> Established in 2009> Social business spin-out from Planning and Environmental Management,

School of Environment, Education and Development in Faculty of Humanities> Founded by Dr. Joanne Tippett> A hands-on kit for creative engagement> IP - Trademark (EU and USA), Design Registration and Copyright> Research funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), Mersey Basin

Campaign and Sustainable Consumption Institute> Awards: Teaching Excellence Prize, Association of European Schools of Planning in

2011. Commendation by the Royal Town Planning Institute North West forcontribution to positive community engagement in 2013

www.ketso.com

COMPANY FACTFILE

“”

A social business that’s transformingcommunity andorganisational creativityDr Joanne Tippett, founder

SOCIAL BUSINESSCASE STUDY

UMIP®

SPIN-OUT

ABOUT BIOXYDYN LTD

Ketso is a social business, whichmanufactures and sells a hands-on kit forcreative engagement. The kit provides table-top tools to record and display ideas,enhancing group productivity andcreativity. It was founded by Dr. JoanneTippett during her ESRC-funded (Economicand Social Research Council) PhD andpostdoctoral fellowships.

Ketso is the first spin-out founded by afemale entrepreneur from the University’sFaculty of Humanities as well as being theonly (as of 2013) recorded spin-out in theUK from research funded by ESRC. Since itslaunch in 2009, Ketso has been used by over16,000 participants in workshops, in 35countries, with over 300 customers. In ananonymous survey in 2012, 88% of Ketsousers reported ‘substantive benefits’ fromusing the toolkit.

Ketso was awarded a commendation by theRoyal Town Planning Institute North Westfor contribution to positive communityengagement in 2013.

Joanne spoke to us about how she turnedKetso from a great idea into a burgeoningsocial business…

How was your idea conceived?

I invented Ketso because I neededsomething like it as a tool in my work and Icouldn’t find anything that suited my needs.I was working with villagers in rural Africa,planning for the future of their area and Ineeded to find a way to help them to thinkcreatively about alternative futures and toget everyone’s ideas on the table (especiallythe women’s ideas, as they didn’t tend tospeak up in mixed gendered groups).

The toolkit was then developed in my ESRCfunded PhD research at the University,working with the Mersey Basin Campaign,as a tool for gathering and making sense ofthe ideas of over 50 community membersand stakeholders in ecological planning. Atthis stage, it was still a hand-made tool thatI had created for my own research and

work. The research itself pointed out boththe value of the toolkit and helped me toclarify key principles of stakeholderengagement that informed its developmentinto a marketable product.

How did you further develop it?

During my postdoctoral fellowship (2004), Icreated an opportunity to test whether thecreative process could be employed by non-professional facilitators. I was approachedby several organisations, including theEnvironment Agency and Manchester CityCouncil, to run workshops. This was the firsthint that what I had developed might havemuch wider interest. I then had a classic'eureka' moment whilst sitting in aworkshop run by someone else, when Irealised that the toolkit could be used inany sort of workshop or situation wherepeople wanted to develop ideas and learnfrom each other.

After being appointed as a lecturer (2005), Iforged links with new partners (e.g.enterprise trainers at Cambridge andDurham Universities), allowing me to testand promote the kit in a wider range ofcontexts. The positive response inspired meto set up a social business – Ketso Ltd– inorder to extend the impact and reach of my ideas.

Why did you decide to set up a company tocommercialise Ketso rather than otherroutes such as licensing?

I wanted to take Ketso from a hand-madekit to a saleable product, which would alsogenerate social value throughout its supplychain. We realised that whilst there wasinterest in the product from a wide rangeof people in the early days, it was going totake a lot of awareness-raising to get it outinto the market and make it a success. Wedidn’t feel that a licencing agreement waslikely to bring enough commitment togetting the idea out into the world andbuilding enough interest in it to make itactually take root.

ABOUT KETSO

How did you find the process of setting upthe company?

