1 ST HEC PARIS ENTREPRENEURSHIP BAROMETER March 4 th 2015
Introduction Entrepreneurship has always been one of the strategic priorities of HEC Paris. Throughout the years it has taken various forms: innovative teaching methods (with emblematic programs such as HEC entrepreneurs and Challenge+), research, support and coaching, awareness campaigns on campus, facilities such as the HEC Incubator, etc. What conclusions can be drawn from these actions? Can the general enthusiasm among young French people for entrepreneurship also be observed among our students? How have HEC entrepreneurs fared? What are their motivations to start a business? The first HEC Entrepreneurship Barometer answers these questions. To devise this barometer we have interviewed a representative panel of 8,500 alumni from the various HEC programs, including young graduates as well as seasoned professionals who left the school 10 years ago. Methodology The survey was conducted on 5 Classes 2004, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 for a total of 8,500 people. The interviewees were graduates from all the HEC programs: Grande Ecole Master in Management, MSc Programs, MBA and Executive MBA. The response rate was close to 30%. The survey was carried out online and over the phone by HEC Junior Enterprise. 1,156 forms were filled out by email from November 18 th to December 8 th 2014. 1,372 forms were filled out over the phone between December 4 th 2014 and January 20 th 2015. Full methodology available upon request. Press Contact Leyla Douci-Habane, +33 1 39 67 94 23, douci@hec.fr
Main Findings The results are very encouraging and reveal three main trends: 1. The desire to start a business is rapidly growing. Today 1 out of 4 HEC graduates 1 is an entrepreneur, a proportion that has been increasing constantly and rapidly over the last 10 years. Back then only 10% of students opted for entrepreneurship. 2. HEC entrepreneurs are value creators in France. 84% of businesses are founded in France, creating jobs and generating growth. 3. The businesses started by HEC graduates from very diverse sectors have sound, sustainable business models, often benefiting from the support of Business Angels or venture capitalists. Entrepreneurship is booming Among the youngest graduates ( pre-experience Master programs), the survey reveals wide-ranging interest in entrepreneurship, with almost 20% of entrepreneurs among graduates of the last Class; three times more than the national average. This growing enthusiasm has been even more tangible with each year: in 2004 there were only 2% of entrepreneurs. Stimulated by the diverse activities offered on campus (educational programs, entrepreneur talks, Creativity Talks, business incubator, etc.), students now feel freer to express their creativity and no longer hesitate to bring their projects to fruition, whether as students or as young graduates. But the appeal of entrepreneurship is not restricted to youth! The percentage of entrepreneurs is particularly high (44%) amongst participants in the Executive MBA program, designed for senior executives wishing to give a new direction to their career. The professional experience of these students, combined with the academic input of the program, brings out the entrepreneurial potential of these executives. The major drivers of entrepreneurship are a desire for independence, and innovation. The desire to be one s own boss is the main motive, but in much lower proportions than the national average (47% vs. 77% according to the 2013 Envie d Entreprendre Barometer). The desire to innovate and create new business models is the other main factor in starting a business, for one out of four entrepreneurs. Conversely, and against expectations, the lack of attractiveness of large corporations is mentioned by only 15% of the interviewees. 1 Graduates from the Grande Ecole, Specialized Masters, MSc, MBA and Executive MBA programs
HEC entrepreneurs are value creators The study shows no increase in the number of business startups abroad, with 84% of businesses incorporated in France. The percentage of companies started up abroad has risen for the MBA program, which has 85% of foreign students. Close to one-third of MBA alumni start up a business abroad. This figure is partly ascribable to the fact that some of these students go back to their country of origin after graduating. Another noteworthy finding is that entrepreneurs are less and less isolated. Only 37% of HEC graduates founded their business on their own, vs. 69% nationwide (ministerial data 2013) and the percentage has fallen steadily year after year. This is explained in particular by the desire of entrepreneurs to work in teams, extending the relationships they have formed on campus, but also by the sharp increase