The State of the European Innovation Ecosystem
Conventional wisdom says that Europe’s technology markets are far too fractured to support a one-Europe competitive ecosystem of technology innovation and product development. Yet this is exactly the challenge that Europe’s technology investors, entrepreneurs, public sector officials, ITC executives, and early adopter customers must demand from one another.
Indeed, while the conventionally wise may have held firm to this belief in the past, the wisdom is in dire need of rethinking if European technology innovators are to compete on a global stage and European businesses are to remain competitive in global markets.
I tested this theory as I met with investors, startups, service providers, and journalists around Paris and London last week. No one doubted the premise.
“There is no point in one market, if it isn’t really one market,” said Fiona Vickers, an executive recruiter for Highland Partners and a founder of the exclusive business networking organization “The Chemistry” in London. “If Europe is going to be any kind of power [in the global technology market], we must come together. And if we do, Europe has the opportunity to be the leading power.”
Certainly, there are business barriers to creating a unified European technology ecosystem. Yet it seems that nations that have come together under a common currency should be able to find their way to mutually beneficial laws, regulation, and business practices to create an environment in which innovation flourishes.
The challenges could be overcome easily if they were “simply” business issues. Instead, centuries of history, culture and custom divide European countries as much as the Euro and the European Commission attempt to unite it. Europeans -- who travel along routes established by the Romans and live among medieval castles and cathedrals -- have very long memories, indeed. They are rightfully proud and fiercely protective of their heritages, their cultures, and their languages.
And those cultural differences set up very high barriers to business. Take, for example, the conversation I had with a French entrepreneur who has been building his startup entirely in the U.S. He told me, when I asked why he didn’t build the company in his homeland, that “it is too hard to sell in Europe.” Then he told me about a German customer who insisted that native-German speakers be assigned to provide customer services – and that customer service representatives be physically located near the customer’s site. “To roll out in Europe, we would have to place people in every country where we want to do business. That is too expensive. In the U.S., I have an office in Silicon Valley and another in Boston, maybe also in Chicago, and I am covered. It is much more efficient.”
And pity that poor German customer. By placing demand for local, native-German speaking sales and customer support, the customer effectively limits its technology choices only to those companies who are willing to comply with that demand. Surely some startups will do so, but many of the most innovative companies will not. They will seek out larger markets that can be effectively targeted with a few well-placed resources – markets such as the U.S. and China. And the German customer? He’s left without a technology lever to use for business advantage.
That said, after some eight years of Europe watching, it is clear to me that Europeans are eager to see things change. To a person, the people I talk to agree that the time is now to bring together a dialog that promotes a cross-border technology ecosystem in Europe.
In fact, in the most shocking admission, one French venture capitalist acknowledged that English would be the language of business in Europe. Coming from a Frenchman, that is some sign of change, indeed!
Posted by Guidewire Group at April 19, 2005 06:03 PM
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.guidewiregroup.com/mt/mt-tb.cgi/41
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference The State of the European Innovation Ecosystem:
» japanese schoolgirl hairy pussyfucking from japanese schoolgirl hairy pussyfucking
japanese schoolgirl hairy pussyfucking [Read More]
Tracked on May 11, 2007 04:22 PM
» car sex voyeur from car sex voyeur
car sex voyeur [Read More]
Tracked on May 11, 2007 05:38 PM
» Buy viagra from Buy viagra
Buy viagra online. Viagra uk. Viagra for order lamisil viagra. Buy viagra [Read More]
Tracked on April 18, 2008 11:21 PM
» Buy sublingual levitra online from Buy sublingual levitra online
Buy sublingual levitra online. Levitra side effects. Levitra paypal. Buy levitra online [Read More]
Tracked on April 24, 2008 05:03 PM
» Diflucan fluconazole from Diflucan fluconazole
Diflucan toxicity. Diflucan blood sugar. Diflucan 806. Diflucan toxicity [Read More]
Tracked on April 25, 2008 03:19 AM
» Zithromax antibiotic from Zithromax antibiotic
Zithromax with valium interaction. Serious reaction to zithromax. Serious reaction to zithromax. Levaquin zithromax interactions [Read More]
Tracked on April 25, 2008 10:39 AM
» Cialis and drug craving from Cialis and drug craving
Cialis and drug craving. Cialis lawyers. Taking cialis. Cialis best price buy online [Read More]
Tracked on April 26, 2008 11:24 AM
» Female viagra from Female viagra
Story comparison viagra. Re viagra cello. Viagra for women. Viagra hgh [Read More]
Tracked on April 27, 2008 04:11 PM
» Side effects of the drug nexium from Side effects of the drug nexium
Side effects from going off nexium. Nexium and depression. How can i lose the weight i gained on nexium. Generic nexium [Read More]
Tracked on April 27, 2008 07:29 PM
» Taking viagra with cialis from Taking viagra with cialis
Generic cialis. Cialis st. Cialis lawyers. Buy cialis [Read More]
Tracked on April 29, 2008 08:23 PM
» Buy clomid paypal from Buy clomid paypal
Clomid. Clomid and false pregnancy. Clomid fertility drugs. Clomid and provera [Read More]
Tracked on May 1, 2008 11:53 AM
» Zithromax z-pak from Zithromax z-pak
Zithromax dosage. Zithromax dosage. Zithromax with valium interaction. Side effects of zithromax [Read More]
Tracked on May 6, 2008 09:18 AM
» Soma muscle relaxant from Soma muscle relaxant
Soma next day delievery. Drug soma. Soma next day. Soma [Read More]
Tracked on May 8, 2008 04:55 PM
» Doxycycline 100mg from Doxycycline 100mg
Doxycycline side effects. Doxycycline side effects. Doxycycline acne treatment. Doxycycline hyclate [Read More]
Tracked on May 10, 2008 04:08 AM