Entrepreneurship in the Scenario of Industry 4.0

The University has a clear objective: to increase student interest in entrepreneurship and to broaden teaching areas with subjects on this theme. Various programs exist with regard to entrepreneurs that are already underway at the University, and diverse activities are being developed to analyze entrepreneurship from different points of view. The latest event was organized by the Chair for Smart Industry, under the title "Entrepreneurship in the Fourth Industrial Revolution".

During this on-line event - which was moderated by Dr. Mariano Ventosa, Vice-Rector for Research and Internationalization and Co-Director of the Chair - three very different aspects of entrepreneurship nowadays were addressed: the Israeli model of innovation and entrepreneurship; the vision of Endeavor España, and the case of “Enagás Emprende”.

"Entrepreneurship is a very powerful lever to help Spanish industry take advantage of the opportunities in this Fourth Industrial Revolution," ascertained Ventosa, who then hypothesized about the true forces that drive entrepreneurship at this time.

Promoting University-Company Business Relationships
Gil Gidron, President of Cardumen Capital and President of the Spain-Israel Chamber of Commerce, recalled that "we all use Israeli technology without knowing it", referring to technology developed by the more than 7000 start-ups in the country, and where a thousand more are created each year. "Israel is the country with the most technicians and scientists in the world," said Gidron. "The miracle of the Israeli model is not really a miracle, as it has been highly planned", based on the small but very well-organized system of universities, "which translates into more Science, more Innovation and more Technology ”.

During his participation, Antonio Iglesias, General Manager of Endeavor España, pointed out that with his model, based on the acceleration cycle of entrepreneurship and on supporting the fastest growing entrepreneurs to increase their impact, “you may start to create an entrepreneurial ecosystem even without having all of the pieces there ”. When small entrepreneurs grow, become successful and are committed to the entrepreneurial ecosystem, they reinvest in the next generation of entrepreneurs, and a virtuous circle of entrepreneurs begins to be generated," he said.

In short, "there is always a very small percentage of entrepreneurs who have a disproportionate impact on the rest of the ecosystem, and we encourage high-impact entrepreneurship."

In his speech, Fernando Impuesto, CEO of Enagás Emprende, focused his presentation on Corporate Entrepreneurship, reflecting on entrepreneurship and open innovation as a response to disruption, and addressing the challenges posed by decarbonization. This is the approach to entrepreneurship at Enagás:  to continue contributing in a sustainable way to society. "Open innovation allows us to invest in new markets and will allow us to develop our activities in the future, in this case, placing our trust in renewable gases."

The speakers agreed that Spain must innovate  in order to be more competitive through Public-Private Coordination, with strong influence from the Private Sector, as well as by promoting University-Company business relationships. Even so, "Spain has many opportunities", they stated, encouraging students at Comillas to “take the leap” and become entrepreneurs. "There are many opportunities and resources available to support you, and I believe that this generation is more prepared than ever to undertake entrepreneurship."