Staff Editorial: New economy lessons

One year ago, Penn set out on an ambitious plan to bridge the gap between academic innovation and commercial success.

The program, P2B, originally called for the creation of four high-tech "incubators" to develop and fund new business ideas from within the Penn and Philadelphia communities. The first of the four divisions, dubbed PenNetWorks, officially started operations last October with the goal of funding 7-10 new ventures in its first year of operations.

In that regard, both P2B and PenNetWorks have succeeded. Ten new ventures owe at least part of their early success to the University's outreach efforts, and there is much reason to believe that future proposals will reach similar success with the assistance of Penn and its commercial partner, the Redleaf Group.

But with a year of experience under its belt, it now appears that not all of the early visions of P2B were entirely on-target. Changes in the economy -- especially as they relate to new technology start-ups -- have challenged the viability of four separate business entities, thus forcing P2B to concentrate on a more reasonable two: a scientific arm, and one focused on educational outreach.

That change in orientation is a wise one, considering the unpredictable nature of the current economy and the ever-evolving nature of technology. Pushing forward unreasonable business plans would expose the University to unreasonable risks, and P2B's management should be commended for reworking their original strategy to handle the change in demand.

While P2B attempts to find its proper niche in the development field, other Penn departments could learn from its experiences. Hi-tech initiatives -- such as those concerning distance learning and the use of the Internet -- have become very popular at Penn in recent years, but have never come a thorough critical analysis.

Now that a few years have passed since these endeavors, like P2B, have got underway, it may be wise for Penn officials to review their effectiveness and make changes to account for the rapid -- and unpredictable -- technological changes that await us in the future.

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