in projects requiring dual skills (e.g. engineer/manager); such projects are encouraged at HEC by the system of dual degrees and by the extensive partnerships developed, particularly in Saclay. More than ever before, entrepreneurship is a collective experience! Businesses started up by HEC graduates are of benefit to a vast array of sectors: business services, digital economy, sports, tourism, civil engineering or agriculture. This diversity is fostered by the numerous multidisciplinary partnerships developed between HEC and such institutions as the Ecole polytechnique, AgroParisTech, IOGS, Mines ParisTech, Sup Aéro, etc. Robust businesses The companies started up display great growth potential. Indeed, about a quarter of HEC entrepreneurs use fundraising, more than twice the national ratio (2013 Envie d Entreprendre Barometer). This fundraising is done very early in the life of their project. This reflects not only the high expectations of entrepreneurs but also the trust of investors in projects perceived as serious and attractive. The new businesses are sustainable. After three years of activity, the survival rate of these businesses is 80% vs. 66% nationwide (data from the 2013 Observatoire APCE). Finally, each Class since 2011 has had a constant share of 30% of serial entrepreneurs among those who started a business. This figure illustrates the dynamism and thirst for innovation of these entrepreneurs. The growing enthusiasm for entrepreneurship is tangible at HEC. Also good news is the solidarity of HEC entrepreneurs: 81% of them stated that they are willing to support projects by current students, whether in the form of mentoring, investment or networking.
HEC Entrepreneurship Barometer Current entrepreneurship rate (Grande Ecole MiM, MS, MSc) Question: Have you already founded a business? Startup rate in the year following graduation. * last Class for which we have complete data (Class of 2013) Growth in the entrepreneurship rate (all alumni) Class of 2014: complete data unavailable (answers over 6 months only)
Growth in the entrepreneurship rate among HEC pre-experience graduates (MS, MSc, Grande Ecole MiM) 19% of 2013 HEC pre-experience graduates have already started their own business. This is three times higher than the national average. National average in France for graduate students (Source: APEC 2014) Reasons for starting a business The desire for independence and innovation are the two main drivers of entrepreneurship. No rejection of large corporations. The independence item is however much lower than the national average.
Structure of the new businesses Only 37% of HEC graduates create their business on their own, vs. 69% nationwide. Location of the businesses started up by HEC entrepreneurs 84% of businesses have been created in France
Business creation by industry (Class of 2013) Use of fundraising (Capital Investment or Business Angels) 23% of HEC entrepreneurs use fundraising, which is more than twice the rate of the national sample (2013 Envie d Entreprendre Barometer).
Percentage of entrepreneurs who have founded more than one company Close to one out of three entrepreneurs is a serial entrepreneur
A few success stories among HEC graduates Ning Li & Julien Callède (H06) - Made.com Interior Design Ning Li and Julien Callède founded Made.com alongside Chloé Macintosh & Brent Hoberman (founder of Lastminute.com). Their company is number one in Europe on the online furniture market, and their business was showcased by the City of London in a great campaign about entrepreneurs. Giles Christopher Pauline Laigneau (H12) - Gemmyo Online Jewelry Pauline started up Gemmyo, an online jewelry store. Her company has already created 15 direct jobs and a range of 15,000 jewels, and should close 2014 with a turnover of 3 million euros. Photo La Tribune François Pelen (EMBA 11), Raphael Schnitzer (MS 07) and Patrice Pouts (EMBA 11) - Groupe Point Vision (via HEC Incubator) Optical After their training and a spell at the HEC business incubator, the Point Vision team is revolutionizing the way we go to the ophthalmologist. What s new? They rethought the whole value chain and opened vision centers able to receive customers in less than 48 hours. The seven centers that have opened since 2012 receive more than 200 patients each day and the company is growing very rapidly: about twenty more centers will open before the end of the year. Florence Pellegrini and Kevin Berkane (H13) - Kialatok - Catering Kialatok offers world cuisine workshops run by talented cooks from various countries: the selected cooks are in job integration programs and train employees of large groups. Kialatok is one of the projects supported by the HEC Social Incubator opened in La Courneuve with Projet pour l Emplo in 2014 (Stand-up 93).