It has been a steep learning curve, to saythe least. The advice from UMIP and UMIChas been very helpful. In many ways, wehave been learning together, as Ketso wasone of the early attempts by the Universityto commercialise a social business. I havereally appreciated how much effort thestaff in UMIP and UMIC have been willingto put in to work out how to do thingsdifferently – e.g. setting up a company thathas a social mission locked into its structure,but which is still flexible enough to havethe potential to attract future investment,and to explore new models of open sourceIntellectual Property.

It was also very helpful to have professional help to get Trademark andDesign Registration.

What would you say was the greatesthurdle to overcome? Did anything surprise you?

The biggest hurdle to overcome was realisingthat selling the toolkit required more of aparadigm shift than I had realised. I knewthat the toolkit could really help when youwant to engage with people and to workwith them to develop creative new ideas.What I hadn’t quite realised was that theextent to which we would need to promotethe need for such genuine engagement inthe first place. I thought the need would beclearly recognised, thus promoting a newtool that makes this easier and moreeffective would be the key task.

A related challenge has been that whilstmost people tend to really ‘get’ and likeKetso when they experience it, easilyrecognising the way that it helps them topull their ideas together quickly to createsomething bigger than the sum of theparts, it can be quite hard to encapsulate

that in a marketing message. We havefound that we have to get out anddemonstrate the kit in a wide range ofsettings, in order to get as many people toexperience it in action and see its potentialvalue as possible. This has been timeconsuming, and we are only now beginningto see the fruits of this activity, several yearslater, as Ketso is becoming better known.

Did you receive any funding?

I received some UMIP Proof-of-Principlefunding for getting IP registration andsorting out the legal structure of thecompany. UMIP also assisted with designregistration and general business advice.

What were your aspirations for gettinginvolved in a social enterprise?

My aspiration is to transform communityand organisational creativity through theco-production of knowledge. I designedKetso as a way to blend technical and layunderstandings: allowing voices which areoften ‘unheard’ to be included inengagement outcomes.

To amplify the impact of my research, I developed my knowledgeexchange activities around four keynormative principles:

Firstly, reach - creating a physical product toembody (formerly intangible) concepts ofengagement. Ketso can be produced atscale, meaning that thousands of peoplecan benefit from the lessons from myresearch without requiring me to runworkshops or train them directly.

Secondly, user-driven innovation – guidanceon creative engagement and workshopplans is available ‘open source’, toencourage wide-scale use and feedback.

Thirdly, accessibility – designing a highlyvisual and tactile kit that promotes inclusive dialogue.

Fourthly, partnership working – buildingand sustaining a global ‘community ofpractice’ of users, and working closely withpartners to support both learning and shiftsin professional practice.

How did you find the transition from theacademic to the commercial world?

It has been a challenge to encourageKnowledge Exchange whilst holding downa lectureship (and becoming a mum). Wedeveloped the business from scratch, withonly enough funding to secure IP and set upthe legal structure, leading me to beinnovative in my partnership working. Forexample, I ran capacity building events forall six of the UK Beacons for PublicEngagement, which has resulted inadditional engaged research in the Beacons,and helped us to get Ketso known by amuch wider network of people.

I have stuck to my vision, despiteencountering numerous barriers, seekingcreative ways to align my impact, teachingand research activities. Through this work Iwas awarded an international prize forteaching – the Association of EuropeanSchools of Planning’s Teaching ExcellencePrize, and recently had a co-authoredjournal article published about the use ofKetso in co-production of knowledge aboutdrinking water practices in Peru. Untilrecently, Knowledge Exchange was seen asless important than ‘pure research’, andwhilst this has improved (through the REFand other drivers) there are still fellowacademics and indeed journal editors, whoquestion the validity of a Humanitiesacademic engaging in a commercial venture.

When I embarked on commercialisation, itwas suggested that focusing time onmarketing would likely hinder my chancesof promotion. I have tried to overcomethese varied challenges by allying myselfwith others who sought cultural changeacross the institution. Today, Ketso is seen asan exemplar in developing a spin-off withinthe Humanities (I am often asked to speakabout Knowledge Exchange and SocialEnterprise), with both myself and theUniversity winning 2013 UNLTD awards forpromoting social enterprise.

