HAVING A NETWORK IS AN UNDERVALUED PART OF DOING A DEGREE It was academic expertise that drew Guilherme Maciel from Brazil to Denmark to do a PhD, but it was his network and collaboration opportunities that made him stay 14 Enterprise & Innovation FIND GUILHERMES PHD PROJECT HERE: bit.ly/3oCSriw LA WORKS READ HOW AR E AND DG WITH KNOWLE ON INNOVATION P. 13 G uilherme Maciel is briefly back at Aarhus University, where, between 2013 and 2016, he worked on his PhD called The impact of some farming-related factors and pre-processing steps on milk quality for cheese production. It was here he spent three years exploring how agricultural practice and a cows genetic background affect the final cheese product. And it was here he discovered he could excel at more than pure academia, and that he in fact wanted to do something different. That he wanted to use his knowledge in business and industry. That it was here he wanted to create value. - It just dawned on me that I am more of a generalist than a scientist, jokes Guilherme Maciel, who originally moved to Denmark from Brazil in order to do a PhD at Aarhus University simply because it was here he could find a supervisor conducting research in the exact area Guilherme was interested in. Gaining social knowledge When you ask Guilherme what it was he actually found in Denmark, it is not his supervisor or academic expertise he highlights. It is his network, both inside and outside the university walls. In connection with his research project, for example, he made contact with Arla, who helped to finance the project. And, at the university, he worked with several other students, which enabled him to gain social knowledge and collaboration experience. - Working with a lot of other students, both Danish and international, where you are working together on one joint project but coming from different backgrounds and cultures, has given me so much I can use, explains Guilherme. As a Brazilian, he comes from a culture with a stricter work ethic and a different hierarchy in the workplace. But he quickly took to Danish culture. MUCH OF OUR INTERNAL DEVELOPMENT IS OF COURSE TIED UP WITH PRODUCT ROAD MAP S, WHICH LEAVE LITTLE ROOM FOR SPONTANEITY P. 12 P. 6 OULD THERES NO WAY I W N IDEA HAVE STOLEN OUR OW P. 14 YOU ARE SO MUCH MORE THAN YOUR PURELY ACADEMIC SKILLS WEVE HAD A CRAZY AMOU NT OF SUCCESS, AND ITS INCR EDIBLE Why collaborate with Aarhus University? Because collaboration pays off. And because, together, we can find solutions to societys challenges. At Aarhus University, we want to work with you to explore new avenues. How? Here are some examples weve collected. MEET THE ENTREPRENEURS DITTE HØJLAND FROM TEXTILE CHANGE AND THOMAS SOLGAARD FROM MANIGRIP ON PAGE 6 INTRODUCTION: AT A CROSSROADS CONTENT We need to work more closely with large and small companies in both the private and public sector, and we need to get more CVR numbers set up by people at the university says AU rector and director of Enterprise and Innovation. Page 5 STUDENTS AND ENTREPRENE INTRODUCTION: AT A CROSS ROADS W e are in a unique place right now. At a crossroads. Both as a university and as a society. Will we continue as we have done for decades and centuries? Or will we change course, think differently, and explore new avenues? At Aarhus University, we are in no doubt t STUDENTS AND ENTREPRENEURS OR ENTREPRENEURS AND STUDENTS? 6 Enterprise & Innovation The Kitchen gives students at Aarhus University the opportunity to start and grow their own company alongside their studies. It provides office facilities, meeting rooms, access to advice and guidance, a W e have been part of the universitys entrepreneurial community since 2017, and, at the beginning, there was a slight tendency for people to work on their own idea and not share it with anyone else. Thats not the case anymore, explains Thomas Solgaard. - Theres no way I would have stolen our own id - It was difficult to come back after a six-month entrepreneurial internship, but, on the other hand, it allowed us to see our studies in a new light. Everything suddenly became about what it meant for our business, says Ditte. - People say there are three levels in The Kitchen. You can be a student PEOPLE SAY THERE ARE THREE LEVELS IN THE KITCHEN. YOU CAN BE A STUDENT AND AN ENTREPRENEUR ON THE SIDE. YOU CAN BE AN