FAQ

Is entering the competition secure?
The ICI Innovation Awards website is hosted on a secure server in the United Kingdom. At the initial step you are simply asked to submit an intention to apply, which involves a simple on-line form. You will be asked a few simple questions to confirm your eligibility and a brief 200 word outline of your idea or business. This outline will be treated in confidence by the Awards team and ICI Secretariat. Although every effort is taken to prevent your information from the public domain, we ask that you ensure that you do not disclose confidential information in your initial summary application. If you progress in the competition you will be asked to disclose further details to the Judges who will be covered by a confidentiality agreement to protect yours and their interests.

What should I put into my 200 word summary?
The way you describe your idea is often called an elevator pitch. If you have to describe your idea to someone in an elevator within 30 seconds – could you do so? (note: you should assume this person is a lay person and knows nothing about you or your field). If you cannot then you clearly haven’t thought through the proposition enough and haven’t summarised it effectively. You need to be able to demonstrate three key elements to your entry, namely: the novelty; commercial viability; and potential benefits to patient care.

In your brief 200 word summary, you must describe the innovation. What type of innovation is it? (eg a service, a medical device, software, a diagnostic or a therapeutic). Who is it for? (eg is it for diabetics, elderly patients, adolescents etc); State the stage of development (eg is it a concept, at prototype stage or alpha (product undergoing internal testing), beta (product in clinical trials), a pilot study or is it in production.); State the stage of the project/company (are you pre-incorporation, a private company or listed on a public market?).

We recommend at the initial stages that you do not disclose any confidential information in your 200 word summary.

For guidance purposes only, an unfocussed and hence poor entry will begin:

Venous ulceration represents a major problem for diabetic patients and accounts for more days in hospital than any other diabetic complication. Lower limb amputation is much commoner amongst the diabetic than the non-diabetic population, and both this and foot ulceration are frequently due to diabetic neuropathy. The pathophysiology of diabetic neuropathy is complex and is often preceded by external trauma on top of sensory loss and biomechanical changes. The prevalence of venous ulcers is very high and can be a significant drain on healthcare resources both in terms of nursing time and cost of dressings, and are very burdensome to the individual patient. I am a researcher working for a hospital in Neverland and in 1999 we decided to try to invent a new treatment for ulcers as in a paper published in the Journal of Venous Ulceration and Diabetes it was stated that “there is a need for new therapies”. Our innovation is……

Despite being very useful information, it waits right until the end to “get to the point” and you may have lost the Judge’s interest before you have even described your innovation.

In contrast, a much better application might begin:

For an early stage technology:
This innovation is a medical device used for treating venous ulcers. A US patent has been applied for. The innovation is at a concept stage and the business is privately owned and pre-incorporation. The global market for wound care products was in excess of $6.2 billion in 2006 and continues to grow, largely driven by aging of the population, increased incidence of diabetes and continued advances in technology. Our innovation is…..

The same technology in a more advanced format:
This innovation is a medical device used for treating venous ulcers. Patents have been granted in four countries. The innovation is at a Beta stage of development and the team have formed a private company to be used as the sole vehicle for commercialisation of the technology. The company has raised $250,000 to date from private sources and is now looking to raise a further $1.2m, offering 30% of the company. The global market for wound care products was in excess of $6.2 billion in 2006 and continues to grow, largely driven by aging of the population, increased incidence of diabetes and continued advances in technology. Our innovation is…..
Good Luck….

When is the closing date for entries?
The entry process is divided into two stages. Initially you should register your intention to apply. This is simply to check that you meet the eligibility criteria and for you to provide a very brief outline of your idea. This process is carried out on-line. Your application will not be reviewed by the Judges at this stage. You will then be invited to complete a more detailed application which will be forwarded on (anonymously) to the Judges. You will be sent this form by email to the email address provided in the outline application.

The closing date for full applications is midnight on the 27th September 2012.
We therefore urge applicants to submit their intention to submit as soon as possible as this will provide you with the maximum possible time to complete your full application.

What time commitments will entering involve?
If you are shortlisted to pitch to the Judges you will need to be available to do so on Sunday the 2nd December 2012 in the venue of the ICI Meeting, where the ICI Academy of Innovation is taking place. Although the pitches take place at the same time as the Academy of Innovation, this is an entirely separate event and is closed to the public and hence your pitch will be confidential between you and your team and the Judges. You will have just 8 minutes to concisely pitch to the Judges followed by 20 minutes of questions and answers. You will be allocated either a morning or afternoon slot.

If you are successful in being chosen to be one of the two finalists, then you will be invited to pitch once more to the entire ICI Meeting delegation on Tuesday 4th December. The overall winner will be decided by a vote from the delegation and the winner will be announced at the closing ceremony of the ICI Meeting on the 4th December. You will therefore need to be available for the full duration of the ICI Meeting if you intend to enter the competition.

What is the monetary value of the Prize?
There is no monetary prize for winning the ICI Innovation Award. This is because it is deemed that a small financial token is unlikely to help your innovation progress. In contrast, the ICI Innovation Award shall be a highly sought after and prestigious accolade and winning is likely to improve your chances of securing investment. In addition, winning will allow you to gain:
• Critical endorsement and recognition by peer review
• Useful feedback and guidance that might be very difficult to obtain elsewhere
• Targeted exposure and publicity to raise yours or your company’s profile
• Exposure to the investment community
• Access a valuable support network