The University of Bath’s Advancement Office – responsible for building impactful relationships with alumni, friends and donors – has announced the winners of its very own Dragon’s Den competition, now in its second year.
This year, the competition aimed to identify and create opportunities for rising academic stars across the University who are in the earlier stages of their careers, to amplify their work.
Academics Dr Kate Fraser and Dr Melusine Pigeon, from the Faculty of Engineering & Design, were awarded £1,000 from the Alumni Fund for their pitch on developing an artificial heart for women. Their pitch detailed the groundbreaking work of Team Bath Heart, an award-winning team of students designing, prototyping and testing an artificial heart to compete against teams worldwide. As the academic leads for the team, the pitch was delivered by Dr Fraser and Dr Pigeon at both a semi-final and final to six entrepreneurial ‘Dragons’.
"Participating in the Dragon's Den was a useful experience since we got a chance to see interesting projects from across the University,” says winner Dr Fraser, “and how different researchers approached the task of pitching for funding. We got some great feedback from the Advancement Office on our pitch, and we look forward to implementing the feedback received from the Dragons."
Fellow award-winner Dr Pigeon adds, "We’re thrilled to have won this prize. It’s a fantastic recognition of our collective effort and teamwork. Thanks to everyone who supported us along the way. We will make great use of this prize to strengthen our proof of concept."
The Dragons on the panel were a group of entrepreneurial Bath alumni and friends including Sharon Flood, Murray Kenneth, Nick Wood, Jon Craton, Jon Lee and Dr Andrew Chalmers. The pitches were assessed on a range of criteria including accessibility and appropriateness; content; impact and outcomes; expertise and experience and audience engagement. When it came to this year’s winners, the Dragons were particularly impressed by the student involvement in the project and that the research was tackling a real need and gap in the market.
Academics who entered – nominated by their deans within their faculty – had the opportunity to pitch their ideas directly to potential funders, while engaging in conversations with university leaders and academics about philanthropy and project opportunities.
They also received bespoke coaching with their assigned Advancement Office relationship manager on how to pitch to a philanthropic audience.
Professor Tim Ibell, Dean of the Faculty of Engineering & Design, nominated the winning academics, as well as Dr Leen Jabban for her research in biomedical engineering: "This award is terrific recognition of the impactful and internationally leading research which Melusine and Kate, and all in their teams, undertake. Well done! And congratulations to Leen and her team’s work too.
“I’d also like to thank the Dragons and all in the Advancement team for ensuring that research with impact means exactly that. Celebrating such extraordinary expertise and talent is simply wonderful.”
Other projects pitched as part of the competition included research on how group identities can help and hinder transitions towards more sustainable futures, user-centered design in biomedical engineering, and the intersection of retailing, shopper marketing and technology, among many others.