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Are You An Entrepreneur? I'm Forming a Support Group Just for You!

rscasny

My name is Randall Scasny. Many people know me on the community through RoadTests, webinars or the Essentials programs, which I manage. Through these roles, I am in contact with a lot of members. I've gotten a chance to know many of them, whether they are students, hobbyists, makers, working engineers, or etirees. But I haven't connected that much with members who define themselves as entrepreneurs, whether they are hardware or software focused, or are even entrepreneurs in another area who are element14 members to learn how to use technology in their businesses (i.e., vertical farming, would be an example). But I'd like to connect with and get to know our entrepreneurs better. I have owned two businesses in the past and I know how hard it is to get started, to get your marketing right, and to develop a customer base, so you can make a go of it after your financing runs low. I'd like to form an entrepreneurs group on element14. What form this informal group would take depends on what the group defines as important to them. So, leave a comment here, or message me at if you are interested.

 

Sincerely,

 

Randall Scasny

-element14

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  • Thanks for responding to my discussion.

     

    What I found really interesting in the brief stories you all told is that one-size-does-not-fit-all for anyone interested in doing something entrepreneurial.

     

    Don appears to be the furthest along. He is working with someone or for someone. He has a target industry: agriculture. They have a target product: drone. I'm not sure if he is going to be providing a drone service for agriculture or building a drone solution to sell to agriculture. Important difference and the financials could be quite different. I've seen some videos or read some stories of drones used in agriculture so my question is what would make this product/service unique? And what about need? How needed is the service in real and concrete terms? How big can this business be? It sounds regional. but I don't know.

     

    David has some business development experience. A big plus. But he's working now and looking for something (a mix of hardware and software) to pursue. That's a pretty broad range of things. So it appears to me  where he stands is a pretty common place for a lot of entrepreneurs: an issue of focusing. Writing up a business plan is one way to get focusing, albeit often a painful one! Attending a few hardware/software conferences in his area might be a good way to see what people are now doing and a chance to talk to people. I have found that a lot of businesses organically grow out of what the individual is currently doing. In other words: all business is local. That's where it begins and then it expands out under the right conditions.

     

    S Nidhi has done some "leg work" for 3 years but nothing has materialized yet. What have you discovered from this leg work? Is there anything that sounds more realistic than other ideas? It's been my observation that people are always looking for that "disruptive product" or "killer app" that will totally change the world. But these things are rare. A good example to me is home automation: it clearly could be described as disruptive. It can change all kinds of businesses: OEMs, building contractors, architects; it is growing but it hasn't taken off so boldly that everyone is dying to have smart homes. So what is practical or realistic? Then build on that.

     

    my few cents,

     

     

    Randall

  • in reply to rscasny

    To be precise,

    I visited some tech pitching events in Northern Germany to see the real deal. We have CeBIT every year in Hannover. I participated in the CeBIT entrepreneurial workshop last year. to discuss ideas and meet some like minded people. Going to networking events in the city.

     

    To see the business side of it all. One has to be a good talker and presenter which is clearly not my strong suite. Also to know the GDPR (new EU rules on data protection) and the legal obligations with starting a company.

    In Germany the laws are a bit weird regarding startups. I am not sure how it works in other countries but in Germany income taxes are pretty high and enforced to the point.

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  • in reply to rscasny

    To be precise,

    I visited some tech pitching events in Northern Germany to see the real deal. We have CeBIT every year in Hannover. I participated in the CeBIT entrepreneurial workshop last year. to discuss ideas and meet some like minded people. Going to networking events in the city.

     

    To see the business side of it all. One has to be a good talker and presenter which is clearly not my strong suite. Also to know the GDPR (new EU rules on data protection) and the legal obligations with starting a company.

    In Germany the laws are a bit weird regarding startups. I am not sure how it works in other countries but in Germany income taxes are pretty high and enforced to the point.

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