Chloé Beron, (MS 11), founder of the International Center of Arts in Motion of Aix en Provence (France) Thierry Bonte, (EMBA 11), president of Factory Systèmes (France) - IT Thomas Held, (H12) and Hugo Camille Owen (H14), founders of Eforsports - Sports Clément Le Fournis and Paolin Pascot (MS 13), founders of Agriconomie - Agriculture Olivier Nicolas (MS 11), founder of Tropicachat.nc in New Caledonia - Retail Rudy Guénaire and Graffi Rathamohan (H11), founders of the PNY Paris New York restaurants - Catering Rami Tazari, (MBA 04), founder of Basatin Landscaping in Abu Dhabi - Landscaping Céline Lazorthes (MS 08), Founder of Leetchi Services Guillaume Gibault (H09), Founder of Slip Français Fashion
ENTREPRENEURSHIP CENTER Entrepreneurship in Graduate Programs Start Up Academy in 1st or 2nd year of the Grande École MiM Program The Start Up Academy s goal is to make students experience the life of young web entrepreneurs within three weeks. All major entrepreneurial theories of today are illustrated through concrete examples. Web entrepreneurs, investors, designers and developers also come to share their testimony. FACT Entrepreneur in 1st or 2nd year of the Grande École MiM Program FACT Entrepreneur aims to create an innovative system of support for technological entrepreneurship courses, complementing existing incubation tools at HEC, Polytechnique and the Plateau de Saclay Cluster. This program comprises a set of digital resources for understanding the strategic, technological, commercial, human and financial aspects relative to the creation and development of an innovative company, based on new technologies and/or new uses. These resources are developed in partnership with Ecole polytechnique, in joint seminars, and as a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course), which ensures wide distribution. The corresponding teaching (classroom courses and digital resources) are also offered to all partners from Université Paris- Saclay. Initiation to Entrepreneurship workshops in 2nd year Each year, these programs enable students to build synergies with engineering schools. So far, partnerships have been built with Polytechnique and the ENPC, which enable students to work in teams of four (two from each school). Specialization programs in 3rd year with a strong entrepreneurial dimension MS Entrepreneurs (French only) MSc Strategic Management MSc Sustainability and Social Innovation MS Alter Management (French only) MS Médias, Art et Création (French only) Msc Projet Innovation Conception (French only)msc Management de Grands Projets (French Only)
Digital Innovation for Business Certificate The Digital Innovation for Business certificate is more than one hundred hours additional training in e-business (courses, lectures, practical work, projects) from mid-april to the end of June, open to students from different courses at HEC. Created in 2011, this program specializes in Innovation and Enterprise in the digital economy. It benefits from the active participation of five partnering entrepreneurs and their companies: Jacques-Antoine Granjon, founder and CEO of Venteprivee.com, Pierre Kosciusko-Morizet, co-founder of PriceMinister and ISAI funds, Xavier Niel, founder of Free and vice-chairman of the board, Steve Rosenblum, founder and CEO of the Pixmania Group, and Marc Simoncini, founder of Meetic. Entrepreneurship in Postgraduate Programs HEC Challenge + Created in 1990, the Challenge+ Program helps developers of innovative projects with high growth potential build their business plan, and provides assistance throughout the development process. The teaching formula closely associates training, assistance and a personalized follow-up. The Entrepreneurship Track of the MBA The Entrepreneurship specialization is one of the major elective courses of our MBA. This program is designed to provide participants with both fundamental and practical skills for starting a venture, either within an organization or from scratch. This program is taught in English and 85% of students are foreign. It is based on a set of fundamental courses on entrepreneurship, six specific courses, and several other electives. The special feature of this course is based on a learning by doing philosophy in the form of three and a half intensive months, including fieldwork in laboratories and meetings of the entrepreneurial ecosystem related to the project conducted by a team of three or four students. A unique collaboration between Université Paris-Saclay and the MBA supports this outstanding and innovative teaching initiative. Executive MBA Major/Advanced Certificate in Entrepreneurship & Innovation This major/advanced certificate is intended for participants interested in launching an innovation or new business, either as part of an established firm or an innovation development team. This major will therefore address both how to drive innovation within the firm and how to enhance entrepreneurial thinking. If the participant s entrepreneurship project is mature, he/she should apply to the Entrepreneurship Developing your Business Project major, specifically dedicated to developing ventures. Executive MBA Major/Advanced Certificate in Entrepreneurship Developing your Business Project This program is designed for participants who have a personal project.
