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Entrepreneurship and InnovationAt London Business School

Jeff Skinner, Executive Director of the Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurshipat London Business School, talks to us about being entrepreneurial in anycontext and how the School does this, both in and out of the classroom.

Q: What is London Business Schoolsapproach to entrepreneurship?Over the years, the portfolio ofentrepreneurship courses has grownconsiderably and student demand hasmatched that growth. We go from teachingcourses on the very early stage ofdeveloping a business, through to courseson specific types of ventures such associal entrepreneurship, technologyventures and creative ventures, whichrequire very different approaches. Weverecently introduced another course,Entrepreneurship in Emerging Markets ,taught by John Mullins and RajeshChandy.

Our approach is to bring out new sourcesof value for our students and to trysomething new. We know theres a

demand for understandingentrepreneurship in an emerging marketand theres certainly an enthusiasm for it.The faculty here also believe that this is animportant and strategic topic, and, crucially,it builds on their research interests.

Q: Do you think that entrepreneurshipplays a role in traditional companiesand if so, what does that mean for theskills of existing managers?The entrepreneurship faculty at LondonBusiness School are not just teaching

people how to start their own ventures;were teaching people how to beentrepreneurial in any context. The sameissues of building coalitions, writingbusiness plans, securing finance andpersuading other people that youre rightwhile objectively testing whether an idea isviable, are all issues faced by peopleinside any organisation.

At London Business School we providethe tools that enable people to take chargeof the ideas they have and to drive them

through the organisation. Its empoweringfor individuals to no longer feel like a ship

Jeff Skinner, Executive Director ofEntrepreneurship and Innovation

thats being blown around on corporatewaters, they suddenly realise that they canhave a real impact.

Theres a responsibility on every managerto initiate and incubate ideas. Its the sametype of process, especially at the earlystages, as a new venture entrepreneurhas to go through.

Q: What makes a good entrepreneur?People say that entrepreneurship is allabout risk-taking, but in reality,entrepreneurs actually try to limit the riskor transfer as much of the risk to otherpeople. They tend to be incrediblyresourceful. The best entrepreneurs aregood at spotting the weaknesses in theirown projects.

What we do at London Business School isbring some rigour, so that the plans thestudents write are based on firmfoundations. We want plans to be solid,the financial projections to be solid and themarket research that the idea is based onto be solid. We want potential investors to

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be wowed rather than unmoved thelatter being the fate of the vast majority ofbusiness plans that pass their desks.

Q: What can aspiring entrepreneursexpect from the faculty and learning at

London Business School?There are many people who have aplausible idea and initial drive but who lackany methodology and insights to take itforward.

By studying and observing manyentrepreneurial ventures weve come tounderstand some elements of best andworst practice and can thus help studentsavoid the worst mistakes and assist themin achieving what theyre aiming for. Wealso help them to apply the frameworks,

knowledge and tools that they learn intheir other courses and apply them in anentrepreneurial context.

Q: What other entrepreneurialresources does the School offeroutside of courses and electives?The student and alumni entrepreneurshipclubs are fantastic assets to the School.They are large and lively clubs and createa wonderfully supportive and challenging,spirited entrepreneurial community.The students organise a magnificentannual entrepreneurship conferencetogether with various business plancompetitions. The latest initiative is theEntrepreneurial Leadership SpeakerSeries, which is also entirely studentdriven. (For more information, please visitwww.london-entrepreneurship.com )

The entrepreneurship faculty work closelywith the student committees - were veryinterested in what they are doing and havesome tacit knowledge on what has andhasnt worked well in the past. Wellalways strive to find them speakers fromour various networks but its their show.

Q: Can you tell us about theEntrepreneurship Summer School?The Entrepreneurship Summer School isthe elective for students who arepassionate about starting their ownbusiness. It gives them the chance andthe push - to go out and bring their ideasto life. The summer school extends overtwo months and is limited to 50 studentsfrom within the School and out.Students work in groups of up to threeusing the initial idea they come in with as a

vehicle for finding out about their industryand market. We start with a block weekthats packed full of the raw skills andinsights that an entrepreneur needs in theearly stages. We teach them to powernetwork, cold call, pitch their opportunities

and tell them how to keep themselves outof court.

Q: What is the greatest benefit ofparticipating in the summer school?The students are paired up with a mentorand this is probably the most distinctivepart of the course. Weve assembled agreat band of about 60 successfulentrepreneurs who really enjoy workingwith students. Theyre a tremendous asset.

At the end of the course, the students

present back to a group of 40 experiencedentrepreneurs saying whether they stillthink their idea is viable and why. Manyconclude that the idea is viable but in avery different form or using a very differentbusiness model. Most acknowledge thattheir original idea was nave and they haveto change it in a number of different waysfor it is to succeed which is the wholepoint of the exercise. The next touch pointwith us is when the students are ready topitch to the Enterprise 100. The Enterprise100 are a terrific group of business angelinvestors that are associated with theSchool and it is a powerful piece ofsupport we offer the students.

Q: What difference do you see instudents after the summer school?By the time the students reach the end thecourse, the increase in maturity andconfidence is quite phenomenal. But evenat that stage, very few students havestarted a business by the time they leavehere. We may see them about 18 monthslater when they feel they are ready to pitchbefore the Business Angel Club, which isthe Schools business investor group.

At that point, youre seeing the samestudents from the beginning of their careerand youre just thinking wow, these guyshave really got it. When you compare howthey are now with how they were at thebeginning of their programme, there is justno comparison, so were obviously doingsomething right.

For more information on Entrepreneurshipat London Business School, pleasevisit our website.

http://www.london.edu/facultyandresearch/subjectareas/strategicandinternationalmanagement/entrepreneurship.htmlhttp://www.london.edu/facultyandresearch/subjectareas/strategicandinternationalmanagement/entrepreneurship.html