Tag Archives: entrepreneurship

“My business wouldn’t have taken off without Birkbeck’s Pioneer programme”

The Pioneer 1.0 programme is the springboard for entrepreneurially minded students to develop their skills and business ideas. In this blog, Kate Strivens, winner of ‘Best Business Pitch’ in the recent Pioneer Awards and Birkbeck graduate, tells the story of how her business idea came about and her ambitions for the future.

Kate Strivens

Back in 2019, as an avid cyclist who cycled every day to work, Kate was growing increasingly frustrated with how damaged her hair was getting by wearing a helmet. She trawled the internet for helmets designed for adults with afro hair but to no avail. This led her to dreaming up her business idea in early 2020, during the first COVID-19 lockdown, of designing a helmet that provides safety to the cyclist and protection for afro hair.

Kate first heard about Birkbeck’s Pioneer 1.0 programme in early 2020, through a recommendation from a friend. Having already graduated from Birkbeck’s MSc Global Environmental Politics and Policy programme in 2019, she was pleased to find out that it wasn’t too late for her to enrol, as the course accepts recent graduates as well as current students.

Kate set out on the course, and cites it as being the reason for her taking her business idea seriously. “Initially, enrolling on the Pioneer programme was just for fun. I didn’t really see my business idea as being something I would properly pursue. However, not long after I started the course, I began to realise it had the potential to be a feasible and viable business. What held me back initially was my imposter syndrome. If I could give advice to others in my position, it would be to believe in yourself and your idea. It’s just crazy I’ve now won a Pioneer Award, I’m still in shock!”

Having completed the Pioneer programme, Kate is now balancing developing her business and working full-time in Sierra Leone, as a Business Development Manager for Plan International, a development and humanitarian organization that advances children’s rights and equality for girls. It is a world away from her upbringing in rural Wales, “I grew up on a farm in North Wales and when it came to choosing a university, I wanted to get as far away as possible, so I moved to London to study. My passion for travelling from a young age has now meant I work abroad as much as I can – I find different cultures and languages fascinating.”

Kate is currently at the prototyping stage and is spending time conducting market research. She says, “The recent headlines in the news about Fina, the water sports world governing body, rejecting the use of a swimming cap designed for afro hair at competition level has really brought the conversations around sport and afro hair to the fore. I find it so motivating that my invention will be helping others and I can’t wait for my helmets to come to life over the next few months.”

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Knowledge Intensive Business Services: Post-Pandemic New Normal

In our third collaborative event between Birkbeck’s Department of Management and Essex Business School, we explored the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Knowledge Intensive Business Services. 

The COVID-19 crisis has forced many organisations to transition to remote working. How has this impacted Knowledge Intensive Business Services (KIBS), which rely on in-person interaction and team working to deliver their services? 

In a joint event hosted by Birkbeck’s Department of Management and Essex Business School, University of Essex, Professors Ian Miles (Alliance Manchester Business School, University of Manchester) and David Doloreux (HEC Montréal) outlined their view of the post-pandemic new normal for KIBS. 

As Chair, Dr Muthu De Silva, Director of Research in Birkbeck’s Department of Management, introduced the session, which began with discussion from Professor David Doloreux on KIBS and their key characteristics. KIBS are services which involve economic activities which are intended to result in the creation, accumulation or dissemination of knowledge. The KIBS sector includes establishments whose primary activities depend on human capital, knowledge and skills. This inevitably involves close interaction between KIBS and their clients in order to create and disseminate knowledge. 

Scholars have identified three broad classifications of KIBS: 

  1. Social and professional services (P-KIBS) 
  2. Science and technology (T-KIBS) 
  3. Cultural and creative services (C-KIBS) 

Having conducted a literature review into the key research streams relating to KIBS, Doloreux noted that very few studies prior to the pandemic have dealt with digital services and their capacity for innovation, so webinars like this address an important and under-researched area of the field. 

Regarding how the pandemic has affected the macro- and micro-pictures for KIBS innovation, Professor Doloreux made the following observations: 

  • There will be an evolution of demand on KIBS innovation, with greater opportunities related to big data, analytics and AI. 
  • COVID-19 may result in a widening gap between different types of KIBS: P-KIBS may be able to offer more innovative services that satisfy demands, whereas C-KIBS have suffered from drastically reduced demand due to COVID-19. 
  • We will need to rethink the location of activity of KIBS and where innovation occurs. 

As a geographer, Professor Doloreux also raised the following key questions: 

  • How can we geolocalise innovation in KIBS? 
  • How do KIBS innovate without face-to-face and frequent interactions with clients? 
  • What are the dynamics and implications of hybrid models and more digital service production on KIBS innovation? 
  • What is the geography of this connection? 

Regarding the long-term impact of the pandemic on KIBS, there are three possible scenarios that need to be empirically analysed: 

  1. The Revolution: COVID-19 has radically modified innovation and business models in KIBS. 
  2. Booster: COVID-19 has accelerated processes and practices that were already in place, e.g the hybrid model. 
  3. Weak game changer: changes prompted by COVID-19 have a weak impact on KIBS practice and products. 

