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Marianne Bom & Rie Jerichow, Publicér

Flere og flere ingeniør-studerende etablerer egen virksomhed. Måske er det en mulighed for dig?

”At involvere sig i iværksætteri er en fantas­tisk måde at lære på – også selv om man måske ikke bliver millionær. Det er bare at kaste sig ud i det. Det er ikke farligt,” siger Tommy Ahlers, tidligere dansk uddannelses- og forsknings­minister (V) samt iværksætter og investor i en lang række virksomheder. Foto: Steen Brogaard.

Nye virksomheder, der er grundlagt af ingeniører, vokser langt hurtigere, omsætter for langt mere, eksporterer tidligere og ansætter langt flere medarbejdere end tilsvarende danske virksomheder. Det viser en ny analyse fra Akademiet for de Tekniske Videnskaber, der har kortlagt 1.100 unge Science & Engineering-startups i Danmark.

Er det ikke bare at komme i gang?

Både ja og nej, siger Tommy Ahlers, der er medlem af Folketinget for Venstre, tidligere dansk uddannelses- og forskningsminister samt iværksætter og investor i en lang række virksomheder.

”Selv om det er en trend blandt ingeniørstuderende at starte egen virksomhed, er det vigtigt, at man virkelig har gjort sig klart, hvad det er for en innovation, man vil bringe til verden. Og medmindre man vil skabe noget til et helt nyt marked, hvor der ikke har været noget tilsvarende før, kan det være en fordel at have arbejdet nogle år som ansat, før man etablerer sit eget, fordi man så forstår markedet og kunderne i markedet meget bedre. Ellers er der en fare for, at man udvikler en teknologi, der ’leder efter et problem’, og ikke en teknologi, der løser et problem,” siger Tommy Ahlers.

Fordele som ung

Andre aspekter taler for at komme i gang, allerede mens man er studerende.

”Det er supervigtigt at sætte det rigtige team. Der har man den store fordel som studerende at have et stort netværk af danske og internationale medstuderende. Det er også blevet lettere at netværke på tværs af universiteter og fakulteter, så studerende med en teknisk baggrund kan møde andre studerende med kommercielle kompetencer,” siger han.

Økonomisk har unge iværksættere også en fordel.

”Det er muligt, at man kan få bedre idéer og har et større overblik, når man har fået noget erfaring, men det kan lige så godt ske, at man aldrig kommer i gang med at bygge en virksomhed op som 35-årig, fordi man til den tid lige har fået to børn og et realkreditlån, der koster 17.000 kr. om måneden. Så er det svært at leje huset ud på Airbnb for at tjene penge, så man har råd til at fokusere på virksomheden,” siger Tommy Ahlers.

Stigende interesse for at starte egen virksomhed

Forskere og studerende på DTU etablerede tilsammen 87 startups i 2018. Heraf stod ­studerende bag 52 af de nye virksomheder.

”Interessen er helt klart stigende, og det er interessant, at det snarere end penge i højere grad er motiverende for iværksætterne at gøre en forskel i verden og skabe ­bæredygtige løsninger,” siger professor Jes Broeng, leder af Center for Entrepreneurskab i Teknologi på DTU.

Rigtig personlighed

Læs rapporten ’Danmarks nye vækstlag’ fra ATV’s Science & Engineering-projekt: http://www.mynewsdesk.com/dk/atv/documents/rapport-danmarks-nye-­vaekstlag-88028.

Uanset hvornår i livet man vælger at blive iværksætter, kræver det en særlig personlighed.

”Helt overordnet skal man være god til at lede og få folk til at følge én. Derudover skal man have et ret stort drive og være ’persistent’, som det hedder på engelsk. Man skal blive ved og ved og ved. Det kræver en stærk psyke, for man får en masse nederlag, og de nederlag skal man lære af – og derefter kæmpe videre. Det lyder måske mærkeligt at sige til ingeniører, men man skal også være lidt af en sælger. Man skal rumme evnen til at overbevise andre. Man skal overbevise sin kone, mand eller kæreste om, at man ikke tager et job med en fast, månedlig indkomst. Man skal kunne overbevise sine investorer. Man skal kunne få sine ansatte til at droppe den sikre karriere hos Vestas for at arbejde i en nystartet virksomhed, og endelig skal man kunne overbevise kunderne om at købe sine produkter,” siger den erfarne iværksætter.

Tid til at sige stop?

Nogle gange udvikler tingene sig ikke altid, som man havde drømt om. Men hvornår det så er klogest at stoppe og erkende, at det ikke gik, har Tommy Ahlers ingen opskrift på.

