University Hub

Head of Enterprise

Lissa heads up our Enterprise team and is responsible for the delivery of our outreach and training programme. Before Converge, Lissa commercialised a research project from The Roslin Institute into a business unit at Roslin Technologies Limited and has in-depth experience of working with spin-outs and commercialisation of research.

07891 933109
lissa.herron@convergechallenge.com

Enterprise Manager

Sam joined in 2025 to support enterprise teams and students across the central belt of Scotland. Before Converge, Sam founded and exited a business in the spirits industry, led the recovery of a former AIM listed FMCG business and consulted SMEs across a variety of sectors. Working as an Incubator Manager for Edinburgh Business School and Entrepreneur in Residence at Heriot Watt University, he has extensive experience supporting start-ups from concept to commercialisation.

07743449783
sam.trett@convergechallenge.com

Enterprise Executive, North

Richard supports university enterprise development teams in the North East of Scotland and is based at the University of Aberdeen. Before joining the team, Richard worked for Young Enterprise Scotland’s Elevator UK programme promoting enterprise and entrepreneurship in education and designing and delivering a range of accelerator programmes.

07792 032168
r.cormackcorrigan@convergechallenge.com

Intellectual property is an essential part of innovative new businesses and can be one of their main assets. But what do we mean by innovation and IP, and how can a young business best exploit the IP at its disposal?

This interactive workshop will cover:

• Why is innovation important?
• What is Intellectual Property?
• How do you stop others from copying your ideas?
• Beyond traditional IP: differentiating yourself from your competitors

Book here.

You may have heard that 90% of new businesses fail, but what’s the story behind this scary statistic? Most of these failures are linked to a poor understanding of customer needs and target markets. This workshop will teach you the first steps of interacting with your potential customers and using their feedback to shape your proposition. Key topics include:

• Identifying your target market and its size and value
• Customer engagement tips
• A customer-centred approach to proposition development

Book here.

Starting a business is about more than money. You will require a variety of resources at different stages of development.

This workshop will cover the skills, people, infrastructure and funding needs that you need to consider as your project moves from idea to market. Using a real-life case study, you will follow a Converge alumnus company through stages of resource planning and management, from concept to launch.

Booking here.

How will your business make money? How will your product or service reach your customers? In a post-COVID world, sustainable business models and routes to market are more important than ever. In this 1-hour interactive workshop, we will introduce you to various business models and help you decide the most appropriate route to market for your business

Book here.

This workshop will provide emerging entrepreneurs with an overview of the various funding options available to start-up/spin-out companies in Scotland. This session will analyse different funding routes and will advise on which ones should be considered depending on the business development stage. The session will also demystify some of the industry myths and jargon. Participants will learn pros and cons of several funding options such as grants, business competitions, investment, and crowdfunding.

Book here.