Chad Hardaway, The Office of Economic Engagement at the University of South Carolina

The Office of Economic Engagement (OEE) was formed in 2013 at the University of South Carolina to better connect businesses with the resources of a top-tier research institution.

The OEE offers businesses  one point of contact at the university. Four critical functions are now all housed under one roof: 1) technology commercialization, 2) the USC/Columbia Technology Incubator, 3) the Innovista Research campus, and 4) the Corporate Solutions Group.

Under this organizational structure, the Office of Economic Engagement builds academic and industry partnerships, facilitates the commercialization of research, connects new and existing businesses with university talent and resources, and fosters entrepreneurship and small business development.

This year, the University of South Carolina is starting a new graduate program, the MS in Technology Innovation and Entrepreneurial Engineering. It is the only graduate program in the State of South Carolina that places a high premium on students with an engineering and science background, blending their technical and business skills in an entrepreneurial way.

The follow is a conversation with Chad Hardaway, the Associate Director of the Office of Economic Engagement.

OEE video from MidlandsBiz on Vimeo.

The following is a full audio version of the interview.