”Der er meget få planer, der kan bestå den ultimative test. Og den ultimative test, dét er virkeligheden. Men hvornår man skal holde ud trods nederlag, og hvornår det er tid til at sige stop – det er en af de sværeste discipliner. Tag for eksempel Angry Birds-spillet, som Rovio Entertainment står bag. Virksomheden udviklede 52 spil, der ikke slog an, inden de lavede Angry Birds. Man kunne med en vis rimelighed sige, at det ville have været fair at give op efter 19 gange – så havde de bare aldrig lavet Angry Birds. Men uanset hvad: at involvere sig i iværksætteri er en fantastisk måde at lære på – også selv om man måske ikke bliver millionær. Det er bare at kaste sig ud i det. Det er ikke farligt,” siger Tommy Ahlers.

Marianne Bom & Rie Jerichow, Publicér

More and more engineering students establish their own companies. Maybe that is an option for you?

“To engage in entrepreneurship is a ­fantastic way to learn – even if you do not end up a ­millionaire. You just have to take the leap. It is not dangerous,” says Tommy Ahlers, previously Danish education and research minister (V), as well as entrepreneur and investor in a number of companies. Photo: Steen Brogaard.

New companies founded by engineers grow faster, have a higher turnover, export earlier, and hire more employees than equivalent Danish companies. That is the conclusion of new analysis from Akademiet for de Tekniske Videnskaber, which has mapped out 1,100 young Science & Engineering-startups in Denmark.

So, should you just get started? Yes and no, says Tommy Ahlers, member of Folketinget for Venstre, previously Danish education and research minister, and an entrepreneur and investor in a number of companies.

“Even though there is a trend of engineering students starting their own company, it is important that you have read up on what kind of innovation you want to bring into the world. And unless you want to create something for an entirely new market, where there has been nothing like it before, it can be an advantage to have worked a few years as an employee before establishing your own firm because you then understand the market and the consumers in the market a lot better. Otherwise, there is a danger of developing a technology which is ‘looking for a problem’, and not a technology which solves a problem.” Says Tommy Ahlers.

Advantages as a young

Other aspects speaks about the pros of starting while studying.

“It is super important to hire the right team. That is where you have a great advantage as a student, with a large network of Danish and international co-students. It has also become easier to network between universities and faculties, so students with a technical background can meet other students with commercial competences,” he says.

Economically, young entrepreneurs also have an advantage.

“It is possible that you can have better ideas and a greater overview when you have some experience, but it may happen that you never start building a company as a 35-year-old when you have two kids and a mortgage that costs 17,000 DKK a month. Then it is hard to rent out your house on AirBnB to earn the money you need to focus on the company,” says Tommy Ahlers.

Rising interest for starting own companies

Researchers and students at DTU established a total of 87 startups in 2018. Of these, ­students were behind 52.

“Interest is definitely on the rise, and it is interesting that the motivational factor for ­entrepreneurs is to make a difference in the world and make sustainable solutions rather than money,” says professor Jes Broeng, leader of Center of Entrepreneurship in Technology at DTU.

The right personality

Read the report ‘Danmarks nye vækstlag’ fra ATV’s Science & Engineering-project: http://www.mynewsdesk.com/dk/atv/documents/rapport-danmarks-nye-­vaekstlag-88028.

Regardless of when in life you choose to become an entrepreneur, it takes a certain personality.

“Over all, you have to be good at leading and making people follow you. Furthermore, you have to have a great drive, and be persistent. You have to keep going. It takes a strong psyche because you get knocked down a lot, and you have to learn from that – and keep on fighting afterwards. It might sound strange to an engineer, but you also have to be a bit of a salesman. You have to have the ability to convince others. You have to convince your wife, husband, boyfriend or girlfriend that you are not going to take a job with a steady income. You have to be able to convince your investors. You have to make your employees forget about the safe career at Vestas to work in a startup and, finally, you have to be able to convince your customers to buy your products,” says the experienced entrepreneur.

Time to call it quits?

Sometimes things don’t work out as you dreamt they would. But when is it time to stop and accept that it’s not working? Unfortunately, Tommy Ahlers can’t tell you.

“There are very few plans that can pass the ultimate test. And the ultimate test is reality. But knowing when to stick it out despite defeat and when to call it quits – that is one of the hardest things to know. For instance, take the Angry Birds game that Rovio Entertainment created. The company created 52 games that did not make it before making Angry Birds. You could reasonably say that it would have been fair to quit after the 19th time – but then they never would have made Angry Birds. But no matter what, to engage in entrepreneurship is a fantastic way to learn – even if you do not end up a millionaire. You just have to take the leap. It is not dangerous.” Says Tommy Ahlers.