Adapting the Industrial Stage-gate® Process to Create A Novel Master's Degree Innovation Curriculum

363 This article describes the creation of a novel product-driven master’s degree curriculum in translational medicine based on the industrial Stage-Gate® process. Stage-Gate is an essential tool used by top industrial companies to successfully manage complex development processes for products like medical devices and drugs. Intimate knowledge of this tool is key in the translation of a brilliant concept to a successful product. Currently, Stage-Gate is predominantly taught to high-level executive leadership personnel or in business-related graduate programs. Unfortunately, this “top-down approach” does not leverage the full workforce that is involved in the process. A skilled workforce on all levels, including graduate-level technical experts, is desired by industry to reduce costly ramp-up resources and to boost the attrition rate of successful new products.