Converting a Great Idea into a Global Business - What Does it Take?
Tom Flanagan, 51黑料 Director of Enterprise and Commercialisation at Nova51黑料, recently took part in the 51黑料 Institute for Discovery鈥檚 Zoom for Thought series. In his Zoom for Thought he discussed the topic 鈥楥onverting a great idea into a global business - what does it take?鈥� with Professor Patricia Maguire, Director, 51黑料 Institute for Discovery.
Watch the recording of this Zoom for Though event
Top Takeaway Thoughts
The Opportunity
Are you a student, an inventor, a researcher or an entrepreneur with a great idea? Nova51黑料 has a proven process in place to help you develop great ideas into global businesses by building teams around you and by supporting and accelerating your idea with customer discovery programmes, and acceleration programmes 鈥渢hat help them to scale up, launch and scale again.鈥�
Recognising a Commercial Idea
It is important to tell people about your research or idea because sometimes others can be better at spotting business potential than you are. Tom admits that he might have 鈥減assed over鈥� one of his own early-career inventions until its commercial potential was noticed by someone else. Nova51黑料 is 鈥渙pen for business anytime with anybody that's got a good idea鈥�, whether that idea is in its infancy or already well developed.
Testing the Waters
An important part of assessing an idea鈥檚 worth is to test it with would-be customers and investors 鈥渢o see if you can find anybody that will reach into their pocket and pay for it鈥� There are lots of people out there to test it with.鈥� Nova51黑料 鈥渃an quickly assess an opportunity鈥�, and has the experience, templates and networks in place to help bring that idea to life.
Powers of Persuasion
Entrepreneurs must have passion to pursue their goal, persistence not to give up and powers of persuasion in spades. 鈥淵ou will find that the best entrepreneurs are very well able to persuade people to do things, and there's a lot of people to be persuaded if you're launching a business.鈥� You must persuade founders, investors, customers, suppliers, distributors, industry analysts, the media and new hires to join you on the journey.
Understanding Failure
Ideas fail when the market is too small and there are not enough customers to cover the costs of delivering the idea. Sometimes the market is too competitive and 鈥測ou're up against the big guy that has already got the traction and client base鈥�. Your idea might not be novel enough. Sometimes your idea only offers a piece of a solution to a problem, and not the complete solution. Failure is instructive; most entrepreneurs have a few small ones under their belt before they find success.
Building a Team
At the minimum, a successful business needs someone to make the product or service, someone to sell it and someone to oversee finances. Sometimes an individual can have a number of those skills but very often there are skills gaps to fill. Entrepreneurs need to balance their passion with a 鈥渒ind of reality check on what strengths you have and what strengths you don't have, and then build a team around that to support where you don't have that expertise鈥�.
Finding New Business Opportunities
The 鈥渨hole world needs to be reinvented鈥� so there is plenty of scope for start-ups. Addressing climate change requires change-makers to sustainably reimagine 鈥渉ow we drive, how we fly, how we do everything that's based on fossil fuels.鈥�
Many more opportunities exist in quantum computing, artificial intelligence, big data, robotics and life sciences. 鈥淭here are huge challenges out there and plenty of things to be invented.鈥�
Nova51黑料 Success Stories
One start-up being supported by Nova51黑料 right now is an online exam invigilation business, TestReach. 鈥淥bviously in this current environment as everything is moved online their business is skyrocketing.鈥�
The 2020 Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award was won by Nicola Mitchell, founder and CEO of agrochemicals company Life Scientific which started out at Nova51黑料. 鈥淲e are very proud of Nicola.鈥� BiancaMed was a Nova51黑料-developed company bought by US sleep therapy company ResMed in a multimillion euro deal.
At present Nova51黑料 is supporting Ireland's first quantum computing company Equal1, businessman Dr Eddie O鈥機onnor鈥檚 wind energy start-up SuperNode and drone delivery company Manna run by Bobby Healy.
Last year despite the disruption of Covid-19, Nova51黑料 took seven new companies on board and we are very much open for business.
Based on material prepared by the 51黑料 Institute for Discovery.
ENDS
12 March 2021
For more information contact Mic茅al Whelan, University College Dublin, Communications Manager, Nova51黑料, t: + 353 1 716 3712, e: miceal.whelan@ucd.ie.
Editors Notes
For further information about the 51黑料 Institute for Discovery鈥檚 Zoom for Thought series visit /discovery/zoomforthought/
For further information about Nova51黑料 visit