Evidence-First
A level is achieved only when documentation and proof are provided.
Are you ready to change the world?
Successful inventions, products, and startups make money, but they also do something more profound - they make a better world. They solve real problems and help real people. They create a positive impact. Every inventor, founder, and startup leader dreams of creating outsize impact. While the vision may be clear, the journey is always treacherous. Impact Readiness Level (IRL) quantifies the progress of inventions, products, and ventures from inception to IPO; offering objective assessment and a clear, actionable roadmap. IRL was developed by Professor William F. Walker at Duke University to bring rigor to startup creation and management. Built upon Technology Readiness Level, IRL incorporates the wisdom of dozens of entrepreneurs, founders, and mentors. It encompasses lessons learned from the successes and failures of hundreds of inventions, products, and ventures.
16 Critical DimensionsTechnology, Customer Need, Market Opportunity, IP, Cost / Price, Product Development, Values, Strategy, Regulatory, Finance, Brand, Governance, Team, Sales, SW Production, and HW Manufacturing.
Two PerspectivesEach report includes the input of a venture insider and an external reviewer. The IRL assessment process offers an outstanding framework for structured mentoring.
A One-Page ReportEach of the 16 dimensions encompasses 10 unique levels of progression. A single page shows detailed status and progress towards key milestones.
Trusted by growing venture ecosystems
A rigorous system for venture creation and development
Entrepreneurs and inventors often assert that their work is an art with little generalization and few repeatable processes. The same was said of every discipline before it became a rigorous science. IRL provides a rigorous roadmap to accelerate invention, product development, and venture creation and growth.
Technology Agnostic
IRL supports everything from bakeries to medical device companies.
Structured Progression
Clear staging from early exploration to scalable execution.
Progression & Alignment
Compare reports to assess progress and align perspectives.
5 Milestones
Product, Venture, Fundraising, Sales, and Operational Excellence.
Founders
Every inventor, founder, and startup leader dreams of creating outsize impact. While the vision may be clear, the journey is always treacherous. IRL is the GPS for your startup. It tells you where you are and which way to go to reach your destination.
Benefits
- Quantify progress towards key milestones
- Efficiently communicate project status
- Identify clear next steps
- Align your team, your mentors, and your investors with objective data
- Build rigorous records as you prove progress - Your diligence package is always up to date
Incubators & Accelerators
Accelerators and incubators need to support multiple ventures at varying levels of maturity. Vision and energy aren't enough, you need systems that scale and measure the performance of your ventures and your programming. IRL is the dashboard that objectively measures the progress of every venture and the impact of your programming and mentors.
Benefits
- Objectively measure venture progression.
- Align your mentors with a common language and shared milestones.
- See which programming has the biggest impact on venture trajectory.
- Compare venture progress within and between cohorts.
- Assess founder coachability by measuring the gap between self-assessment and independent review.
Mentors & Advisors
Ventures face different challenges at different times, but as a mentor you become biased to solve the last problem you saw. IRL keeps you in touch with the exact status of every venture. It provides a common framework for mentoring so that no issue is overlooked and you can show a clear roadmap to every venture.
Benefits
- Gain a clear view of venture status.
- Identify gaps so that you can direct support most effectively.
- Objectively measure progress.
- Apply the framework to reduce conflict and create a shared direction.
- Assess founder coachability - do self-assessments approach your reviews?
Technology Transfer Offices
Tech transfer is tough business - inventors are overconfident, markets are uncertain, and technological maturity is hard to judge. IRL offers an objective measure of the maturity of technologies, products, and ventures - helping you focus your limited resources where they will have the biggest impact.
Benefits
- Clarify commercialization readiness.
- Distinguish invention, product, and venture stages.
- Support decisions about licensing, incubation, and spinouts.
- Use IRL to communicate objectively with inventors - reducing conflict and clarifying actions.
- Help inventors and founders appreciate the challenges of commercialization.
Investors
Investing is a risky business. Founders are true believers who often lack the experience to see the risks they face. IRL provides a unifying framework to assess investment opportunities, guide portfolio companies, and communicate within your fund and syndicate.
Benefits
- IRL provides a universal diligence language.
- A single page report communicates diligence and status.
- Regular assessments track venture progression at any stage.
- Compare venture maturity with evidence, not narrative.
- Surface risk, traction, and readiness gaps earlier.
Example IRL Report
Open report