ENTREPRENEUR AND A STUDENT ON THE SIDE. AND YOU CAN JUST BE AN ENTREPRENEUR. IVE CERTAINLY NOTICED THESE SHIFTS. Enterprise & Innovation 9 - But I have been given the option to spread it over three years instead of two, so that I will still have time for the company, she remarks. N THE KITCHEN HAS ITS OW FFEE, COFFEE BAR, CLEVER CO THE WHICH SERVES SOME OF . BEST COFFEE IN AARHUS AND ITS SUSTAINABLE Ready to revolutionise The Kitchen AARHUS UNIVERSITY HAS KNOWLEDGE PARTNERSHIPS WITH SEVERAL OF DENMARKS LARGEST COMPANIES. THESE ARE INDIVIDUALL Y DESIGNED AGREEMENTS, BUT, AS A MINIMUM, THEY ALL INCLUDE A JOINT STEERING COMMITTEE, AN ANNUAL WORKSHOP AND AN ANNUAL NETWORK MEETING How do Danish companies and organisations ensure tha Kamstrup Kristian Rokkjær, New Business Development Manager W e collaborate with Aarhus University at the research level, in relation to Masters students, and around startups and entrepreneurship. Kamstrup has entered into a colla boration agreement with AU, which means we meet 2-3 times a year STORES, WEB SHOPS, COFFEE BARS, RESTAURANTS ... OVER 53,000 EMPLOYEES SPREAD OVER FOUR COUNTRIES. Salling Group Louise Gade, Executive Vice President, HR W e seek new knowledge by orienting ourselves within the industry were a part of - also internationally and through collaboration with educati HAVING A NETWORK IS AN UNDERVALUED PART OF DOING A DEGREE It was academic expertise that drew Guilherme Maciel from Brazil to Denmark to do a PhD, but it was his network and collaboration opportunities that made him stay 14 Enterprise & Innovation FIND GUILHERMES PHD PROJECT HERE: bit.ly/3oCSr Enterprise & Innovation 15 COMPANIES CAN ENGAGE IN DIALOGUE WITH PHD STUDENTS AND EARLY CAREER RESEARCHERS THROUGH THE UNIVERSITYS CAREER SERVICE, AU CAREER PHD & JR. HERE, EARLY CAREER RESEARCHERS ARE PREPARED FOR A CAREER OUTSIDE THE UNIVERSITY INCLUDING THROUGH PHD CAREER MORNING, WHICH, IN 2020, OFFERED CAREER GUIDANCE T A helping hand for the IMMUNE SYSTEM STipe Therapeutics originated at Aarhus University and today employs 16 people. Here we join CEO Claus Elsborg Olesen for six insights into the world of STipe Therapeutics THE ELEVATOR PITCH: WE HELP THE BODYS NATURAL IMMUNE SYSTEM Everyone knows about cancer. THE IDEA: PROTEIN ACTIVATES THE SIGNAL PATHWAY Immunotherapy is hot. New scientific articles are published on the topic almost every week, and immuno therapy is increasingly being used to treat new types of cancer. In 2018, the Nobel Prize for medicine was awarded to two of the researchers who pave CAPITAL: AN ESSENTIAL FACTOR KOBSEN, MARTIN ROELSGAARD JA R CHIEF SCIENTIFIC OFFICE Start-up capital is essential. Biotech development is expensive, and the potential for success is infinitely small. Thats just how it is. We first got start-up capital as a PreSeed Grant from the Novo Nordisk Found Good ideas are built on good and long-standing research Within a few years, the Department of Biomedicine has been the birthplace of several successful spinouts, which together have attracted nearly DKK 1 billion in investment. Completely crazy but not entirely coincidental, says head of department The universitys Technology Transfer Office has also proved to be very professional and flexible with regard to the agreements that have been made. Can you give us an example? At the department, we have created settings and a culture in which people can get together freely. In fact, the idea for one AARHUS Y T I S R E V I UN IN FIGURES 5 2 SPINOUTS IN THE KITCHEN, WHERE RESEARCHERS AT AARHUS UNIVERSITY ARE BUSY TURNING THEIR IDEAS INTO COMPANIES (INCL. 17 PRE-SPINOUTS) 51 % OF AARHUS UNIVERSITYS GRADUATES ARE EMPLOYED IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR 38,000 STUDENTS ARE ENROLLED AT AARHUS UNIVERSITY 170 4,000 STUDENTS TOOK PART IN AU CHALLENGE AN INTERDISCIPLINARY CASE COMPETITION THAT FOCUSED ON SUSTAINABILITY AND INNOVATION, WHERE AURA, DANSKE BANK AND NOVOZYMES SET THE TASKS INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS AT AARHUS UNIVERSITY DIVIDED ACROSS 115 NATIONALITIES 80 86 STARTUPS IN THE UNIVERSITYS E FROM THE ENTREPRENEUR TO THE BILLION-KRONER BUSINESS. FROM THE BACHELOR STUDENT TO THE RESEARCHER. FROM THE LOCAL TO THE GLOBAL. MEET THEM ALL AND LEARN HOW AARHUS UNIVERSITY CONVERTS KNOWLEDGE INTO SOLUTIONS. AND HOW WE CAN DO THE SAME FOR YOU.