The global pandemic represents a major opportunity for Europe, rather than of a depressing crisis, Shira Kaplan writes for finews.com. How Switzerland can spur crisis-driven innovation.
The global pandemic is Europe’s biggest chance for a great leap forward for innovation. The sentiment in Switzerland is one of a major opportunity, rather than of a depressing crisis.
More and more venture capital funds are surfacing; savvy venture capitalists such as EQT Ventures and Lakestar, which have just finished raising massive funds, are speaking up openly and talking about opportunities, and not crises. As an entrepreneur – this is fantastic.
COVID-19 caught us all, both entrepreneurs and investors, completely unprepared. But very quickly into this crisis it became clear that it is the biggest accelerator for digitalization in Europe and globally.
Crisis Mode
As people were sitting at home and pressing «click, click, click» on their Amazon account to buy more and more things, the only cars I saw on the street in Zurich were DHL, UPS, Swisspost trucks delivering goods to consumers at home. CEOs have realized right away – either you digitalize quickly, or you perish. Brick and mortar businesses belong to history, to a large extent (Breitling CEO’s Georges Kern’s reaction to the crisis was especially inspiring to me).
As an Israeli entrepreneur living in Switzerland for the last ten years, I am often asked how the European innovation (startup) ecosystem can become more dynamic like the Tel Aviv one. My answer is always the same, «You need to live in crisis-mode like we do in Israel,»
Well, ladies and gentlemen, the crisis has come to Europe, and so has innovation. What Europe needs now is to keep this positive momentum going. I have often been struck with how private and introverted Swiss investors and entrepreneurs are: so quiet about their success.
Globally vs Swiss Market
On one hand this is impressive; on the other hand, it is time to speak up. Innovation does not grow in silence: Speaking up creates waves in the economy. It is time to motivate the ecosystem, talk about venture activity, show that you keep supporting startups at these challenging times. This gives a huge tailwind to entrepreneurs.
Secondly, entrepreneurs need to think globally, not locally. I have always been of the impression that many Swiss entrepreneurs are happy to sell just to Swiss companies. This has to change (and it is already as I write this): be more ambitious, and talk about selling globally. It is so easy to sell globally when all you need is social media and a secure website (if you’re in the software business, for example).
Mentors Sought
The third element needed at the moment is senior mentorship. Savvy, successful businesspeople need to take the younger generation by the hand, and provide them with access to their network. For young entrepreneurs to sell, all they need is the right connections.
They have already figured out the new economy and new business models – much better than the older generation, if I may – but they do not have the connections, which are so desperately needed in Europe and globally. This is the time to help them – so the young generation can flourish.
Female Leaders Poised
Last but not least, Europe needs to use the crisis as an opportunity for a great leap forward for young woman leaders. We’ve seen this already pre-crisis in Finland; now is the time for the rest of Europe to follow. Something about women leadership really scares many Europeans – I don’t know what it is exactly.
It’s time to get rid of these fears, and let young women grow and lead. Give them the chance, let them grow, mentor them as if they were young men – they have everything it takes to lead and inspire.
I must say, that for the first time after ten years of living in Europe, I am truly excited. Something good is happening in Europe. I am starting to feel the vibe of crisis-driven innovation, and this is such great news for Europe.
Shira Kaplan is the CEO and co-founder of Cyverse, a cyber-security firm based in Zurich. She served as an intelligence analyst with an elite technology unit of Israel's military. Kaplan, who holds an MBA from St. Gallen's HSG University, is an active angel investor in selected Israeli tech & cyber-security startups.
