With social distancing in full effect in The Netherlands, I too am working from home. For some of my activities, this has had a profound impact. On other events, not so much. I am genuinely impressed by how swift so many organisations have shifted to an online version of themselves. They had to; there is no other way at the moment, but still. Changes like this used to take months if not years, but are now done at a break-neck speed and result in ‘good enough’ solutions for now. For some organisations, this is a good lesson in defining an MVP and iterating on it.
Startup Leap
Last week was my sixth session as a mentor for Startup Leap, the online program where people can learn how to build a startup while building on their idea and verify it is a viable business. It is great fun to see these ideas grow, mature and pivot their way to a sustainable business. I help these entrepreneurs think critically about their next steps. The best part of this is that the entire program was already in an online format from the start.
Rockstart AI Demo Day
Also recently I attended the AI Demo Day from Rockstart. While initially, this was designed as a live event, they managed to transform it into a fully online experience. Ten startups did their pitches, were grilled in a Q&A session, and over a hundred people attended the meeting. It is remarkable how far technology and bandwidth have come along to make all of this happen and run so smoothly, but also kudos to Rockstart for pulling this off on such short notice!
More Mentoring
A lot more of the business is transitioning online now, and I have also seen an influx of remote sessions. Calls on Zoom to help a startup with a burning question, or advising a corporate on an innovation challenge. I can see this temporary situation transition into a more permanent one with so much of the business world taking place online.
If you are active in the energy space and are looking for some advice, could use some mentoring on your ideas or want to have a quick check-in, please be in touch.
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