Increasingly, HEC Paris EMBA participants are committing themselves to new ventures, as entrepreneurs (in start-ups or takeovers), investors and consultants. The goal of this major is to help participants to: - Decide on their future activity - Allow them to assess the robustness of their project - Help them move forward with the next step. On Campus Initiatives Weekly Events Every Tuesday an entrepreneur is invited on campus for a creativity talk. In an informal setting, he or she recalls personal experiences and engages present students with concrete feedback on the creation and development of a company. Every Thursday, an entrepreneur or an expert comes to share their expertise in a toolkit workshop, i.e. a practice session. These events are open to all students of the Plateau de Saclay cluster and are held at the elab. The elab The elab is an exclusive entrepreneurial lab equipped with state-of-the art interactive technology that stimulates creativity and communication. The student s ventures are developed from inception to completion of the business plan, through exercises and practical work in addition to regular courses. The elab has been funded thanks to the generosity of Jean-Luc Allavena, Pascal de Jenlis and Pascal Cagni, donators of the HEC Foundation. Start-Up Corner at the HEC Career Fair For the second consecutive year, start-ups will be well represented at the HEC Career Fair. More than 50 French and international start-ups will be present to meet the students and share with them. Start-ups at the MBA Career Day The MBA Career Day is also a day for start-ups. This is an all-day event held annually in September on campus at HEC, designed to introduce MBA students to companies, from small start-ups to multinationals. TEDxHEC Paris HEC has already organized two editions of this event. In the spirit of ideas worth spreading, TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. The latest edition on campus was in September 2014. Go to http://www.tedxhecparis.com for more information.
MOOCs (massive open online courses) on Coursera HEC Paris has launched and made available to all its knowledge in two specific areas in the form of MOOCs. Two of these touch on entrepreneurship issues: social entrepreneurship (in collaboration with Ticket for Change) and technological entrepreneurship (with École polytechnique). Becoming an entrepreneur of change Based on the expertise of HEC in entrepreneurship and social innovation, as well as the collective experience of the participants of the "Ticket for Change" Tour de France, the MOOC Devenir entrepreneur du changement (French only) offers learners to reveal their talents for action in the service of society. From 24 February 2015 for 7 weeks, it helps registered participants move from idea to action for free. HEC Paris professors who designed this MOOC all participate in the HEC Social Business, Enterprise and Poverty chair, and in the Society & Organizations (SnO) Center. Create and develop a technology startup Based on the expertise of HEC in technological entrepreneurship, this online course entitled Créer et développer une startup technologique (French only) aims to identify and evaluate opportunities to create technology companies, and to understand the key human, technical, commercial, environmental and financial issues. The course consists of methodological sessions as well as testimonies of entrepreneurs and iconic players in the creation of technology companies. Created in collaboration with Polytechnique, it will be released on 1 April 2015. Support through the HEC Network The HEC Incubator The HEC Incubator hosts and challenges at an early stage start-ups founded by HEC students and alumni. These are startups bringing innovation into various service sectors, including retail, food, web and big data. With nine months of dedicated coaching, the HEC Incubator helps entrepreneurs with their product, business model, first customers and investors. Incuballiance As HEC is a founding partner of Incuballiance, all technology projects (except co-incubation agreements) are integrated into this incubator. Social Entrepreneurship with StandUp HEC StandUp HEC offers a social incubation program for HEC students and graduates who wish to create structures whose primary purpose is social change. They are assisted in this entrepreneurial approach and its issues with specific coaching. StandUp, the social and solidarity incubator, also runs each year in La Courneuve the StandUp 93 program, supporting women of urban policy
