Zuas is focused on Knowledge Exchange and driving Impact in the university sector.

We bring expertise and experience across customer discovery, user centered design, supply chain scale-up, branding and marketing execution, and raising investment.

Zuas upskills individuals and teams, delivers pre-accelerator programmes and supports new ventures. We work in partnership with Knowledge Exchange and Technology Transfer teams.

We have supported more than 25 universities and research institutes.

 
 

Upskill individuals and teams

Zuas delivers training and skills development workshops for academics and early career researchers that span the range of activities needed to move the output of university research into the outside world. Our workshops are interactive, high-energy, and fun.

We build capability in:

Diagnosing and developing opportunities

Business planning and
raising investment

Marketing and pitching
your idea

Working with industry and
external organisations

We deliver training in partnership with Business Development and Knowledge Exchange / Knowledge Transfer teams. We tailor all workshops to the specific needs of the participants.

How we work

The Zuas team bring approaches, tools and conceptual models from design, business, marketing and entrepreneurship, and a wealth of innovation experience across different sectors and industries.

We believe in ‘learning by doing’ and encourage participants to work on a real opportunity (even if it is only an early idea). Our workshops are interactive, high-energy, and fun.

We support academics and researchers from all faculties and disciplines.

If you would like to discuss your upskilling needs, please contact us.

Accelerator and pre-accelerator programmes

Zuas delivers short accelerator and pre-accelerator programmes for individuals and teams who are looking to progress exciting opportunities, but who have had only limited exposure to business so far in their careers.

We customise programmes as required. We have delivered successful programmes at 10 universities to date, with many participants going on to form spin-out companies subsequently.

If you would like to explore how Zuas can create and deliver an acceleration programme for you, please contact us.

  • Duration: four weeks

    Four one-day sessions, delivered face-to-face, or eight half-day sessions delivered virtually.

    One-to-one sessions with participants.

    Participants work to explore, validate and build their opportunity. The strongest of these can move forward into a formal accelerator or fellowship programme, or be taken forward independently by the PI and their team.

  • Duration: four months

    Interactive workshops to explore and build the opportunity.

    Engagement with potential customers and partners to validate the potential.

    Hands-on support to clarify the business model, build the business plan and pitch to investors.

    Training in all facets of establishing and running a business.

    Participants will have built and validated a business concept, and be ready to pitch for the funding necessary for start-up.

  • Duration: one year

    Interactive workshops to explore and build the opportunity.

    Extensive engagement with potential customers and partners to validate the potential.

    Hands-on support to clarify the business model, build the business plan and pitch to investors.

    Product and service prototyping.

    Training in all facets of establishing and running a business.

    Participants will have built and validated a business concept, and pitched for the funding necessary for start-up by the end of their Fellowship.

Opportunity activation

We support researchers and fledgling teams who are validating opportunities and driving towards the creation of high-potential start-ups. There isn’t a full team yet, so inevitably there are gaps in skills and capability that limit ability to deliver.

The Zuas team possesses design, marketing, technical and financial skills and experience. We fill the critical gaps, and enable the fledgling business to hit the key value-enhancing milestones that unlock follow-on funding.

We support or take the lead on:

Opportunity feasibility and customer discovery

Design for users, design for manufacture

Supply chain scale-up

Branding and marketing execution

Finance and fund raising

Why Zuas?

Zuas is focused on Knowledge Exchange and driving Impact in the university sector, and has supported more than 25 universities and research institutes. 

We are a team of expert practitioners. We bring expertise and experience across customer discovery, user centered design, design for manufacture, supply chain scale-up, branding and marketing execution, and raising investment.

Our mission is to accelerate and maximise the impact of research, to bridge the gap between academia and industry and to empower people to address global challenges for business, society and the planet.

We are flexible in how we support our customers, and deliver upskilling and other interventions at a time and place convenient to the academics and early career researchers who participate.

 Meet the team

 Case studies

Optimising the corporate ecosystem

 
 

  • The pitching phase was particularly useful. It consolidated ideas and allowed me to ensure my ideas were succinct.

    Accelerator participant

  • The balance between lecture and group work – it’s timed perfectly.

    Accelerator participant

  • Friendly, useful, encouraging atmosphere. Broke down business concepts into manageable pieces.

    Pre-accelerator participant

  • We made more progress in four days than we had in the previous nine months on our project.

    Accelerator participant

  • It was pitched perfectly to our needs.

    Workshop participant

  • Excellent insight into how to start a business.

    Worshop participant

  • I have never learnt so much in such a short amount of time.

    Workshop participant

  • Really gives you structure and a deeper dig into the commercialisation process.

    Workshop participant

Contact us.

We would love to hear from you, and discuss how we can support you. Book a conversation here, using Calendly.

info@zuas.io
(+44) 203 773 7280
(+353) 86 822 8707