The second half of this webinar invited Professor Ian Miles to respond to these observations. Having conducted research into KIBS throughout the pandemic, Professor Miles observed how the pandemic impacted KIBS in real time. He highlighted three elements of the crisis that were shaping business conditions: epidemiology, policy responses and socioeconomic impacts. 

In terms of patterns of demands for KIBS, the picture is very mixed. There was a sudden drop in demand for KIBS in 2019/20, three times that seen in the 2008 recession, in line with the drop in demand across the economy. Conversely, some KIBS sectors have been in increased demand and we have seen new demands related to new business problems. Among these ‘winners’ are some portions of research and development services (including the clinical trials industry) which have had to work under new constraints associated with the pandemic, of Information Technology and computer services (which were often quite capable of shifting to remote working),  and of professional services like accountancy and legal services (where new client problems are arising, but whose ways of working have been challenged). 

Professor Miles also discussed how KIBS have confronted challenges during the pandemic, including in particular restrictions on face-to-face interaction. This impacts on the establishment and maintenance of trust, and on the exchange of tacit knowledge, both in relations with clients, and in internal collaboration and team-building. Much effort is underway to improve videoconferencing systems and practices. 

For Professor Miles, there would likely be a shift between the immediate impact of the pandemic, which has seen the acceleration of digitisation activities and the stalling of long-term digital reengineering projects such as AI and data analytics, and the long-term response, which may see these efforts reinstated as organisations push the limitations of virtual communications. Professor Miles concluded by anticipating an upsurge of innovation in the future, as organisations moved on from the ‘forced rapid innovation’ of the immediate crisis. 

The presentations were followed by discussion from the audience, which featured a diverse mix of policy makers, academics and early career researchers, and a vote of thanks from Professor Suma Athreye, Essex Business School. 

A recording of this event is available to watch on YouTube. We look forward to future collaborations as we continue to explore the impact of the pandemic on innovation, knowledge creation and dissemination.

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Building your personal brand

Did you know that you have just seven seconds to make a first impression? William Richards reflects on this insightful Birkbeck Futures event and the importance of honing your personal brand.

Have you ever thought about your personal brand?

On Monday 8 February, Birkbeck students were treated to a specialist talk on ‘Personal Branding’ by Jenna Davies, Employability Consultant in the Birkbeck Futures team.

The talk sought to enhance students’ understanding of their individuality and their personal mark, whether in their studies or beyond. It can often be hard to define our own individual strengths and weaknesses, especially when such topics can be difficult to discuss. While we may not typically think of ourselves as ‘brands’, it can be eye-opening to do so!

By giving ourselves our own personal brand, Jenna explained that students will be able to make themselves more easily understood and more successful within a pitching environment.

Recent studies have shown that humans will make a first impression on someone within the first seven seconds of introducing themselves. By making the most of these precious moments, we can dramatically affect others’ understanding of who we are and what we stand for.

We are each unique beings with unique strengths and it’s never too late to celebrate and uplift our own individualities. What are the unique selling points that could help you stand out to employers or collaborators? Let us know and help inspire others in the comments below.

A big thank you to Jenna and all of those who made Monday’s session a success.

Birkbeck Futures is Birkbeck’s own in-house career support team. If you would like to learn more about employability opportunities or are looking to enhance your presence on platform such as LinkedIn, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

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Challenges and opportunities for university-business co-creation: comparative perspectives from the UK and US

Organised by the Centre for Innovation Management Research, this panel event explored how universities and businesses can build mutually beneficial partnerships from an international perspective.

On Wednesday 19 February, Birkbeck’s Centre for Innovation Management Research was proud to welcome academics and consultants alike to a guest seminar led by Professor Helen Lawton Smith and chaired by Dr Renos Savva.

The title of the discussion was Challenges and Opportunities for University-Business Co-Creation, with Adrian Day, Dr Federica Rossi, Professor Tomasz Mroczkowski and Evelyn Wilson each bringing their individual expertise to the panel.

Throughout this fascinating event, each panellist outlined their view of the ever-changing relationship between universities and private enterprise. With a focus on international perspectives; from Japan to Sweden, the US and the UK, attendees were encouraged to outline their experience of joint ventures. Moreover, in discussing the dichotomy between government policy and evolving attitudes towards innovation, the role of today’s universities was brought into the debate.

In looking to the future, this event sought to compare the varying attitudes towards university-business co-creation, with an aim to building new and sustainable partnerships throughout the academic and entrepreneurial spheres.

Thank you to everyone who attended and made this event such a success!

  • Dr Renos Savva, a Senior Lecturer in Biological Sciences at Birkbeck, and co-founder of the Birkbeck-UCL-ICR start-up, Domainex Ltd., which is now an established biotech sector SME based in the Cambridge area.
  • Adrian Day has spent over 15 years working at the interface between academia and the economy, covering all aspects from design of data systems to providing direct advice to the Minister for Universities.
  • Dr Federica Rossi is Senior Lecturer in Business Economics at Birkbeck.
  • Dr Tomasz Mroczkowski, American University, has studied and written about innovation, the management of change, and economic transition for most of his career.
  • Evelyn Wilson is a Founder/Director of The Culture Capital Exchange, established in 2011 and was Senior Manager at its previous iteration London Centre for Arts and Cultural Exchange.

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