Companies that meet the general criteria as determined by the Norris Institute are invited to submit an executive summary via U.S. mail or e-mail to center director Mike Moore.
Several criteria are used to screen investment opportunities for more thorough due diligence review. In cases where specific technical expertise or additional business perspective would be helpful, the Institute will call on a network of volunteer consultants. Entrepreneurs may be invited to meet with selected members of the network during the review process. Graduate and undergraduate students in the Opus College of Business may also be involved in the review and due diligence process.
If a positive review results, the director will submit a recommendation for investment to the dean of the Opus College of Business and the Chief Financial Officer of the University of St. Thomas.
Companies in which the Norris Institute invests will be required to submit monthly financial reports and quarterly progress reports. In addition to capital, entrepreneurs and companies can benefit from other resources available at the University of St. Thomas. Typical exit timeline is three to five years. Returns on equity investments will be deposited for re-investment in additional companies. The long-term investment goal of the program is to preserve donated capital as much as possible while generating returns sufficient to enable growth of the investment funds.
For more information, visit the Norris Institute online.