This year 2022-2023, SKEMA Ventures in China has been actively engaged in various activities to foster innovation and entrepreneurship aligned with our triple helix: education, coaching, ecosystem.
Ecosystem first. Under the local coordination of Chali Zhou (SKEMA 2015), himself a serial entrepreneur, SKEMA Ventures has shared entrepreneurial practices with several prestigious partners of the Chinese entrepreneurial ecosystem. These include China Renmin University Suzhou Campus, Southeast University Suzhou Campus, National University of Singapore (Suzhou) Research Institute, Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University, as well as investment and financing institutions. These sharing of practices allowed to further anchor SKEMA Ventures’ approach of glocal entrepreneurship to offer our entrepreneurs the best of each local ecosystem.
Then, education and coaching. Fulfilling its knowledge transfer role, SKEMA Ventures in Suzhou has continued to bridge the gap between the theory and the practice of entrepreneurship. To this aim, Chali Zhou has delivered lectures on entrepreneurship and innovation to students involved in SKEMA’s different program in Xi’an and Nanjing.
The SKEMA Ventures team provided guidance and coaching for their entrepreneurial projects, inspiring students to develop an entrepreneurial mindset and supporting them in their entrepreneurial endeavors. It is worth mentioning that an entrepreneurship team from SKEMA x Nanjing Audit University emerged as winners in the 13th National University Student E-Commerce Challenge held at Nanjing Audit University. Their innovative High-tech Tea project—Xinhuo—earned them the grand prize. This achievement was made possible with the support and guidance of both Wenyu DOU, Academic Dean of SKEMA China, and Chali Zhou.
In addition, SKEMA Ventures also contributed to supports SKEMA initiative of Higher Education For Good by organizing the first Youth Talks event in Jiangsu Province. SKEMA Ventures allowed aspiring young entrepreneurs to share their ideas and engage in meaningful discussions. This initiative showcased SKEMA Ventures commitment towards impact entrepreneurship and our never-ending efforts to nurturing and supporting the entrepreneurial talents who will create value for the economy, the individuals, and society as a whole.
As everywhere, where SKEMA Ventures supports impact entrepreneurs, the past academic year in Suzhou has reflected our dedication to providing a facilitating environment for students and alumni entrepreneurs, offering robust resources, tools and methods to bridge the gap between entrepreneurial intention and action.
