Lynall named Avrum and Joyce Gray Director of the Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship at Purdue

Matthew Lynall

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Matthew Lynall, clinical professor in Purdue University’s Krannert School of Management, is the new Avrum and Joyce Gray Director of the Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship, effective Friday (Dec. 4).

Purdue’s Board of Trustees approved the naming on Friday.

Lynall brings extensive experience in entrepreneurship and tech commercialization. Since joining Purdue as a full-time faculty member in 2009, he has focused on developing educational programs and resources for faculty and graduate researchers across Purdue and the Midwest to commercialize their discoveries.

Currently, Lynall serves as the faculty principal investigator (PI) and director of the Purdue site, and as a co-PI and director for the Midwest node, of the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps), an experiential entrepreneurship program for faculty and graduate students to understand the potential value of their technology and inventions to society. He also is a Deliberate Innovation for Faculty Fellow with the Purdue Foundry, mentoring Purdue innovators on commercialization, collaboration and entrepreneurship.

Before Purdue, Lynall had a distinguished career in industry as a partner and senior vice president in the entrepreneurial consulting practice at Ernst & Young, the president and general manager of Linread Canada, and a product manager at Nortel Networks.

These credentials make Lynall an ideal candidate for the directorship, said Theresa Mayer, executive vice president for research and partnerships.

“As someone with industry and entrepreneurial experience who has worked closely with many researchers, entrepreneurs and investors, Dr. Lynall knows what innovators need to turn their discoveries into marketable products and services,” Mayer said. “Additionally, because he is already integrated with several entrepreneurial programs at Purdue, Lynall is well-positioned to build upon the center’s legacy of creating impact and value for Indiana, the nation and the world.”

Located in Purdue’s Discovery Park, the Burton D. Morgan Center is best known for its Business Model Competition, one of the oldest competitions of its kind in the United States. The center is a key component of Purdue’s “ideas to impact” entrepreneurial ecosystem, which also includes the Certificate in Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program, the I-Corps, the Purdue Foundry, the Purdue Research Foundation’s Office of Technology Commercialization, the College of Engineering’s John Martinson Entrepreneurship Center, and other initiatives in Purdue’s colleges, schools and departments.

“I’m excited about serving and collaborating with the faculty, staff, students and alumni in all of Purdue’s entrepreneurial programs to elevate our capabilities for translating science into marketable products and services,” Lynall said.

One of the other flagship programs that operates out of the Burton Morgan Center is the Certificate in Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program, which Nathalie Duval-Couetil directs. Launched in 2005, and housed within Purdue’s Office of the Provost, it’s one of the largest multidisciplinary entrepreneurship programs in the country, serving approximately 1,800 students from across campus each year.

“I collaborate with Dr. Lynall as a co-PI on Purdue’s I-Corps activities, where we have a unique opportunity to model how a research university can involve students and faculty in technology commercialization in a way that informs their research and benefits society,” Duval-Couetil said. “As the Gray Director, he will serve as a bridge to the Purdue Foundry so that we can maximize this opportunity.”

Located in the new Convergence Center for Innovation and Collaboration, the Purdue Foundry is an initiative of the Purdue Research Foundation that helps students, faculty and local alumni move ideas to the marketplace more quickly. The Foundry offers a variety of services, including Firestarter, a cohort-based workshop through which innovators can validate their ideas while learning practical methodologies for a successful business launch.

Wade Lange, vice president and chief entrepreneurial officer of the Purdue Research Foundation, directs the Purdue Foundry.

“The Purdue entrepreneurial ecosystem is privileged to have someone with Dr. Lynall’s unique set of experiences and keen intellect in our midst. The Foundry has a long history of successful collaboration with Lynall and the Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship, and we are looking forward to building upon that strong base to accelerate the growth of entrepreneurship at Purdue,” Lange said.

A graduate of the University of Western Ontario with an MBA and a Ph.D. in business administration, Lynall earned his BA with joint honors in engineering science and economics from Oxford University. Lynall has taught at the Richard Ivey Business School, University of Western Ontario, and has led corporate executive programs in business transformation and change management in North America, England, Europe and the Middle East.

“As a land-grant institution, Purdue University is deeply committed to translating faculty, staff and student research into valuable companies and products,” Lynall said. “We have an impressive track record and outstanding people and resources, and I think of all us in the entrepreneurial sphere at Purdue see an opportunity to take these activities to the next level. This is a great time to be at Purdue.”

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a top public research institution developing practical solutions to today’s toughest challenges. Ranked the No. 5 Most Innovative University in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, Purdue delivers world-changing research and out-of-this-world discovery. Committed to hands-on and online, real-world learning, Purdue offers a transformative education to all. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue has frozen tuition and most fees at 2012-13 levels, enabling more students than ever to graduate debt-free. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap at purdue.edu.

About the Avrum and Joyce Gray Directorship

The Avrum and Joyce Gray Directorship was established in 2006 through a gift from the Avrum Gray Family Fund. The directorship honors entrepreneur and Purdue alumnus Avrum Gray and his late wife, Joyce Beth Gray.

About the Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship

The Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship fosters and stimulates the understanding and application of entrepreneurship with faculty and students across the Purdue campus and with stakeholders throughout Indiana and the world.

About Discovery Park

Discovery Park is a place where Purdue researchers move beyond traditional boundaries, collaborating across disciplines and with policymakers and business leaders to create solutions for a better world. Grand challenges of global health, global conflict and security, and those that lie at the nexus of sustainable energy, world food supply, water and the environment, are the focus of researchers in Discovery Park. The translation of discovery to impact is integrated into the fabric of Discovery Park through entrepreneurship programs and partnerships.

Media Contact: Angela K. Roberts, 765-366-6522, akroberts@purdue.edu

Sources: Matthew Lynall, mlynall@purdue.edu

Theresa Mayer, tsmayer@purdue.edu

Nathalie Duval-Couetil, natduval@purdue.edu

Wade Lange, lange44@purdue.edu

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