Do you hold a different role within thecompany than you had previously imagined?

I had hoped by now that we would be in aposition to hire a Managing Director, but Iam still running the company. This is mostlydue to the effects of the recession on ourkey customers, which we have weathered.What is very encouraging is that this yearwe are in a position to hire a Sales andMarketing Manager, so hopefully we will beable to expand more rapidly in the nexttwelve months.

What factors do you feel are essential instarting and nurturing a company?

> Innovation – ability to see new ideas anddevelop solutions, including an ability towork ways around setbacks and obstacles.

> Perseverance and patience – ability tostick with an idea, as it will probably takemuch longer than you everdreamed possible.

> Resilience and adaptability under all sortsof unexpected twists and turns.

> Practicality – ability to solve problems andget products / ideas into action, includinga willingness to deal with every aspect ofthe business from mundane data entry, topacking orders for delivery’ to doing ‘Blue Peter like’ design projects in order todevelop and test prototypes.

> Partnership building – being able to bringtogether people from differentorganisations, units and backgroundsand working with them to get outcomesthat meet the diverse needs ofvarious stakeholders.

What do you feel are the benefits to theUniversity in engaging in the creation ofsocial enterprises?

> Enhanced reputation for innovation andimpact (which can include REF impactcase studies and REF publications fromengaged activities).

> Enhanced reach to potential students andresearchers, especially from spin-outs thatreach lots of people.

> Opportunity to develop workingpartnerships with other innovativeorganisations and individuals acrossthe world.

> Potential to attract funding forfurther research and knowledgeexchange projects.

Knowing what you know about technology transfer, what do you think of the Manchester System and Manchester’s commitment to theknowledge transfer agenda?

I think the University has shown realleadership in Knowledge Exchange, and Iam particularly pleased to see thedeveloping links with, and support for,Social Responsibility and Public Engagement within the agenda.

ABOUT BIOXYDYN LTD

Do you have any advice for otherManchester academics thinking of settingup a social enterprise?

I would suggest that you think very hardabout why you want to do this, as it is ahuge commitment, but it is very rewardingif it is a route that makes sense for you.Make sure that you have at least one, orpreferably all of the following reasons fordoing it:

> You really, really, really care about theidea or product that you are tryingto promote.

> You need to set up a company to get theidea out there (and you have exploredother options).

> You enjoy communicating with othersand marketing.

> You enjoy responding to challenges.

If you do have at least one, or preferablymore, of these reasons for starting acompany, then it can be an incrediblyrewarding, albeit challenging, experience. It certainly provides a way to increase the value and impact of your research and work.

What does the future hold for Ketso?

In the next year we will expand the use ofKetso in four key sectors, where we haveboth a good track record and a growinglevel of interest: health and wellbeing;environmental management (in particular inthe Catchment Based Approach),community planning, and engagement withvulnerable populations (e.g. with refugeeand asylum seekers, in prison education andpolice engagement with the community).

With our new product, mini-Ketso, we willbe moving into new areas, such as disabilitylearning support, grief counselling andmentoring, as well as individual use ofKetso, such as for writing or projectplanning. I will be conducting research intothe key factors underlying the value ofKetso in practice, as the basis for thedevelopment of eKetso. A long term aim isto develop a digital ‘Open LearningPlatform’ for collecting, analysing andsharing ideas that emerge fromparticipatory workshops worldwide.

KetsoTel: +44 (0)844 879 4483

www.ketso.com@KetsoLtd

© The University of Manchester Intellectual Property, 2014 UMIP is a division of The University of Manchester I3 Limited (UMI3) www.umi3.com

www.umip.com / @UMIPnews

“”

I wanted to take Ketso from ahand-made kit to a saleableproduct, which would alsogenerate social valuethroughout its supply chainDr Joanne Tippett, founder