General
1) What does 4th Level Ventures do?
2) Are there any job opportunities connected to 4th Level Ventures company formation process?

Inventors
1) I've made a discovery that I feel would make a good commercial product. What should I do?
2) What is Intellectual Property?
3) What is a Business Plan and why is it important?
4) What is Seed Funding and is it available to university/third level institution spin-out Companies?
5) I am an academic. What kind of risks/rewards can I expect on creating a spin-out?
6) I am interested in learning more about entrepreneurship and commercialisation. Where can I go?
7) I am a university student. What rights do I have over any intellectual property that I create?


Investors
1) Where can I find out more about 4th Level Ventures existing portfolio?

General
1) What does 4th Level Ventures do?
4th Level Ventures is a €25 million Venture Capital Fund managed by Dolmen Securities. Founded in 2002, we are focused exclusively on investing in companies whose IP (Intellectual Property) arises from third level education institutional research. We are sector neutral, our expertise lies in the commercialisation of technology.
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2) Are there any job opportunities connected to 4th Level Ventures company formation process?
For more information, please see 4th Level Ventures Executive Opportunities Panel section

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Inventors
1) I've made a discovery that I feel would make a good commercial product. What should I do?

Talk to 4th Level Ventures about it. We will first sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement with you. Our staff will assess your invention for its commercial potential and guide you through the various legal and financial implications. You should not release any information about your findings until we decide what to do with it.

The section "commercialising technology" will provide you with more information about the commercialisation process.

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2) What is Intellectual Property?

Intellectual property(IP) includes:
• Patentable inventions or technologies.
• Ideas with potential commercial value
• Software which can be copyright

IP allows people to own their creativity the same way they can own property, which means that IP creators can control its use. IP protection is therefore an important first step in the commercialisation process.

Look under Intellectual Property Strategy below to find out more.

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3) What is a Business Plan and why is it important?

A business plan is an outline of your business proposition. It should detail the size of the business opportunity and your plans for building a business organisation (including the resources required).

A generalised business plan should contain the following elements:

• Executive summary
• Product or service description
• Description of the management team
• Markets and competition
• Marketing and sales
• Business system and organisation
• Implementation schedule
• Opportunities and risks
• Financial planning and financing

A well-written plan is crucial to a start-up company's eventual success. It serves two main functions:

• It allows outside investors to evaluate the new company as a prospective investment.
• It allows company founders to understand their business objectives and formulate a strategy.

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4) What is Seed Funding and who is it available to?
Seed funding is usually the first funding for early-stage technology-related ventures that enables them to progress to the stage when they can attract the next stage of funding or realise profit from license deals.

4th Level Ventures University Seed Fund is a Eur 17 million fund. Emerging companies can apply for seed money (up to Eur 500,000) from the fund.

For more information on our sources of funding, see our funding section.

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5) I am an academic at an Irish University. What kind of risks/rewards can I expect on creating a spin-out?

Spinning-out technology can be a complicated business, requiring commercial and management skills not necessarily common to academics. University commercialisation staff can facilitate the process, but it still requires a large time investment, depending on your involvement with the new company.

There are no guarantees of success for new technology companies, but their chances can be improved by good business strategy implemented by a strong management team.

High risks are offset by potentially high returns. At company formation, you will receive an equity stake in the new company. The size of your equity stake depends on your role in company going forward; Obviously company founders who are active in progressing the company will receive a larger stake and have more to gain from the company's success.

You should also be prepared to let go of your technology. Although your research may form the basis of a spin-out company, that company is driven by the commercial staff, who have their own means of achieving the business vision. In order to achieve success, all parties must be allowed a say in the company's future.

For more information on what you stand to gain from commercialising your technology, please see rewards from commercialisation.

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6) I'm interested in learning more about entrepreneurship and commercialisation. Where can I go?

4th Level Ventures participates in programmes, seminars and master classes run by Irish Universities. These programmes are intended to teach commercial and entrepreneurial skills to the college’s research faculty. To find our more, contact your local University Commercialisation centre.
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7) I am a university student. What rights do I have over any intellectual property that I create?

Generally, a student owns any Intellectual Property (IP) that he or she has created. However, there are several exceptions to this rule:

1. Students who are sponsored: Sponsored students should check the terms of their sponsorship agreement, as it may include a clause turning over ownership of IP developed during the period of sponsorship to their sponsors.
2. Students working on a sponsored project as part of their coursework or research: The research contract may stipulate that any IP developed as part of the project belongs to the sponsor. The supervisor should inform the students before starting the project. In such cases the students will be required to assign any resulting IP to the University.
3. Students who are working on a project that derives from the IP of academic staff: This will largely apply to postgraduate students e.g. should Trinity College or UCD wish to exploit IP originating from the project, the student will be required to assign their IP to their respective college.

If there is any doubt in the matter, please talk to a member of Innovations staff.

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Investors

1) Where can I find out more about 4th Level Ventures existing portfolio?
Have a look at our Investment Portfolio pages.