: UT Southwestern, Medical College of Wisconsin, UC San Diego, University of Mississippi, Columbia University, Ohio State University, and University of North Carolina.