Why you should take the ME2603 Entrepreneurship course

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Parallel to our work with the New Business Venture Concept (HW5), IMBATECH has recorded a video with the topic: Why should you take the ME2603 Entrepreneurship course? We let several students answer the questions:

  1. Why do you want to become an entrepreneur?
  2. What would you like to learn in the entrepreneurship course?

We are really satisfied with the result. Please follow the link to see the video, and please feel free to comment and give feedback. What could we improve? http://youtu.be/Q1KnmxrSWcI

Enjoy!

Imbatech conducted a survey

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We have implemented a market-based survey to get insight into how potential customers value the content of our service. The survey was conducted on an anonymous basis with expectation to get more honest answers. To implement the survey we used a tool from Google called Google Forms. The survey was distributed to 50 respondents. About half of the respondents completed the survey. Each team member selected ten persons who they personally thought were appropriate for the market segment of our product.

At the beginning of the survey we described the product briefly. There after we had a few key questions associated to our service. These questions had grades to make it easier to answer them but also for us to be able to measure and evaluate them. At the end of the survey we had two optional questions with open answers to provide the opportunity for more detailed answers and feedback to us.

So, what was the outcome of the survey? We found a clear pattern that the interest of paying for the service is low. At the same time we saw that the interest of the idea and its value creation in itself was high. The most distinctive outcome was the response for having discounts in the service, where the interest was very high.

We also got many interesting funding proposals with practical examples of how similar businesses are doing, even though we did not directly ask for it. Respondents also gave us tips of a few interesting competitors. We will definitely see if we can learn something from them. The result helped us to get an understanding of what potential customers think about our service. We also got some practical suggestions on what we can add to the service to develop it.

It was both fun and rewarding to do this survey and it will definitely be useful in the future!

Entrepreneurship-Gathering @ Zinkensdamm

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This weekend, members of the groups Star-Tup and IMBATECH held an informal entrepreneurship evening with very rewarding discussions regarding our ideas and preparing for the exam. We also got to take a look at a product of a start-up that Jonatan is currently helping, Narrative. This little camera helped us document the evening.

Photo taken by the Narrative clip.

Photo taken by the Narrative clip.

Both groups received some valuable feed-back, from both internal and external advisors, on their ideas and we had a lot of fun.

The Narrative Clip – review

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There’s an old saying among photographers that the best camera is the one you have with you, and that’s what the Narrative Clip wants to be — a camera you always have with you. The little device is little more than a 5-megapixel basic camera that takes two pictures a minute, automatically. Clip it anywhere. And…create a detailed photographic record of your every waking moment.

When I was using it people in the street didn’t seem to notice it. It’s when you begin chatting to someone that they become aware of the device, which may prompt a conversation about what it is. People can naturally be a bit uncomfortable about being constantly photographed and it should go without saying that there are times to put the camera away in your pocket (which will put it into sleep mode). The quality of the photos is almost similar to that of a smart phone, however, the Clip isn’t about high-level photography, it’s about capturing a flavor of your day.

Pros:

The Narrative Clip is a clever means of capturing photos that users otherwise may have missed and capturing candid moments in their lives without the conspicuous intrusion of a manual camera. It has a small (in fact, so small you usually don’t remember it’s there), simple design and works automatically (very easy to use); the accompanying app works with iOS and Android. It’s also weather-resistant.

Cons:

I could identify a few areas of improvement for the Narrative Clip. First, it’s the lack of video recording or more advanced controls. The only thing you can do manually is to double-tap to take an photo instantly (which is a great feature), but more advanced controls are desirable for at least some users. Second, the lack of a desktop experience makes it feel too restrictive. The photos are stored in the cloud and not on your computer, but sometimes you want to use some of your photos and consequently need to download them. I had to do this from the iPhone app and send the photos to myself as email attachments. If bulk downloading could be done easily from the computer it would greatly increase the experience. Last, I would love to see the photos upload instantly to the cloud, maybe via Bluetooth through my smart phone. As of now, you won’t be able to frame or even see your shots until you get home and sync the Clip to your computer via Micro-USB (a port is hidden under a little rubber cover).

In conclusion, the Narrative attempts to be your always-on wearable way to record photographic memories — and it actually is a really good concept. The execution is excellent in many aspects, but feels lacking in a few others. However, it is one of the first devices in the world of lifelogging and mostly succeeds in its primary task of capturing random moments for you. I believe the potential of the Narrative Clip is great. I can only say I love it!

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Entrepreneurship in Silicon Valley

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Last year, I got the amazing opportunity to go to San Francisco, Silicon Valley and Palo Alto for a week of entrepreneurial inspiration. During the week I met with a lot of interesting people – entrepreneurs, programmers, managers, CEOs and even a winegrower. They all had a lot to share from their respective experiences at companies as Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, Causes, Podio, Spotify, Silicon Vikings, Business Sweden etc. I had a fantastic time and gained a lot of insights, experience and a few tips on entrepreneurship, and the most important ones I would like to share with you!

Fail Fast and Fail Forward
As an entrepreneur you will fail at times, so better fail now and learn from your mistakes than keep going on for a long time and fail later. The earlier you fail, the earlier you can start over as a better entrepreneur.

