Last week, considerable attention was focused on the importance of the field of biosciences on the future of Kansas City, Lawrence, Kansas University, Kansas State University and the state of Kansas.

“Biosciences,” in layman’s language, is anything that has to do with making food for humans and animals safer, providing better health care for humans and animals and ensuring a cleaner and better environment and a better quality of life for one and all. It seems as if every state in the nation, as well as most economic development bodies, are targeting biosciences as a means of attracting bright young people to a given area and reaping the economic benefits of research and development.

Past Saturday columns

A large dinner gathering in Kansas City, arranged by the Kansas City Area Life Sciences Institute, attracted hundreds of civic leaders, educators, researchers, lawmakers, entrepreneurs and others last week to discuss how the greater Kansas City area can be more effective, taking advantage of its many assets — primarily the Stowers Institute and the Kansas University Medical Center — to attract more bioscience activity.

The following two days, members of the Kansas Bioscience Authority met to plan their strategy on how to make Kansas one of the nation’s most attractive sites for bioscience-related industry and how to help leverage value-added university research. The Kansas Legislature has dedicated more than $500 million to carry out this mission and, in the process, add 20,000 new bioscience-related jobs to the Kansas economy in the next 10 years.

The following Friday, Kansas State University officials hosted the second annual K-State Spotlight on Intellectual Property. This program was presented by the KSU Research Foundation, the KSU Foundation, the K-State Alumni Assn. and the Manhattan Area Chamber of Commerce.

These four organizations combined their efforts to organize and launch the event to recognize and honor K-State inventors and intellectual property creators. Those honored are current or past KSU faculty members and students. Another facet of the program is to recognize the contributions made to Manhattan-area economic development through the establishment of start-up companies based on KSU intellectual property.

Three events in one week, and there may have been more, were devoted to what Kansas can do to improve the environment for bioscience-related businesses, to encourage inventors and intellectual property creators, to attract individuals with sound entrepreneurial plans to develop commercial bioscience ventures, to help universities and the KU Medical Center in bioscience-related research and to help create at least 20,000 jobs for the Kansas economy.

This is a sizable challenge, but it is critical if Kansas is to stay in the race as an inviting and attractive state in which to live, work and play in the years to come.

Kansas cannot afford to live in the backwaters.

One knowledgeable observer said, “Biosciences in today’s business and scientific environment is like what the computer business was 50 years ago.” If that’s correct, there is no time to waste, and every effort must be made by all those engaged in the effort to dream big and have a sound vision.

At the Kansas State gathering, a very successful entrepreneur and venture capitalist told his audience, which included many students in KSU’s master’s program in technology entrepreneurship, about one of his investments.

Some years ago, he was asked by friends to take a look at a business proposal for which the entrepreneurs were seeking financial backing. The individual, who had been asked to invest in the project, didn’t think there was much opportunity for the proposal but asked his friend (the K-State speaker) to take a look at it as a favor.

He did, saw what he thought were some strong possibilities, and eventually said he would like to take over management of the project.

The individuals who came up with the original idea for the product had put in approximately $115,000. A Cleveland operation called the Thomas Edison Innovation Co., put in a small amount, and the state added another $43,000. In all, about $200,000 got the operation started. Additional money was put in at various stages as the operation grew and went public. Ten years later, the company was sold for $2.5 billion.

Obviously, there were challenges and problems along the way, but the speaker used this true story as an example of what can be accomplished with a good, promising product and good management.

Earlier in the week, this same individual told a group in Kansas City the best advice he ever had received about the venture capital business was that the five most important principles for any investor to consider were: management, management, management, location and product.

He said a “B” or “C” product with top-flight management usually can succeed, but a company with an “A” or “B” product with poor management will have a difficult time.

Management and leadership are essential, and this is true in most every business or educational endeavor.

Biosciences proponents can talk a good game, money may be available to try to stimulate a program, university researchers can be highly skilled, and civic leaders can give talk after talk about the benefits of developing bioscience-based industry. Banquets can be held all over the state extolling biosciences and entrepreneurship.

However, without strong, effective, visionary leadership, the chances of success are severely handicapped. Does Kansas have the necessary leadership? Where is the strong, powerful inspirational, visionary leadership?

Competition from other states is going to be intense, and Kansas cannot afford to enter the competition without a powerful, effective game plan with extremely strong leadership. So far, the leadership appears to be the missing ingredient.