SKOLKOVO Entrepreneurs’ Club meeting: startups with wow effect

On April 2 another SKOLKOVO Entrepreneurs’ Club meeting took place. That time we had Bill Reichert, Managing Director, Garage ventures, partner of Guy Kawasaki, Mikhail Konoplev, Operational Director, Airbnb in Russia and CIS, Andrei Zotov, Founder and Co-owner of ADJ Consulting. Participants have discussed lots of interesting topics and questions. Below you can find the key points voiced at the event.

Mikhail Konoplev
“The key point of the economics of joint use is that a joint access to resources is much more beneficial than their possession”.

Bill Reichert
“The thing you should achieve during your pitch is a wow effect. Investors give their money being guided by their hearts, not by their minds”.

“3 ways to make an investor fall in love with you: a team, technology, ability to turn the world and perception of it. Each startup has to decide what aspect to focus on while interacting with investors, find a basis for the wow effect”.

SKOLKOVO Entrepreneurs’ Club meeting: Igor Agamirzyan’s 6 thuths

On March 14 a SKOLKOVO Entreprneurs’ Club meeting took place on the SKOLKOVO business school Campus! No wonder the Lounge Bar was packed with people - we had striking speakers:

• Igor Agamirzyan, CEO and Chairman, RVC;
• Esther Dyson, Chairman of Board, EDventure Holdings, Board member, Yandex;
• Misha Lyalin, CEO, ZeptoLab, Founder of Cut The Rope.

That time we have tried a mixed format of the meeting – a Skype conversation with Esther Dyson and live performances. We have recorded the Skype discussion and are going to decode it next week, for now here are Igor Agamirzyan’s points:

Truth#1 “All new technological industries have been created in a similar manner!”
Truth#2 “The higher a technological industry is, the fewer market leaders there are”
Truth#3 “A period of brands consolidation always ends with such industry’s state when it starts to stagnate technologically”
Truth#4 “What is the next big think? — physical & digital!”
Truth#5 “All income centres move from production facilities to soft and design”
Truth#6 “The generator of profit is engineering and design!”

By the way, the third SKOLKOVO Startup Academy’s class starts studying on April 11!

Meeting with Igor Gundobin, expert on direct private investments in the BRIC countries

As you know the SKOLKOVO business school aims to teach leaders for the emerging markets. How does it work, why is it important and what opportunities can emerging markets provide? You can find all the answers during the meeting with Igor Gundobin, expert on direct private investments in the BRIC countries, on March 23! The topic for the discussion is "High-growth market – taking the lead". Graduates of the SKOLKOVO MBA programme will also take part in the meeting and will share their experience. Registration required.

 

Open Discussion “Russian business: how to catch the wave?”

The Moscow School of Management SKOLKOVO knows how and where to move in order to ride on the wave of success and how to build up business in Russia that has “its own special way”. That is why we invite you to join the open discussion with the SKOLKOVO business leaders:

• Ruben Vardanian, Founder of the SKOLKOVO business school , Co-Head of Sberbank CIB, Board member at Rosgosstrakh;
• Andrey Rappoport, President of the SKOLKOVO business school, First Vice Chairman of the Board of RUSNANO;
• Vladimir Preobrajensky, Head of research of the SKOLKOVO business school.

We are waiting you on March 21, at 10:00 a.m., at the Radisson Royal Hotel Moscow (Ukraina). Registration required!
For more detailed information, please, visit www.skolkovo.ru or contact our consultants:
Anna Nekrasova, +7 919 777 42 98, Anna_Nekrasova@skolkovo.ru
Ekaterina Vechkanova, +7 916 777 82 80, Ekaterina_Vechkanova@skolkovo.ru

V. J. Govindarajan and his book "Reverse innovation: create far from home, win everywhere"

More great experts and litrature recomendations from the SKOLKOVO business school library managers! This week let us introduce you #3 from Thinkers 50 ranking - V. J. Govindarajan, an expert in international business, strategy and innovation, and his book!

“If a business can be destroyed, then it eventually will be destroyed. It is only a matter of whether you do it to yourself or a rival does it to you.”
 “Strategy used to be about protecting existing competitive advantage, but not any more. Today it is about finding the next advantage.”

 Reverse innovation: create far from home, win everywhere
Vijay and Chris Trimble
Harvard Business School Press, 2012
256 pages
ISBN: 9781422157640

Instead of developing products in rich countries and then trying to export them worldwide, maybe with scaled down features, reverse innovation is about products first adopted in the developing world. Surprisingly often these innovations defy gravity and flow uphill. Reverse innovation combines a global strategy with an intense focus on local needs and preferences. This book shows how, counter intuitively, there are many circumstances when business models and products developed in emerging markets can provide new opportunities in rich economies also. Three key points for multinationals:
- to capture growth in emerging markets it is necessary to innovate, not just export

 - leverage opportunities to export innovation from emerging markets to other similar economies and eventually to the mainstream
- keep watch on the emerging giants, the rapidly growing native companies

Today on paper. Tomorrow in reality

The Moscow School of Management SKOLKOVO and International Paper announce a contest among progressive and ambitious entrepreneurs! The winner of the IPship contest will receive a grant of € 40 000 to enter the SKOLKOVO MBA programme. For more information visit the open discussion with Franz Marx, President of International Paper Russia, that will take place on March 13, at 6:30 pm on our Campus! Please register!

 

Open discussion with Vladimir Preobrajensky

If you are interested to find out how the business chooses its leaders and understand what entrepreneurial leadership means, we invite you to take part in an open discussion with Vladimir Preobrajensky, Head of research at the SKOLKOVO business school, Board member at New Economic School, Board member of the Agat fund. We are looking forward to seeing you on our Campus on March 5 at 8 p.m. The discussion topic is “MBA: A Farewell to Illusions”. Registration is required.
What questions within that topic would you like to discuss with Vladimir Preobrajensky? Share with us your ideas in the comments.