Move Fast and Break Things
Suggests you should make progress at a fast pace. As an entrepreneur you should expect to fail (break things) and unless you break things, you’re not moving fast enough.

You are a product of your environment
This is the concept behind the advantage of incubators and accelerators. Having great people around you helps you be great yourself – so find a suitable ecosystem and let it shape you as you develop the entrepreneur in you.

Multitask
Many entrepreneurs in the Bay Area start their ventures alongside their regular jobs. This lets them put time in their startup (which often generates no money in early stages) but still receive salaries from their regular jobs. Also, a workplace provides a great opportunity to identify needs or problems that an entrepreneur can fulfill or solve. However, to take their venture to the next level, it’s almost necessary that the entrepreneurs quit their regular jobs and pursue the goals of their startup wholeheartedly.

Narrative Clip

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I have got the opportunity to try out the product of a swedish-based startup – the Narrative Clip. The Narrative Clip is a small wearable life logging camera, funded via crowd funding site Kickstarter. They also recently got $8 millon in VC. I just got it in my hands on it but will keep you updated. Visit getnarrative.com to learn more.

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Help to Help and Social Entrepreneurship

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IMBATECH just got home from an amazing evening at Help to Help’s startup event. A lot of people interested in Help to Help and social entrepreneurship in general gathered in a hot but cozy part of Nymble to hear about Help to Help and mingle around with the other attendees. Snacks were provided and cheap beer could be bought – a perfect way to finish the day. During the event, Help to Help acquired several new monthly donors. A man even convinced the attendees to donate money for Help to Help’s cause, which in total raised 1300 SEK on the spot. The atmosphere was vibrant and everybody had a good time.

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During the event I started to think about the differences of social entrepreneurs and other entrepreneurs. One thought that crossed my mind is the difference in how they attack business problems. Generally, social entrepreneurs seems to know exactly what the need or problem is but struggle with how to create a solution, while other entrepreneurs struggle with what the real problems are and often even build solutions to non-existent problems (does not apply to all entrepreneurs, of course). But why is this? I believe, that social entrepreneurs were into social good before they became entrepreneurs. That’s why they generally understand the problems better than other entrepreneurs.

Do you agree? Disagree? I’m curious about your thoughts on social entrepreneurship!

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Inspiration, luck and mental communication

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The lecture of today was very inspiring. I liked the way Vasilis described his life as an entrepreneur and how he reflected about the subject of entrepreneurship. I would really like to visit the Guerilla Office sometime because it sounds like a perfect way to meet new and interesting people. Great idea!!

Also, I got hooked on the things Vasilis said about communication and the concept of being lucky, because it´s so true. Communication, both external, internal and mentally as he described, is the foundation for everything. And being lucky is not about getting lucky, it´s about something else. (Maybe Daft Punk should do a small lyrical change?…) It´s about knowing what you want and then be able to get it. I haven´t thought about it in this way but when Vasilis talks about luck, it makes so much sense.   Thanks Vasilis, you really inspired me! And thanks to Ludwig and Axel for making us lucky enough to meet him!

It´s interesting with people that inspire you. Last week IMBATECH saw that Max Mohammadhassan Mohammad, our course assistant, is on the list of “The 100 Top Rising Potentials”  where the organization 4potentials judge the 4 P´s: proficient (street-smartness), powerfueling (courageous leadership), pioneering (drive) and passionate (hight EQ). Malin Cronqvist, our classmate and the founder of the startup Help to Help that Frida blogged about earlier, is also on the list! Wow!

Here´s a link to the list of 100 Top Rising Potentials:

http://4potentials.se/sv/topplistor-utmarkelser/top-100-rising-potentials/

There´s a lot of inspiring people on that list! Enjoy! 🙂

// Linda

Social Entrepreneurship Startup: Help to Help

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A few weeks ago, I got the opportunity to try out the service of a startup. Help to Help is a foundation aiming to create conditions for positive change in developing countries by contributing to education and job creation, and I decided to become a monthly donor. My experience? I tell you in this short video, which has been a part of Help to Help’s promotion campaign:

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=752832444756091

For those of you who do not speak Swedish, I talk about what is great about Help to Help: transparency and a long-term focus. I also explain why I decided to become monthly donor – to give people in Tanzania the tools to improve their own as well as their country’s situation. Also, the amount of money I donate does not make that much of a difference for me, but is a significant part of their school fees. With a small amount per month I can support a student to become a teacher, who will educate children for generations. Want to know more? Visit their website.

Tonight, I am attending their startup-event, where I will talk to Malin Cronqvist, the founder, about my experience of their services. IMBATECH will keep you updated!

Sometimes delayed lectures turn into something productive

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As the headline suggests, delayed lectures can sometimes turn into something productive. When Serdar didn’t show up in time for today’s lecture, we were given a task to make the time worthwhile. Our group, IMBATECH, really got going on our business model canvas and made great progress for our business venture concept.

This turned out to be a really productive moment for us, in fact we will probably try to create similar conditions –  spontaneous, short and time-boxed – when working with our business venture concept going forward. I hope the used time were equally productive for the other groups at the lecture.

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