GVL Network MeetingUC Berkeley, 19 Nov 2009

GVL Partners Incorporated:Globally Connected Faculty as the

cornerstone of a new university-basedBusiness Creation Platform

Marko SEPPÄ

University of Jyväskylä (JYU),University Alliance Finland

agenda

1. The lab within2. Our problem & our solution3. Notes on the pilot environment4. Emerging pilot propositions5. ”Who-Do” of Global Venture Lab6. Vision 2012

the lab within

• We are ”a lab within” Global Venture Lab– UAF a new university system of kin to UC and IIT– JYU, Tampere U of Technology, U of Tampere– largest U entity: 25% of sector, 40k students

• Among GVL founders, we emerged to pilot a business creation platform experiment– To design a Live Case approach and test (daring) – faculty-student-mentor co-owned structures– to boost action research and learning by doing

our problem

• We should educate people capable of creating Great Enterprises – that solve big problems

• But do we (does the university) know how to? – Has our concept of business, as ”science”, kept

pace with time? Is it a science or, rather, an art?

• Too often ”swimming” is taught on dry land by people who cannot swim and fear water!– Should we renew our concept of ”faculty” and what

is science (and what not) in our space?

our problem• In business creation, the key means of

production have changed dramatically – From financial capital to knowledge capital based– Just think of Google sky-rocketing ahead of Coca

Cola as the top brand in many rankings– Many reach greatness by raising knowledge only

• Our theories of the firm (& business school practices) have not kept pace w. the change– What does it take to build a Great Enterprise – or

Business School – in the “Google era”? Whom?• There are some deeply troubling questions…

our solution

• A new breed of faculty, new concept of science

• Not better (than existing) – no replacement; yet necessary and complementary, however– Businessmen turned action researchers, rather

than researchers turned wannabe businessmen• Globally connected faculty, dual “citizenship”

1. faculty of a LOCAL host university AND 2. partner in a GLOBAL faculty partnership

• University as Business Creation Platform– drilling small holes and connecting “local silos”

our solution

• “GVL Partners Incorporated”– a scalable vehicle that creates shared principality– every local faculty member is “global partner”

• Pushing the Envelope: High Risk, High Return– High scientific risk vs. high practical relevance– Not for all: Not everyone needs or wants this– Not everyone is allowed (by host U) to join

• Pilot in Finland + the best delivery channels– REE (globally), CLUSTER (Europe), SKY (Finland)

pilot environment

• Finland is not the Valley, but not 100% the opposite either; “invention” we have– Also many other places lack the serial

entrepreneur & classic VC driven ecosystem

– Also many other places educate employees (agents), rather than employers (principals)

• Active (hands on) action research has brought about significant propositions

pilot environment

• Working on a “Live Case” approach– Teaching & learning thru real life

situations– Co-creation (for real profits) by students,

faculty and entrepreneurs• Topped by committed outside savvy

and independent ”co-entrepreneurs”– Alumni, ”mentor capitalists”– Entrepreneurs, VCs, and execs in

residence

pilot environment

• Integrated business competence programs to motivated students from all disciplines at JYU

• Some numbers– 200 students accepted in Human Business &

Technology Business since autumn 2006– 41 projects with corporate and venture partners

in the academic year 2008-2009 alone– Team grew from 1 (in 2006) to 10 (in 2009),

mainly based on competed external funding

pilot propositions

• We need to mobilise slack resources– What you need already exists as

someone else’s slack resources• Knowledge investing is the ticket

– Human capability, capacity, competence• Shared dynamically changing

ownership– Business is increasingly a team sport: A

sprint relay, rather than a marathon

pilot propositions

• Business creation is increasingly a team sport – a sprint relay – no longer the classic marathon

• We need to move from a “how to” paradigm to a “by whom” paradigm– From: ”how do I get this deal?” – To: ”who will get me this deal?”

• An emerging ”Who-Do” framework

pilot propositions

TO WHOM?

WHAT?

WHO?

WHY?

HOW?

WHY?

HOW?

Owner: Who owns the undertaking (exactly, over time)?

Mission: Why owns (exactly, over time)?

Structure: How owns (exactly, over time)?

Product system: What is produced?

Organisation: How is produced?

Market: To whom is produced?

Brand: Why us?

”who”

”do”

sources:Porter J. (2009)Seppä M. (2000)

RED: inputBLUE: output

”who-do” of global venture lab

BUSINESS MODELS AND INDUSTRY CONCEPTS AS SCIENCE

GLOBALVENTURE

KNOWLEDGISTSTHAT MAKETHE WORLD

A BETTER PLACE

GROWTHENTERPRISES

THAT SOLVE OURBIG PROBLEMS

RETURN ON INVESTMENT FOR EVERY INVOLVED PERSON

dedicatedstudents

curious inventorsand entrepreneurs

globally connected faculty

business professionalsavailable as mentorsand co-entrepreneurs

”who-do” of global venture lab

GVL integrates the three university functions into a windmill of change

• third mission comes 1st: we DO business to build The Platform,

• research to understand The Art• education to produce The Masters3 blades, alternative energy for an

institutional innovation system

3.

R E

”who-do” of global venture lab

Our emerging value propositions:•practitioners – inventors to investors

–gain insight, capital and deal flow•students of business competence

–can equip themselves, if have passion•faculty of “clinical entrepreneurship”

– together we can create a new frontier

vision 2012

• Entrepreneurs/inventors can access GVL in 100 university locations around the world

• Students can emerge as ”Masters” via Live Case programs: Real problems, shared profit

• Practitioners lead local knowledge investing as part of an expanding global community

• Corporate and investor partners can ensure a worldwide impact for their solutions/services

• Our ”Human Accelerator” is fully in business

in conclusion

• Markets are global, ICT connects, many problems worth solving touch everyone

• Yet business creation and “knowledge production” is stuck in local silos

• The university system could be used as platform to globalize business creation

• If only there are people who BELIEVE together we can!