MTB Boot camp Sep 2010 - Open Forum

Startups and spinoffs in Italy.Facts and trends
Mind the Bridge Boot Camp 2010
Varese, September 23
Alberto Onetti, Chairman, Mind the Bridge Foundation
Director, CrESIT, University of Insubria
With the support of

Mind the Bridge foundation
Mission:
to promote a new Italian entrepreneurial ecosystem that is:ethical, highly professional, internationally focused, excellence driven
Model:funded by foundations/companies/private sector/donorsnot government
partnering with the most relevant actors
Independent
bridging opportunities of the Silicon Valley with Italian talent
associating mentors and role models
professionalizing the business planning skills
using and building the network
“give back” to build a bigger pie
Connecting Talent

Building The Bridge: The Pillars
Discovering and Nurturing the Italian Talents (MtB Italy Tour 2010)
Selecting the best of breed (Annual MtB Business Plan Competition)
Providing training & education to the new generation of entrepreneurs (MtBBootcamp and Coaching)
Showcasing the most promising startups and opening an international debate (MtB Venture Camp @ Corrieredella Sera)
Hosting & Mentoring the most promising startups in the Silicon Valley (MtB Gym)
Pitching US investors / partners (MtB Gran Finale events)
Connecting Talent

Building The Bridge: The Timeline
November 5-6, 2010Corriere della SeraMilano
with the support of:
MtB Gym
When?
Q1 2011
MtB Venture Camp @Corrieredella Sera
When?5-6 Nov 10
MtB Bootcamp
MtBCoaching
When?Sep-Oct 10
MtB Business Plan Competition/MtB Call for Ideas
When?Jul 10
With the support of:
MtBRoadshows
When?Jan-Jun 10
In partnership with:

2009 selectedStart-ups
Revolutionary antenna system (Milano)
Wi-Fi-derivedsolutions (Milano and Boston)
Comprehensivenon-invasive solution for both vertebral fractures and bone strength assessment (Lecce)
Solutionto update anydigital information (Sassari)
Social-networkthatallowsusersto create musicthrough the web (Treviso)
Social marketplacefortravel, whereexperts can provideuserswith information and personalizedoffers (Milano)
Virtual and Augmented Reality technology (Pisa)

2010: Who are the next Italian Pioneers to Silicon Valley?
The challenge is open: who’s next?
Hundreds of Business Plans received
33 startups selected
During the Bootcamp we select the short list of 15 pitching @ Corrieredella Sera
The Top 6/7 are admitted to MTB Gym @ Pier 38 in San Francisco

Italy: Where are we?
We have plenty of SMEs
SMEs are 98% of the total
We are mostly positioned on mature business and services
Services is 67% of GDP, while Manufacturing is only 24%
Innovative sectors play a minor role (2-5%)
We need a new wave of startups, operating on innovative fields
ITALY: INDUSTRY CONTRIBUTION TO GDP (2009)
Source: CrESIT 2010

Starting up Business in Italy:Key Issues
A few startups often lacking high-quality business plans (deal “trickle”)
Legal barriers to entry and exit (Italy is not a “corporate haven”)
Obstacles in bridging research into business
Managerial skills
High mortality rates (“crisi del primo miglio”) and “Dwarfism”
Lack of an established venture capital community
Mindset
No exits on the domestic market
Technology hot-shots aspire to sell out to new economy “leviathans”
Small size of the stock market and lack of large corporations doesn’t help
Language barriers

Italian Startups:MTB Participants Profile
Startup by Geography
It is 14 months old
77% originate in Northern Italy
16% are incubated in a technology park
20% are an academic spin-off
46% are Web-based firms
The founder’s team is composed of 3/4 people
Only 7% have just one founder
97% are looking for funding
Initial capital investment is €33k
19% received some external funding (mostly research grants)
Source: Mind the Bridge - CrESIT 2010

He/She is 35
86% is male, only 16% is female
67% has a scientific/technological background , while 33% has a business/humanistic education
42% holds a Ph.D. or MBA
33% got it abroad
Only 5% does not hold a university degree
28% has prior entrepreneurial experience
Italian Entrepreneurs: MTB Participants Profile

What does make a succesful StartupLessons learned
Education matters a lot
2.0 Startups are founded by highly educated people
Experience matters as well
Being a serial entrepreneur is a job
The right startup is never the first one you found
Working/Studying abroad does open your mind
It means more network, opportunities, ideas, experience
A successful startup is a team effort
One-man bands do not go too far

Areas of improvementLessons learned
We need more female entrepreneurs
Break cultural barriers
We still need more academic spin-offs
Lack of efficient technologytransfer offices
Universities do not offer incentives forlecturers to spin-off business initiatives
Italian scientists do not think business
Scarcity of skilled executives withstrong entrepreneurial skills
Source: Piccaluga 2007

THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION
SOCIAL MEDIA:
Facebook: Mind the Bridge - Connecting Talent
Twitter: MindTheBridge
BLOGS:
mindthebridge.blogspot.com
siliconvalley.corriere.it
USEFUL LINKS:
www.mindthebridge.org
www.cresit.it

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MTB Boot camp Sep 2010 - Open Forum

by Mind The Bridge Foundation on Sep 23, 2010

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MTB Boot camp Sep 2010 - Open Forum — Presentation Transcript