Summer — I live in a university town, so it’s easier to find parking when the students are gone for the summer. But we do miss their energy and enthusiasm, so Iowa City puts on a lot of festivals and concerts all summer long.

Describe your office.

Multiple cork boards with push pins and notes everywhere. Instead of to-do lists, I jot down tasks on note cards. I have one board for things to do immediately and another for long-term projects. And for the latter, I typically end up throwing away the note when I can no longer remember what it means. I also have one cork board devoted to thank-you notes and kudos sent to me over the years from inventors. It’s a perfect pick-me-up for difficult days.

If you could only eat one item for every meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Costco pizza—it’s my go-to comfort food every Friday night after surviving another week (although I don’t know how long I’d actually survive eating it for three meals a day).

What advice would you give your teenage self?

Your success or failure in every job you will ever have depends upon your relationships with the people you work with. Also, don’t fret when low-rise jeans come into fashion. Wait a few decades and high-waisted jeans will be back.

If you could snap your fingers and become an expert in something, what would it be?

The university budgeting process (just kidding—nobody is up to that task). Personally, I dabble in music—singing, ukulele, classical guitar. I’d love to carve out the time to develop expertise in one of them.

Tell us about an accomplishment you’re really proud of.

I love it when someone I’m training or mentoring comes up with their own ideas and starts to push back against mine. I am so proud each time they prove me wrong.

What led you to a career in tech transfer? 

I was a post-doc in a biology lab, and I got tired of pipetting. The National Science Foundation put on a symposium on alternative careers for women in science, and one of the speakers was a patent agent. Reading her bio, it sounded really boring, but she was such a dynamic speaker that she had the whole room excited about intellectual property by the time she was done.

What’s the best advice you’d give to someone just starting their career?

Don’t rely upon contract language to paper over differences when negotiating an agreement. If you and your partner don’t have the same understanding about what the two of you are trying to accomplish, no amount of wordsmithing or exchanging drafts is going to solve the problem or support the relationship over the long term.

How does your TTO define success?

Metrics-wise, it’s the number of deals we do every year. More broadly (but also harder to measure) is the impact we have by showing the world what great researchers are here at the University of Iowa through every marketing call, company pitch, newsletter, press release, product on the market.

You volunteer for a few AUTM Committees. What do you love about volunteering, and where do you recommend Members new to it get started?

I attended the Essentials course back in 1998 when I had been in my first tech transfer job for only a few months. It was a lifesaver—I could step back from the flurry of day-to-day activity (and often confusion and sometimes panic) and take some time to begin to understand the big picture of tech transfer and where I fit in. As an AUTM volunteer, I hope that I’m able to provide even a little of that support to others. AUTM makes it so easy to become involved, and I’d suggest people look to a SIG that matches your interests, as they are a great way to join a tight-knit community interested in having a big impact.

What is the importance of mentoring in the tech transfer profession?

When you are new to tech transfer, there is so much to learn and the AUTM courses and other training resources can get you started. But a mentor is there to help with advice and support when the best-case scenario you learned in a course turns out to be the perfect storm. On the flip side, I find mentoring keeps me from turning jaded. I am inspired by the enthusiasm of our new members, and I always learn something from them as well.