Mission

TIF built its rigorous vetting platform on internal and external expertise, as well as exhaustive longitudinal research from worldwide respected sources, such as the Kauffman Foundation. Built into our platform are the sources, types, requirements and opportunity requirements of deal selection that, together, make our filtering system the most consistently accurate of any we have compared ours against.
Part of “sourcing the right deal” involves “having the right deal flow to consider”. An investor can only select from deals he or she is invited to view. To this end, we have built strong relationships with groups ranging from federal, university and corporate research labs, to a growing number of national and international entrepreneurial and inventor forums. Our deal flow quantity and quality are both of an entirely different magnitude than even well entrenched regional investor groups. With this international expansion roll out we are now undertaking, which includes international offices for IP syndication, we WILL secure our branded place in the global marketplace as the desired partner for IP commercialization.

While the product, industry, team and nuances of every deal are, of course, unique, research and real world data prove that certain elements of every deal remain the same. Certain “orders of operation” are proven to apply to commercialization activities regardless of domain. Certain pitfalls appear consistently at various commercialization junctures. With a proper road map or framework, these pitfalls can be anticipated and avoided. Without such a road map, they will likely be deadly or at least very damaging to commercialization momentum.
While our standardized platform is of paramount benefit to the individual portfolio company’s success, it is ultimately a key element in our ability to scale and commercialize game-changing innovations in mass. We are able to create a repeatable process….a “factory” utilizing proven and replicable elements of “intellectual machinery”, bringing a level of cognitive throughput to this industry that is long overdue.

Our managed streamlined launch process reduces burn rate by as much as 70%. We eliminate the start-up company’s widespread yet erroneous need to “spend money before its time”, or “to spend money in excess based on false assumptions”.
For example, a new company does not need a Chief Executive Officer, CFO, CMO, or even sales personnel and various forms of administrative personnel, until that technology or company reaches a more advanced stage of development to justify this commitment of resources.

The company established milestones based on 5 business model stages. If the milestone is not achieved, a business case will be created to either adjust the milestone or slow down spending until the milestone can be achieved. Unlike traditional models, whereby the burn rate is difficult to dismantle, the company can adjust spending per the real world need’s of the business model, and not be driven by perverse incentives of the people who run the business and generally want to increase spending as a solution to problems and barriers which inevitably arise.
What is often required instead, is to stop or decrease spending of a certain focus, if that focus is proving to be the less than the optimum path to success. This involves a commitment, and requirement via our governing framework, to constantly subject the startup executive to iterative evaluation and adjustment to insure all resources are hyper-focused on achieving the greatest and most effective return.

The company utilizes a “Stop Loss” function as part of its operating practices. This function, combined with a “Streamlined Launch” and Custom Built Management Teams, provide an unprecedented portfolio management program. Every company brought into the portfolio is examined and slotted into a track, complete with governing parameters. If a technology fails to meet a milestone, or shows signs of underperforming, the company can immediately curtail or stop spending until it is cleared for revival or removed from the portfolio.
Contrast this with the typical startup in which the entrepreneur would have to come off payroll or give money back to investors in order to accommodate the same strategy. This is simply not a likely scenario.

The company executes an established management strategy that provides skilled interim management until selected milestones are reached within the portfolio company. This allows TIF to secure the “right management team” at “the right time”, and to hold them accountable to specific objectives. Unlike traditional models, if a member or members of a management team don’t perform, with our TIF model, they can be replaced to ensure our commitment that placing the success of the innovation is held in high priority above all else.
TIF well recognizes that a primary factor of a company’s success is its PEOPLE. TIF also recognizes that a primary factor determining a company’s failure is in having the wrong PEOPLE. Our model firmly establishes a process where we leverage the critical element of “THE RIGHT PEOPLE AT THE RIGHT TIME” as a core element of overall success.

Companies created for incubation intend to award management with standardized, equity-based incentives as a technique to ensure the leadership and management teams have “skin in the game”, while keeping expenditures low and management motivation high. Properly aligning incentives between leadership management and investors is essential.