districts to set up social enterprise projects. Today, female entrepreneurs from this training carry a third of all projects assisted by the incubator. The HEC Alumni Entrepreneurship Group The HEC Alumni Entrepreneurship Group is one of the 16 Professional hubs that structure HEC Alumni. It gathers nearly 2,000 graduates divided into six operational, topical or regional clubs, as well the HEC Alumni/Google Mercure. Its goals are: Relay the aims of the association to the entrepreneur community (networking, reputation, solidarity) Welcome all HEC alumni interested in an entrepreneurial adventure Organize regular meeting points between entrepreneurs and professionals of the entrepreneurial sector Maintain close relationships with other groups of the HEC Community (professional groups, campus groups) Promote HEC Entrepreneurship and spark successful business opportunities for group members. The Young HEC Entrepreneurs Club from the HEC Alumni Entrepreneurship Group As part of the HEC Alumni Entrepreneurship Group, the Young HEC Entrepreneurs Club facilitates meetings and sharing experiences between alumni that have created start-up. The registration criteria are: Having graduated from HEC less than ten years ago Having created a business and running it HEC Alumni Ventures HEC Alumni Ventures is a private platform bringing together top entrepreneurs, investors and mentors from the HEC Alumni network. The PEIPS network (Pôle Entrepreneuriat et Innovation Paris-Saclay) The HEC Paris PEIPS network organizes events promoting entrepreneurial spirit and the creativity of students. It set up the Entrepreneur Student status (and degree) that balances studies and entrepreneurship, and incorporates supervision by passionate practitioners. It also offers to students the tools to enable them to develop and mature their entrepreneurial project: shared working spaces, fablabs and business incubators.
Through PEIPS, 12 higher education establishments and 18 socio-economic actors work together, permanently anchoring entrepreneurship and innovation into the life the 70,000 students at Université Paris-Saclay. The HEC Mercure The HEC Mercure is a business creation contest organized by HEC Alumni with two aims: - Being part of the development of the entrepreneurial values of the HEC trademark - Highlighting the work of HEC Entrepreneurs to promote entrepreneurial spirit in our community Research at HEC HEC Paris capitalizes on the work realized by the CCIP research chair on entrepreneurship launched in 2006 in collaboration with ESCP-Europe and Novancia. This chair promotes the research in a field of study that is still minor in France, and reinforces permeation between academia and business. Since its creation, the CCIP chair has supported about 15 projects on five main topics: Entrepreneurship & Finance, Entrepreneurship & Innovation, Entrepreneurship & Public Policy, Law, Taxation & Entrepreneurship, and Entrepreneurial Spirit & Risk Taking. HEC is also involved in common projects that link innovation and entrepreneurship, such as: Activities within the PIMREP (ParisTech Innovation Management Research) network A laboratory, LINEN The Georges Doriot international research days in entrepreneurship The STEP international research program on family entrepreneurship, in partnership with Babson College Partnerships with the École Navale, Polytechnique, and Télécom Paris To finish, HEC participates alongside other institutions (Cachan, Telecom ParisTech, Paris Sud University and Versailles Saint Quentin University) in the ISIS research program (between Interactions Science, Innovation, and Society), one of four lines of research focusing on innovation and entrepreneurship, supported by the Paris-Saclay excellence initiative. Faculty Teaching and research on entrepreneurship and innovation is led by experienced faculty members: Jean-Loup Ardoin, Emeritus Professor Thomas Astebro, Professor Alain Bloch, Affiliate Professor Francoise Chevalier, Associate Professor
Adina Dabu, Assistant Professor Kristina Dahlin, Associate Professor Kristine De Valck, Associate Professor Jean-Pierre Détrie, Emeritus Professor Giada Di-Stefano, Assistant Professor Steve Eppinger, Visiting Professor Ludovic François, Affiliate Professor Oliver Gottschalg, Associate Professor Florian Hoos, Assistant Professor Frédéric Iselin, Affiliate Professor Sihem Jouini, Associate Professor Etienne Krieger, Affiliate Professor Julien Lévy, Affiliate Professor Stéphane Madoeuf, Affiliate Professor Laurent Maruani, Emeritus Professor Denisa Mindruta, Assistant Professor Thomas Paris, Affiliate Professor Michel Safars, Affiliate Professor Michel Santi, Emeritus Professor Anne-Laure Sellier, Associate Professore Mathis Schulte, Associate Professor David Thesmar, Professor