TechBites networking event promotes collaboration between companies and academics
Science and spectacle
TechBites is all about hard science spiced up with a bit of entertainment. The atmosphere is professional but easy-going. The events always follow a similar pattern that ensures that they run like a well-oiled machine and stay within the allotted timeframe of under three hours. The events begin with refreshments and informal networking before moving on to the actual programme. The programme is divided into three rounds.
Round one
The first round comprises three keynote speeches. The keynote speeches explore technological phenomena, applications and future trends that interest both companies and researchers. The keynotes are researchers from the University. One of the keynotes may be a representative of a partner company. Previous partner keynotes have come from Axon, Rolls-Royce, Nokia, GE Healthcare and Tampere Tramway Ltd.
Keep your eye on the ball!
The second round is called Pitch and Catch. Researchers pitch their topical research themes or projects to companies. The goal may be, for example, to find new collaboration partners or gain new research perspectives.
The pitchers who get to wear the team jersey are pitted against each other to capture the audience's attention and receive as many TechBites bills from the audience as possible. After hearing all the pitches, the audience members select the ones that they found particularly fascinating.
The playground beckons
The third round, Science Playground, is an arena for in-depth discussion. As the pitchers proceed to the stands marked with their jersey number, the audience members gather around the stands of their favourite pitchers. The pitchers collect their assigned TechBites bills from the audience members, who have written on the bills their contact information and perhaps a concrete idea for collaboration or additional questions and comments. The bills facilitate active dialogue between the participants and help them explore potential collaboration opportunities. Being more specific than calling cards, the bills also serve as a tangible reminder for researchers to move the collaboration forward later on.
"The Impact Canvas® developed by the University can also be used as a starting point, especially if the participants are looking to examine the impact of a specific research theme from different angles", says Leena Köppä.
Köppä serves as a coach and facilitator at the Science Playground together with Raúl Berlanga. They provide pre-event support and sparring to help pitchers deliver their top performance at TechBites.
"The third round ends with counting how many TechBites bills each pitcher received and which audience member handed out the most bills. The winners of this playful contest will naturally receive prizes, although useful contacts, fresh perspectives and new collaboration partners are the ultimate prizes of TechBites," says Leena Köppä.
Participate in the event
The event is organized by Tampere University. If you are interested in content collaboration in future events, please contact Head of Collaboration Services Pasi Vakaslahti or TechBites producer Marjut Kemiläinen.
Contact person
Pasi Vakaslahti
Head of Collaboration Services
Pasi Vakaslahti
