“It’s about making a positive impact on society”

BFH places an emphasis on entrepreneurship. Can you tell us why? And what does ‘entrepreneurship’ actually entail?

Christine Geissbühler: At BFH, entrepreneurship means turning opportunities and ideas into economic, social or cultural value and making a positive impact. Our goal is to use creativity and critical thinking to solve challenges while taking responsibility and demonstrating initiative and perseverance.

Lorenz Probst: In doing so, we make our research and innovation capacity available to society. New products, processes or even jobs are created. However, entrepreneurial activity is not limited to founding new businesses. At BFH, it is a form of social engagement to which we are committed.

Where does BFH stand on entrepreneurship today?

Lorenz Probst: Employees and students can turn to us and the entrepreneurship facilitators in the schools for advice or for support with infrastructure, partnerships or funding. In addition, external founders reach out to us because they want to further develop their ventures in collaboration with BFH specialists. We work closely with the Bern Economic Development Agency.

Christine Geissbühler: In the international GUESSS report (Global University Entrepreneurial Spirit Students’ Survey), BFH ranks among the leading universities in Switzerland in this field. Such rankings take into account measurable criteria, such as the number of spin-offs. However, this reflects only half the results of our activities, because success is not measured solely by the number of companies founded. Equally important are the graduates who use their entrepreneurial mindset to solve complex challenges in businesses and organisations and actively help shape the future. BFH’s objective is to strengthen these skills in an even more targeted manner in the future.

What can be done to foster entrepreneurship even more effectively?

Lorenz Probst: It begins with a common understanding of what ‘entrepreneurship’ is. Entrepreneurship is not an industry or a legal structure, but rather a mindset. The goal is to identify and understand issues that are pertinent to specific groups or society as a whole, in order to recognise possibilities and opportunities for change and improvement, and then to develop solutions with a wide range of potential stakeholders.

Christine Geissbühler: Entrepreneurship is set to play an even greater role in BFH’s institutional culture. This includes qualities such as curiosity, initiative and the courage to break new ground. However, such a mindset does not emerge through encouragement alone. We must also further develop the framework conditions so that entrepreneurial action becomes both possible and attractive in daily academic life: by raising the visibility of innovation and impact, recognising relevant achievements and creating the space for collaborations with industry partners. This is how entrepreneurship can be practised on a broad scale and make a difference.

How do students experience this approach?

Christine Geissbühler: Challenge-based learning plays a key role in our degree programmes and continuing education. This means that students don’t just solve arbitrary problems from the textbook, but rather tackle real-world challenges posed by businesses, organisations and BFH industry partners. Students learn to understand problems through dialogue with affected stakeholders, identify opportunities and develop and validate solutions. Then, they implement and adjust them as needed. These are the experiences from which they learn the most during their studies.

Lorenz Probst: A good example is Lucas Renfer, an alumnus of the School of Engineering and Computer Science. Building on his master’s thesis, he founded the spin-off Auto Mate, which develops user-friendly robotic solutions that can be operated without any coding knowledge. The aim is to enable SMEs to benefit from the competitive advantages of automation. The close connection to practice, combined with strong ties to research, places universities of applied sciences in a unique position to address societal challenges more effectively than other educational institutions.

To what extent is entrepreneurship reflected in research?

Lorenz Probst: In research, the key lies in involving industry partners and, more broadly, the groups that are expected to benefit from the solution being developed. Involving them early on and engaging with them on equal terms helps achieve what is known as ‘problem-solution fit’. One of the biggest pitfalls in entrepreneurship is failing to understand the underlying problem properly. In this case, the solution will not work in practice. Or I may have a solution in mind that fails to address the issues that are actually relevant in practice.

Christine Geissbühler: Entrepreneurial thinking is also important in research because projects and funding eventually come to an end and researchers may move on. To ensure that the solutions identified have a broad impact, further steps are often necessary. A recent example of this is the newly founded AgriAqua Ltd., which makes an irrigation solution developed at HAFL available to farmers on a long-term basis. Through entrepreneurship, research finds its way into society in the form of innovations and processes.

What is your vision for BFH as an entrepreneurial university?

Christine Geissbühler: We want to give even more students the opportunity to gain experience in entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship should become second nature. Allow me to repeat myself: entrepreneurship is more than starting a business. When our colleagues at the School of Social Work develop new approaches to integrating the long-term unemployed into the labour market and those approaches are widely adopted, that too is entrepreneurship in action.

Lorenz Probst: An entrepreneurial university focusses on impact, and with this I mean the positive effect on society. Obviously, exams, grades and publications will always remain relevant to our university. However, a commitment to society and the impact made are equally important objectives and benchmarks for an entrepreneurial university.

What personally motivates you to keep championing entrepreneurship?

Christine Geissbühler: When a student has an idea they are eager to bring to life, you can see it. That sparkle in their eyes really touches me. When young people take on ambitious projects, from securing funding to implementation, they develop a strong sense of self-efficacy. They have the confidence to use their skills to solve problems and shape the world. This is incredibly valuable, especially in today’s world. It makes me feel optimistic.

Lorenz Probst: What fascinates me is to meet inspired people every day who have ideas and want to put them into practice. I discover things I never even knew existed. Who knows? Maybe someone reading this interview will have an idea and reach out to us in search of support. We would be pleased to accompany them on that journey.