Commercialization CatalystTM
Researcher Development for Research Translation
Commercialization Catalyst™ helps institutions intentionally build the engagement capabilities researchers need to participate effectively in research translation.
Research Translation Depends on Researcher Engagement
Research institutions have invested extensively in the teams, programs, funding, and partnerships that support research translation. But these pathways still depend on researchers engaging effectively with the stakeholders who help evaluate opportunities and move research toward impact.
Most researchers receive little intentional preparation for these broader engagement responsibilities. The capabilities required are typically developed through individual experience, informal mentoring, repeated exposure, or not at all.
Researcher engagement is an institutional capability that can be intentionally developed.
The RAMP Framework for Researcher Engagement
Commercialization Catalyst™ develops researcher engagement capability through the RAMP Framework, which organizes the capabilities researchers need to participate effectively in research translation into four interconnected domains.
Together, these four domains provide a practical framework for developing the capabilities researchers need to engage stakeholders, communicate value, and contribute more effectively to research translation.
Four Capabilities. Built for Real Research Translation Interactions
Each RAMP domain develops a distinct dimension of researcher engagement. Together, they help researchers understand their role, recognize what matters to stakeholders, communicate their work with clarity and relevance, and navigate high-value interactions effectively.
Researcher Role
Clarity of Engagement
Participants learn: How researchers contribute to research translation, the roles and expectations of key stakeholders, and practical ways to engage across teams and organizations while building trust and sustaining momentum.
Participants gain: Greater clarity about their role in research translation and how intentional engagement helps strengthen interactions and move opportunities forward.
Audience Awareness
Alignment with Decision-Making
Participants learn: How different stakeholders evaluate research opportunities, the questions and concerns they bring, and how to anticipate their priorities and adapt communication without sacrificing technical rigor.
Participants gain: Greater ability to recognize stakeholder priorities, anticipate questions, and adapt communication to support understanding and informed decision-making.
Messaging Mastery
Translation to Insight
Participants learn: How to select communication strategies based on audience and context, translate technical content into stakeholder-relevant language, and construct clear, credible messages that encourage productive discussion and action.
Participants gain: Greater ability to design clear, audience-appropriate messages that communicate significance, establish credibility, and support informed decision-making.
Powerful Presentations
Clarity of Delivery
Participants learn: How to structure presentations around audience needs and decision points, prepare for stakeholder questions, and adapt in real time during presentations and conversations while maintaining credibility and confidence.
Participants gain: Greater confidence communicating in live settings, adapting to audience responses, and engaging stakeholders in ways that help opportunities move forward.
Why Researchers Choose to Participate
Researchers participate in Commercialization Catalyst™ because the program helps them engage more effectively in situations that are increasingly part of research translation.
Rather than asking researchers to become entrepreneurs, salespeople, or commercialization experts, Commercialization Catalyst™ equips them with practical capabilities they can use in industry conversations, sponsor meetings, site visits, review panels, and cross-functional interactions.
Participants gain greater clarity about their role, greater ability to understand stakeholder priorities and communicate the relevance of their work, and increased confidence navigating high-value interactions, without requiring a change in identity or research focus.
Award-Winning Researcher Development
Commercialization Catalyst™ and Oak Ridge National Laboratory received a 2025 Federal Laboratory Consortium Technology Innovation Award recognizing their collaboration to strengthen researcher engagement in research translation.
From Learning to Application
Commercialization Catalyst™ is designed around practice, not just content delivery. Participants apply the RAMP Framework through structured preparation, real-world scenarios, coaching, feedback, and repeated practice.
Execution Playbooks
Tools for Application
Participants use reusable tools, frameworks, and AI-enabled resources to prepare for, navigate, and reflect on stakeholder interactions.
What it builds: Greater ability to apply the RAMP Framework consistently across different stakeholder situations.
Practice + Feedback
Capability Building Through Practice
Participants apply their learning in realistic situations, receive feedback, refine their approach, and practice again. Depending on the format, this may include peer feedback, expert coaching, and sponsor feedback.
What it builds: Greater confidence and effectiveness applying RAMP capabilities in dynamic, real-world interactions.
Learning Experience
“It’s important for researchers to be able to effectively explain their technologies in non-technical terms to entrepreneurs and business owners. This coaching program gave researchers a lot of practice and the professional feedback needed to gain confidence in presenting to business leaders.”
Dr. Jennifer Caldwell, Director of Technology Transfer, Oak Ridge National Lab
Choose the Level of Development That Fits Your Goals
Organizations differ in how broadly and deeply they want to build researcher engagement capability.
Commercialization Catalyst™ can be delivered as a half-day workshop or as a cohort-based short course.
Both experiences are grounded in the RAMP Framework and can be tailored to your institution’s research translation environment.
Workshop
Best for: Broad Exposure
Format: Half-day workshop
Participants: Researchers; institutional partners welcome
Experience: Learn • Apply • Practice
Outcomes: Shared language • Practical tools • Initial skill development
Short Course
Best for: Targeted Capability Development
Format: Multi-session cohort-based short course
Participants: 8–12 researchers; institutional partners welcome
Experience: Learn • Apply • Practice • Reflect • Refine • Rehearse • Receive feedback • Individual coaching
Outcomes: Stronger messages • Audience-ready presentations • Q&A readiness • Greater confidence • Demonstrated engagement capability
Stronger Researcher Engagement. Greater Institutional Value
Commercialization Catalyst™ helps researchers become better equipped to prepare for stakeholder interactions, communicate the significance and relevance of their work, respond effectively to questions and feedback, and adapt their approach as opportunities evolve.
For institutions, stronger researcher engagement helps research translation systems operate more effectively and existing investments deliver greater impact.
Built from Experience Across the Research Translation Landscape
Commercialization Catalyst™ was created by Dr. Angelique Adams, an engineer, educator, and innovation leader with more than 25 years of experience leading engineering, research, and innovation organizations and developing technical professionals.
Her work spans industry, national laboratories, and research universities, giving her a cross-sector perspective on the engagement capabilities researchers need to work effectively with the stakeholders who help move research toward impact.
Dr. Adams is the Founding Director of the Leadership in Engineering & Entrepreneurship Program at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and host of the Mastering Engineering Leadership podcast.
She holds a Ph.D. in Energy and Mineral Engineering from Penn State and an MBA from MIT.
Build Researcher Engagement Capability at Your Institution
If Commercialization Catalyst™ aligns with your researcher development needs or research translation priorities, let’s discuss what the right level of engagement could look like for your institution.