Page 118 - guidance-supporting-europe-s-aspiring-entrepreneurs-policy-and-practice-to-harness-future-potential

Guidance supporting Europe’s aspiring entrepreneurs
Policy and practice to harness future potential

business during or after their studies. Personal and professional networks can be
an invaluable resource, and it is particularly important that student-led
entrepreneur networks engage as much as possible with entrepreneurs, business
experts and coaches, chambers of commerce, the public employment service,
associations representing entrepreneurs, and other support infrastructure for
entrepreneurs. At the early business formation stage such networks can help
students to establish themselves and their ideas in the entrepreneurial
community and pave the way for the development of business relationships. The
role of networking groups here is in providing the softer benefits such as
credibility/legitimacy, advice and problem-solving, confidence and reassurance,
motivation/inspiration, relaxation/interest (Edmondson, 2000). They can also
provide peer-to-peer learning opportunities by allowing students to share
experiences, discuss practical ways of solving problems and to access
information about training and support services. At the start-up stage there is a
shift towards using networks to gain more tangible benefits to develop new
business relationships (ibid.).
Networks of (HE) student entrepreneurs can be found in Denmark, Hungary,
Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Poland
and the United Kingdom. Such networks are only infrequently available for
students in Bulgaria. In small countries, such as Iceland, these networks can be
informal: they are not formalised due to the size of the student population. In the
Netherlands one can find international networks on entrepreneurship and in
Sweden partnerships often involve several universities. In Greece, a new HEI
network infrastructure has been recently established with the hope of increasing
collaboration between HEIs and venture capitalists. In Romania, the Academy of
Economic Sciences and the Polytechnic University together with other state
universities and the Group of Applied Economy are currently working to launch a
national network on entrepreneurship in HE. Networks involving student
entrepreneurs are usually coordinated by universities but they can also be
organised by local authorities (this is the case in Sweden), chambers of
commerce (as in Luxembourg and Hungary) or student-led associations (Spain
and Norway).
The Entrepreneur Club at the University of Navarra organises networking
evenings, business breakfasts and company visits, and coaching and training
sessions; these provide real opportunities for students to develop their
networking skills through direct interaction with successful entrepreneurs, experts
and business consultants. Such opportunities provide candid but helpful
feedback on business ideas and can uncover the business founders’ journey and
answer any questions people have about the start-up world.

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