Programme Speakers
Eleanor Taylor
Eleanor Taylor heads the £79m Proof of Concept Programme (PoCP), a unique Scottish initiative which supports the development of research concepts into commercial products or services.
The Programme has funded 225 projects in 9 years resulting in 43 new companies, 45 licence deals and the creation of over 500 jobs in universities and over 300 in spin-out companies. Successful PoCP spin-outs from Scottish universities have leveraged over £238m in post-PoCP funding. Companies include MTEM, D3 Technologies and Lumicure.
Eleanor joined Scottish Enterprise in 1982 after qualifying as a Chartered Accountant with KPMG. Eleanor has led PoCP since it was created in 1999. She is supported by a highly skilled team of eight, including two secondees from the academic sector. Working in close partnership with the academics, technology transfer offices, the private sector and others in Scottish Enterprise and the Scottish Government, the Programme supports the most promising technology projects and facilitates the route to commercial success.
In December 2005 Eleanor was elected as the first corporate affiliate committee member of Unico. Eleanor also works closely with AUTM and spoke at the annual conference earlier this year in San Diego when she was also invited to chair the Innovation Based Economic Development Group. She has been an invited speaker at ASTP annual meetings and will again be speaking in Ghent in 2009.
On 2nd December 2008, Eleanor became one of the first recipients of a prestigious new international award, the ScienceBusiness ACES Bridge Award, inaugurated to recognise the growing importance of innovation in modern society and the vital necessity of improving links between the academic and business communities.
PoCP is acknowledged as an exemplar of best practice and cited to be copied within the UK in the Sainsbury Review in October 2007. She is now working with the UK Technology Strategy Board to map proof of concept funding in the UK and examine best practice. She is also participating in a working group set up by the Kauffman Foundation in the US to discuss what can be gained from building a larger network of Proof of Concept Centers.
